What the HYGGE?: The Ultimate Guide to Hygge

You are probably a tad confused as to what the hygge a hygge is, I get it. Let me explain.

Hygge, pronounced (hue-gah) is a term and way of life originating from the Danish language meaning well being. Hygge is pretty much the art of enjoying the simple pleasures in life, feeling the contentment and warmth within yourself and of your loved ones in a cozy environment.

How does one, HYGGE?

Simple. Eliminate all things toxic, annoying, energy depriving and all around negative. Focus on where you are in the present and find contentment and comfort in yourself, as well as your surroundings. This is something I have truly been trying to stick to as of lately. We live in a VERY NEGATIVE WORLD. Bad things happen every single minute of every day. That doesn't mean we have to carry that negativity! We as humans only get one life to life, this is not a practice life; it's the real sha-bang. So unwind, find your peace, and get your hygge on with my personal Hygge routine.

Every Morning I...

1. Wake up peacefully. If it's a work day, I try to set an alarm with a gentle tone that will get me up without stressing me out, and if it's the weekend or an off day I won't set an alarm at all. This allows me to comfortably begin my day without feeling overwhelmed with an explosive alarm in my ear.

2. Neglect my phone and laptop for the first hour or two that I'm up. This can be challenging for me because I have a boyfriend that's up at 6am every morning waiting to hear a good morning reply from me, and because I'm such an OCD person when it comes to checking emails and phone calls, but having the free brain space without all of the added stress helps my day go by a lot more smoothly. When you allow yourself access to your phone first thing in the morning, especially while you're laying in bed doing NOTHING, you are allowing the thoughts, tweets, ideas, and words of others to penetrate into your mind and not allowing yourself to start your day purely with what YOU want to focus your thoughts on.

3. Play soft, smooth music; often times I start my mornings with gospel or old r&b (the good ole days). This gives me peace and comfort to move around productively as I prepare to start the day.

4. Cuddle. This time is important to me because I have a 1 year old pup baby and he is my lifeeeeeeee. Whether its a dog, cat, baby human, husband or wife you're cuddling, be sure to wake up 10 minutes earlier or just spend a few moments cuddling that special person/pet in your life. You will be amazed at how much comfort that can bring you.

5. Stretch. Some days I stretch in bed, somedays I put my music on and do some light yoga. Either way, stretching is a great way to get your blood pumping and your muscles have been proven to perform better throughout the day after a good stretch.

6. Shower. I may be alone on this one, but I like to take my morning shower's in the dark, with a candle lit and my music playing. I zone completely in and that makes the shower so much more enjoyable in the mornings. You can just take a regular shower too, but minimal lighting in a dark room just does something for my peace and I love it.

7. Po' Up. I'm very much a coffee drinker every morning I'm expected to be busy, but these days I am really trying to get into tea (as much as I absolutely have a l w a y s HATED tea). Some days I'll even have lemon water (warm or cold) to kick start my metabolism. Smoothies and Juices are my preferred starter for most days, especially when I'm not having to work all day long and can just sip on my drink. Depending on my mood, I whip up my morning delicacy and get to sippin'. Your body goes 6-8 hours with no fluid while you sleep, so hydration is very important. I drink my morning drink slowly, and think of all of the positive people and experiences in my life with every sip until i'm finished.

8. Get Creative. I am getting back into journaling, reading and podcasts, so in the mornings I try listen to a motivational podcast, (Hey, Girl being a favorite,) and I'll write down a few things I'm grateful for, or a prayer, or sometimes even a note to self on how proud I am of me. It's good for ya soul.

9. Eat a good breakfast. The most important meal of the day. I'm good for starting the day with avocado and egg white sandwich with turkey bacon and a side of fruit. This makes me feel good, especially because what I'm putting into my body is mmmmm mmmm gooooooood.

10. Start my day! When I leave the house (after apologizing to my pup for having to leave him every single time l o l) I get in the car, put on the rest of my podcast or some smooth, non ratchet/cursing music, and start what is going to be a super hygge day.

Every Night I...

1. Unwind. Every day is different. Some days are super long, while others fly by. This usually doesn't change the fact I am alwayssssss tired. Always. I move around a lot, I travel A LOT, so after a long day of being productive I need some major hygge time. Unwind time is spent checking all necessary emails, replying back to whoever I need to reply to, returning phone calls and finishing any responsibilities so that I can completely detach from the long day and refresh my mind and body on something more peaceful.

2. Bump the temperature down before bed. Nothing is better than getting cozy under the blankets when it's perfectly chilly in the house. I usually sleep with it about 68 at night, and love every second of it. This helps me fall into a more peaceful, comfortable, well balanced rest to prepare for the next day ahead.

3. Decide my bedtime. This is important. If you don't know when it's time to power down, you will spend all night up for absolutely no reason. I find that now that it's summer time, I stay up a lot later without cause than I normally would, and sometimes that results in my starting my next day super late which I hate!

4. Power down. An hour before I plan to be asleep, I turn off all distractions. Tv, phone, laptop, speaker, you name it. This allows me to fully unwind and settle into bed comfortably.

5. Keep the lights dim, light a candle. In my bedroom, I have a nightstand lamp that I will leave on until it's time to go to sleep. Avoiding well lit rooms allows you to decompress and puts you in a calming spirit for the night. If you take your showers/bath at night time, the same routine goes for in the morning!

6. Drink a cup of calming tea and enjoy a bedtime snack of something healthy. If y'all have never been wrapped in a cold, cozy, dim lit bedroom while sipping tea from a teacup + eating fruit out of a bowl and surrounded by blankets and pillows....you have not lived. This is the ultimate BOUGIE VIBE. I will usually do my nightly skin care routine at this point and you should see me sitting with 24k gold collagen eye masks on my face with my hair braided back and conditioned as I sip my tea to my calm background music. You couldn't tell me I'm not Beyonce's seed.

7. Read a few pages of the book of my choice. Right now I'm re-reading The Destruction of Black Civilization by Chancellor Williams; but when I don't want to read about black history I am also reading A Fault In Our Stars by John Green. I aim to read at least 10 pages per night, and honestly reading makes me sleepy so it usually unwinds any part of me that was still tense from my day. Get LOST in a good novel. It's one of my many favorite peaceful activities to date. I also journal at night time about the day I had, what I can improve on, or just writing affirmations of choice to ensure my next day is a smooth one.

8. Peacefully Shut down. By this time my phone is getting shut off, my room is dim, my face is clean, my plans for the following day have been set in my planner app, my clothes have been laid out for the next day, my pup has been given attention for the night and I am ready for sleep. I put my lavender diffuser blend on so that I am well rested and hit REM very smoothly, and call it a night before starting this hygge process all over again :).

This way of life, especially once it becomes a habit, is so peaceful and makes me such a happier person throughout the day. Each step seems so minute, but the peace in having control over your life, what you see on the internet, what you allow into your atmosphere, what you chose to listen to is something I crave every day now. Once you go hygge, you won't ever want to go back.

-Dom

#Hygge #Namaste #Peaceful #healthylifestyle #selfcare #selflove #essentialoils #candles #aromatherapy