LIFESTYLE AUTHOR
Todd Whitthorne
HOW TO BUILD AN EMPOWERING MORNING ROUTINE n Motivational speaker and author Todd Whitthorne shares how a morning routine — like this one — could change your life.
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outines are like a soft, comfortable sweater on a chilly day — they just feel good. Unfortunately, our regular routines were all thrown for a loop back in March. “Loop” is maybe not a strong enough word; it’s been more like a prolonged earthquake. Now, over six months later, we’ve all established new routines, some of which are healthy, and others, well, not so much. The COVID-19 data on health is not encouraging. While most everyone has heard of the pandemicrelated weight gain described as the “quarantine 15” or the “COVID curves,” the real concern should be the impact the virus has on our psychological health. A recent CDC study of over 5,400 adults found that almost 41 percent of Americans are struggling with mental health issues stemming from the pandemic. That study was soon followed by a paper in The
OCTOBER 2020
Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) indicating “depression symptom prevalence was more than three-fold higher during the COVID-19 pandemic than before.” The authors also encouraged us to “recognize that these effects can be long-lasting, and to consider preventative action to help mitigate its effects.” My guess is none of these data points surprise you. In fact, you might be thinking that the numbers should even be more alarming. It’s been said we are all in the same storm, but in different boats. For some, the pandemic has been mildly inconvenient, but for others, it’s been devastating. Regardless, for each and every one of us — it’s been disruptive to our routines. Moving forward, how can you best create an environment that will maximize your ability to not just tread water, but to come out of this mess better and stronger than when you went in? With that in mind, I’d
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