My Morning Routine Isn’t a Routine—And That’s Okay

Every time I read about someone’s “perfect” morning routine, I feel like I’ve walked into a parallel universe. You know the ones—wake up at 5 AM, meditate for twenty minutes, do yoga on a minimalist mat, drink hot lemon water while reviewing your quarterly goals. It’s the kind of thing that looks amazing on Instagram but feels like a complete mismatch for my reality.

I’ve tried to fit into that world. I’ve read the books. Downloaded the apps. Set the alarms. And then felt awful when I didn’t stick with it. Turns out, I’m not a business person. I’m a creative person. I’m also neurodivergent, and that changes how I experience structure, energy, and time itself.

No morning is exactly the same.
Sometimes I need music, and other times I need silence. I don’t always know what’s coming, but I’ve built a relationship with myself that allows for flexibility, compassion, and creativity. That matters more to me than checking boxes on someone else’s list.

So, here’s what my morning looks like.

When I wake up, it feels like I’ve had a long journey or just returned from another dimension. My thoughts start to arrive like strange souvenirs, scattered, dancing and delightful. My brain loves to idle in neutral—not because nothing’s happening, but because everything is.

For me, living with ADHD (inattentive type) means that I often have to stop thinking in order to start doing something considered “productive.” But I value that in-between space. It’s fertile ground.

What gets me moving is usually writing down an idea that drifted through during that dreamy neutral zone. That, and getting a big glass of water.

Water is the most important substance we can consume, so I’ve made it a habit to drink a full, large glass as soon as I can. My body just went all night without it so whether I want to or not, I need it. When I first started this habit, I could barely keep it down. It felt wrong. If this is you, give it some time – it changed my mornings and day dramatically.

By this time, I’ve usually taken a moment to feel grateful for being alive another day. I don’t need to write that down to believe it—it’s just there. (unless I’m clinically depressed but that’s for a different article)

Then, I stretch or exercise, because that’s part of my gratitude too. My health is my top value, so I treat it like a priority. I’ve been focusing on my back, legs, balance, and core strength lately. I could do this for an hour, but realistically, it’s more like 15 minutes.

I make it a point not to sit down when I do things like put on socks or wash my feet. Why? Because balancing on one foot while doing a task is a tiny, daily act of resistance against aging.

As we get older, it’s easy to default to sitting. But standing takes brain energy, and using those small, stabilizing muscles regularly keeps them from fading. “Use it or lose it” isn’t just a saying—it’s a biological fact.

I refuse to become another “…she had a fall…” story. Nope. Not my arc.

Coffee is part of my day. Sooner rather than later. I have a couple mugs in the morning and stay away from it in the afternoon—I let the day wear me out naturally.

It’s with that coffee that I get clean and dressed. I don’t listen to or watch anything yet. That comes later.

At this point, my mind is probably at its sharpest, and I’ve learned not to waste it on other people’s work. This is when I get creative for myself. When I start building what I imagined earlier in neutral.

Writing this article, for example, is one of those things. This isn’t for someone else. This is for me—with a sprinkle of hope it helps someone else too.

More or less. It’s not curated. It’s not color-coded. But it’s mine.
I’ve put the most valuable things first. And yes, I am alone every weekday and don’t have children to care for anymore, which gives me a lot of freedom. So this may not work for most. We are all different.

It took me a long time to realize I had an ADHD brain. It’s taken me just as long to realize how valuable that is and how to get the most out of it. I need to nurture how it works and follow through on the gold it offers up.

To the creative who finds morning routines boring and monotonous,
To the neurodivergent person who might love routine but not the anxiety of messing it up,
To those who thought they needed a plan to be taken seriously—

You don’t have to be like everyone else. You just have to be like you.

So, with the deepest respect I can muster…
piss off, perfect Instagram mornings!

Originally posted on lindsey.substack.com