Routines! Everyone at some point in their lives had a routine. Whether it’s a morning routine, night routine, school routine… etc. Routines give us a sense of balance in our lives. It makes things just a little bit easier. Most of the time when we develop routines, it’s unintentional. Our days can become more uplifting and productive when we follow a schedule that keeps us on track physically and psychologically. By arranging the daunting daily duties into a pattern that looks simpler to follow, a routine is a method used to improve mental health. In trying and uncertain times, both parents and kids can find peace in familiar hobbies. Like adults, kids benefit from having predictable, comfortable routines because it gives them a sense of security. Routines that are predictable and repetitive are calming and assist in lowering anxiousness. They’ll also assist you in regaining control over your day, and ultimately, over your existence.
Life as a full time college student while working a full time night shift job and a part time day shift job, it’s nearly impossible for me to not have a schedule or routine set in place. Living a life that constantly revolves around working, whether it’s academic work or your job, can get a little messy sometimes. You tend to start forgetting things, missing deadlines, arriving late, becoming sleep deprived… etc. But coming up with a daily routine can help you stay up to date with everything and eventually your body and mind will know what to do and when to do it. A good healthy routine starts off with some type of organization. It doesn’t matter if you’re a person who prefers Digital Touch or if you’re a person who prefers to write things down. Whatever works for you! But using my online calendar to help me stay on track with my meetings for both jobs and marking my deadlines at least a day ahead has been really helpful for me. Since I’m a working college student with a schedule that’s kind of already in place, I’ve had to create a routine to work around that schedule. In the morning I’d wake up, go to Bible study, go to work, go to class, go to another class, take a 3 hour break, go to class again and then go to my night shift full time job. When I’m finished working those 12 hours, it all starts up again at 7:30am with Bible study. I know it sounds like a lot! When do I find to sleep or eat? Or do I ever get a break? Short answer… yes. I do. Even though I have a set schedule and a daily routine, sometimes I’ll take time out for myself because I’m also important. My mental health always comes first. But I can almost guarantee that if I didn’t have a routine or some type of organization… I would be all over the place!
I know that all this talk about establishing and keeping up with a certain routine sounds so important, and it is. To an extent. But it’s also important to be present. When you’ve been doing something for so long and start developing routines, it can sometimes feel like you’re a robot. You don’t wanna become a robot in your own mind or in your own life and miss all of the important things, or miss the things you should be acknowledging. It’s important to have a routine but it’s also important to be aware of everything.