A Trick To Starting Your Week Off Right, As Told By A Feel Good Expert

Let’s call a spade a spade. Monday mornings can be dreadful. Sticking to a feel-good ritual will make them a whole lot better.

Sip Sip is a weekly newsletter dedicated to making moms feel SEEN in the realm of mental health. As the editor, I’m committed to easing your mom woes — one newsletter at a time — through advice, lessons, and humor.

Happy After-Thanksgiving!!

I figured I would give your inboxes a break from the “How to survive the Holidays” articles, in addition to the onslaught of Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals. Speaking of, did anyone get anything cool?! I got a jumpsuit from HATCH. Highly, highly recommend the brand whether you’re pregnant, thinking about getting pregnant, or you just favor oversize outfitting like I do.

Needless to say, it feels good to be back behind my screen giving you tips on how to enjoy your motherhood & wellness journeys.

Anywho…

Because we may be feeling a little more tired, a little more bloated, and a little more EWW than usual, I wanted to give you a feel good tip to make you feel in COMPLETE control of your week after a weekend spent overeating, dodging family drama and not moving our bods as much as we should have.

I’ve taken cues from some of my favorite people to listen to — among them comedian Ashley Hesseltine, self-improvement guru Judi Holler, bestselling author Rea Frey, and personal branding expert Jessica Zweig — on what they do to be in alignment with themselves to ensure their weeks are grounded, intentional, productive, and fabulous.

Because how you start your day dictates how your day will go, healthy (and fun!!) routines are ESSENTIAL to your happiness and productivity, especially as we close in on the dark days of winter when routines tend to get a little sloppy because we’re cold and pissed off.

Ashley’s tip

To start every Monday morning by having a mint cocoa smoothie.

I love this because it is so simple. It’s her way of setting an intention for the week that she is (a) prioritizing herself and (b) kicking her Monday off with a chocolatey treat bang to boost her mood and energy.

Judi’s tip

To not give a fuck about what other people think of you, period.

In light of the holiday season when tensions are high, I found this quip from Judi on her meditation of being Woke to be fitting: “I have a choice whether to join in the darkness of the world, its petty judgements, and constant blame. When I do so I inject my psyche with poison, and today I choose a healthy mind.”

Rea’s tip

To return to our primitive forms of “Being” — aka waking up without looking at your damn phone.

On the toxicity of social media, Rea says this: “I notice whenever we turn the TV off at night, my creativity turns on. I’m able to organize, read, craft, draw, play, or just indulge in a bit of self-care. I notice when I put my phone away, I am engaged in whatever it is I am doing. I feel better. I think better. I am better.”

Jess’s tip

To get crystal clear on what you want your week to look like, aka what you want to accomplish and WHY.

Jessica is the Queen of intention setting. Each month she explores a new intention-setting theme with her podcast like “Be your own magic,” “Be grateful,” and “Be the influence,” and it SUPER helpful to anyone whose mind is a little ADD (don’t we all have some degree of that?) to keep us on track for the thing or things that truly matter.

My tip

To start your Monday slowly.

Even if you have a million things to do before getting out the door like packing lunches, corralling kids, preparing for meetings, and finding your good shoes, keep in mind that how you start your week dictates how your week will go.

If you allow yourself to be in the throes of chaos, your week will have chaotic energy. But! If you sloooowwww iittt dooowwwwnnnn and enjoy your coffee instead of guzzling it down your throat, your mind will be clear, you will feel refreshed, and you will start your week cool, calm, and collected.

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I hope this was helpful. If you have any other feel good rituals that keep yourself in check, do tell! See you next week.

If you enjoyed this newsletter, share it with your friend. It might be just what she needs.

Keep being you.

Xo, Ash