Waking Up is Hard to Do

As we ease into the darker months of Scandinavian winter, a familiar challenge reemerges: waking up.

It’s cold, it’s dark, and your bed feels like the last refuge from a world that just won’t stop demanding things from you. That first alarm? You ignore it. The second one? Annoying, but you bargain for five more minutes. The third? Now you’re mad at yourself for setting it in the first place.

Welcome to winter mornings in Scandinavia, where the sun doesn’t show up until you’ve already lived half your day questioning all your life choices.

For many Scandinavians, the extended hours of winter darkness are an adjustment; for those who are not naturally morning people (myself included), it can feel like a direct affront to the human spirit. I moved to Copenhagen thinking I could hack this. “Oh, I’ll embrace the culture,” I thought. “Learn to love the darkness!”

Living in Copenhagen has taught me to accept certain inevitabilities. The wind will cut through your coat, icy bike lanes will test your balance, and the darkness will envelop your mornings.

Having chosen to make this city my home, I’ve decided to confront this struggle head-on. “Embrace the suck,” as they say. Is there any chance we could glass-half-full our way through this? With a few strategies in place, I think we all can.

It took me 10 years of trial, error, and flailing around in the dark, to figure out how to stop fighting winter mornings and actually make them work.

Somehow, along the way, I’ve even become one of those annoying morning people (yes, I apologise in advance). But with a little strategy, I genuinely believe mornings can go from soul-crushing to, if not joyful, at least tolerable.

Here’s what I’ve learned in a long, hard-fought lesson in: the art of waking up.

Sleep: A Simple Solution We Overcomplicate

The advice is almost insultingly obvious: go to bed earlier. And yet, few of us truly follow it. For years, I resisted this simple truth, sabotaging my mornings with late-night distractions: emails, movies, or—most unforgivably—scrolling through articles about sleep itself.

Sleep, like so many essentials, requires effort to protect. This means turning off screens early, creating an environment conducive to rest, and most importantly: surrendering to the idea that today is over. If this comes naturally to you, physiologically or mentally, consider yourself blessed. Truly, I’m envious.

I’m annoyingly good at sleeping. I’ve slept in construction zones, through earthquakes, you name it. But Copenhagen’s winter darkness flipped the script. Without sunlight, my schedule turned into chaos—I’d work until the crack of dawn, then stumble into a 9 a.m. appointment feeling like I’d been hit by a bus. It wasn’t sustainable.

While it’s great to have the strength and discipline to keep changing forward, the ability to retreat is equally important. Yang needs its yin.

Need more tips on falling asleep? Read our earlier article: How To Sleep When the Sun Won’t Go Down.

Leverage the Power of Routines (Even When They Feel Silly)

Mornings are infinitely easier when you’re not required to make decisions. This is why routines—however mundane or overly elaborate—are invaluable. They strip away the cognitive load of those early hours and protect you from the traps of unnecessary noise: email, social media, or the news. These things have an uncanny ability to derail even the best-laid plans.

Your routine doesn’t need to be fancy—it just needs to work. Maybe it’s as simple as: wake up, drink water, brush your teeth, stretch, and drink coffee. Done. That’s a perfectly valid approach. Mine, however, is a little more…let’s say, experimental.

My routine has been cobbled together through years of trial, error, and the occasional bout of over-engineering. It’s elaborate, sometimes absurd, and constantly evolving. And most importantly: I love it. There is no “ultimate” routine, because priorities change, responsibilities shift, and honestly, doing the same thing every day for years sounds like its own kind of punishment.

The goal of my morning routine is simple:

Have fun.

Leverage the power of routine to knock out small, necessary tasks

Start my day in a way that supports happiness, health, and longevity—a launchpad for transitioning into meaningful work.

Here’s the thing: your morning routine isn’t just about “priming” yourself for the real work. It is important work. These are the little tasks that simply need to get done—things that, if left to later, become annoyingly tedious or totally neglected.

There are a few habits I rely on every morning—not because they’re perfect, but because they keep me grounded and make the day feel just a little more manageable:

Music

I much prefer waking up to music, rather than some cranky alarm. But it has to hit that sweet spot: not so upbeat that it feels like my alarm is mocking me, but not so somber that I’m tempted to call the whole day off. Then I shift to a song that makes me smile or dance—something nostalgic or ridiculous enough to test my partner’s sense of humor.

