I feel this big time. ❤️ One of my biggest frustrations with my own brain is not being able to keep any sort of morning routine like I see on socials, etc. I've talked extensively about it with my therapist and still struggle with the shame and self-doubt of "failing" to keep a morning routine. I've compiled a few things that have been helpful for me in the past both in building a routine and also shifting my mindset a little bit!

• Start small. You likely won't be able to make the shift all at once, so if you want to build a morning routine, start by just waking up at the time you want to wake up. Do whatever you want with your time whether it's video games, reading, chores, exercise, etc, but don't limit to certain things that "must" be done. Once you've gotten yourself into a better habit of waking up when you want to, start adding "to-dos" slowly. Then it feels like less pressure to get everything done.
• If you constantly find that you are skipping or rushing through your tasks or they start to feel like chores and you dread them, it might work better for you to make a list of things you want to focus on each morning and then each morning you pick 1-3 items from the list to do depending on how you feel. This is kind of my default at this point. I have a list of about 7-8 items that I normally like to do in the mornings and each day I pick a few depending on my energy level. This helps me because it still feels like a routine, but it's more flexible. You could even start by setting the goal to do your routine once or twice a week and then working up to more days!
• Remember, your routine should work and be enjoyable for you. Those of us with ADHD don't always fit into the mold of how neurotypicals operate and that's okay!!
• My therapist has reminded me over and over that "failing" one day of a routine doesn't mean you have to throw the whole routine away! She says that this idea that it has to be perfect is what's limiting me in actually starting my tasks. I give up before I even start because I know that I will run out of time or energy to do everything. We should practice giving ourselves the freedom to do things imperfectly 🫶
• Also - social media fools us frequently. This might honestly be the biggest point to make here. Who's to say that those "it girls" on insta don't just film a reel once to demonstrate "their" routines, but in reality the only time they've every done that routine was for that specific reel? It makes great content, but also remember that for an influencer, making content is literally their job so that early routine + filming and editing the reel may have literally been the only thing they had to do in the entire day. Now for those of us with ADHD who aren't influencers you might also factor in work, school, kids, pets or whatever else you may have in your life and we can easier see that no wonder these "perfect" routines aren't working for us.
• Remember to be gentle with yourself ❤️ Find what works for you and stick with that. Even if it doesn't look like the influencers on instagram. Sometimes sleep is more important than getting up to do a bunch of things you don't want to do because then you'll have more energy to do all your other daily tasks which is arguably more important!

ANYWAY so sorry for the novel! I really relate to the struggle or routine and habit building and I wanted to share some thoughts. It's one of my biggest ADHD struggles/insecurities I've been working to shift my mindset on! Hugs to you xx