Begrudgingly Participating in the 5 am Club

As someone who struggles to fall asleep and stay asleep, I have gotten pretty acquainted with most hours around the clock.

There's the TV watching late night (for me) 10 pm to 12 am slot where I'm trying to convince my body it really is time to wind down and fall asleep. There's the 2 am hypervigilence, where I wake up in the middle of the night and wonder what to do or how to go back to sleep. And lately, there's a new friend at the party - 5 am.

This has become somewhat of a theme for my life. I have found in this season I am lucky enough to fall asleep decently within the first 45 minutes of my laying down for bed (a big win, folks!), and although there has been tossing and turning, I mostly have been able to stay asleep (or calm, quiet and resting) until 5 am.

But then a light switch turns on in my mind.

Ruminating thoughts and sprawling to-do lists

There's a thousand things to think about - what's on the calendar for the day ahead, what's in my fridge, what do I need at the grocery store, what's on my work to do list, what calls do I need to return, how am I ever going to fall back asleep when my alarm is going to go off in an hour or 2?

I wish I had the best suggestions, or that I had crowd sourced some answers for this question, but I want to share what I've been doing and how it's been affecting me.

If my brain truly feels like it is awake, I don't fight it. I just get up. Yes, this means many days I have been starting my days earlier than necessary, but I find it less taxing on me than if I were to toss and turn during that time with a brain full of questions and a list full of things that I just need to plow through.

When I get up, I start with a brain dump. An empty page of paper and a pen does wonders for that part of my brain, especially when it's still sleepy and I feel like I'm thinking on overdrive.

I take care of small tasks first. Things like making a grocery list, setting my schedule for the day, showering, setting out my clothes - things that are "easy" and I can cross off my list makes me feel like getting up early has roots in productivity, and then I feel more like a super hero and less like someone who was dragged out of bed by their overactive mind.

Taking action and control?

When I find a natural pause in my morning, I either list or reflect on all I have accomplished. It's certainly not ideal to get out of bed at 5 am daily, but when I think about all of the things I've accomplished before the sun comes up or before my daughter starts calling my name, I can reflect and feel some sense of gratitude and almost... Control even though it was definitely not my choice to get up so early!

Is there a time on the clock that has been haunting you lately? How have you handled it? Have you tried anything I listed above? I'd love to hear your tips.