Lemon Water (or Whatever I’m Obsessed with This Month)

Right now, it’s an over-the-top smoothie packed with all the nutrients I’ve decided are non-negotiable. It feels like self-care and pseudo-science rolled into one. Supposedly, the smell of lemons alone can boost brain activity, but honestly, you’ll have to try it and decide for yourself. Just don’t brush your teeth after—it’s like inviting citrus to a demolition derby with your enamel.

Meditation

Oh, meditation. The relationship we’ve had. It took me years to stick to it, and even now, most mornings I’m not convinced it’s doing anything—until the day I skip it. For me, meditation is like flossing: not glamorous, not optional, and best handled before I have time to second-guess it.

Get Outside (Even When It’s Miserable)

If there’s one thing that’s truly changed my relationship with winter, it’s light exposure—actual daylight, not just a lamp pretending to be the sun. I make a point to step outside first thing, within the first 30 minutes to hour, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Bonus points for visiting a park or some greenery. There’s something about fresh air and daylight hitting your retinas that resets your brain, even if you’re standing there wondering why you left the house without a scarf.

Just as important as what I include in my mornings is what I deliberately leave out—because some things are best avoided entirely:

I don’t read the news or scroll social media

Nothing throws a grenade into your morning quite like starting with someone else’s chaos.

I don’t hit snooze

Snooze is a lie. It pretends to be self-care but actually makes you feel worse. If you know you’re not getting up on the first alarm, just set it later and save yourself the emotional drama.

I don’t prioritize things I’ll do anyway

I love exercise—I’ll tend to always find time for it. So instead of reaching for my runners first thing, I start with what I know I’d otherwise avoid, like meditation. The more likely I know I’ll struggle to do an important task, the earlier I’ll do it.

I don’t let the routine take over my day

There’s one caveat, and it’s a big one: your morning routine can’t go on forever. I mean, it can—who am I to judge if you want to spend the whole day meditating and drinking smoothies? But ideally, your routine is like a runway: it gets you off the ground and into what matters most.

The Big Picture

Routines aren’t about perfection—they’re about creating a rhythm. It’s scaffolding for your day, a way to save your brain from making decisions while it’s still waking up. Your routine should evolve with your priorities; otherwise, it’ll feel as stale as last year’s resolutions.

Whether your mornings involve a single cup of coffee or a full-blown personal development workshop, the goal is the same: make mornings less miserable. Even if that means doing something so silly it makes you laugh—because trust me, that’s a win too.

Pretend you like the dark in the morning

I have a Swedish friend that likes the quiet stillness of Scandinavian mornings. He noted that there’s unique beauty in the moments before dawn before the world awakens. The way he described it intrigued me, so I decided to adapt has attitude as my own. Yes, my friend: fake it until you make it.

I also believe that hygge is something that shouldn’t just be reserved for those dark winter evenings. Incorporate it in the morning too.

I wish that my sister lived in Copenhagen with me as my personal alarm clock. She would always wake me up by throwing on the music, lighting candles and cooking up a savory breakfast that wafted through the house. I’d wake up pretty quickly to join the party! If you do have an amazing person like this in your life, never let them go. Otherwise, just try to bring a bit of hygge to your own life; light a candle, spray a linen spray as you make your bed. You’re worth it!

Last winter, I created music automations that gently guide me through my routine, nudging me along with tracks that change each day. Yes, I understand this is pretty extra! But I’m so glad I took the time to create it, as it’s transformed my mornings from a Sisyphean challenge into something much more Pavlovian, and something I actually look forward to. (If you’re curious, feel free to reach out—I’m happy to share more information!)

Have a reason to get up

Hauling yourself out of bed requires motivation, at least initially. Beyond work, having a reason to get up in the morning makes the whole process so much easier. Try to remind yourself before you go to bed and when you wake up. Having something to look forward to, beyond just getting tasks done, is powerful stuff. This might involve some soul-searching. What are you doing with you life? No idea? No wonder you can’t get up in the morning. I’ve been there, and I go back there often enough. It’s something I believe we all should review regularly. Figuring out what you’re going to do with your life is generally what gets me up in the morning, and that’s kinda exciting.

The humdrum of routine catches up with you and before you know it, life has passed you by. I understand that this can seem a little over the top, but I truly believe this is important. Is your purpose to help people? To inspire compassion? To express creative possibilities? You can get more specific than this!

Lost? Pick up a copy of Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankel; it’s a great place to start.

When all else fails, maybe food is the answer. Seriously. I am so motivated to get my tired ass out of bed when I have a delicious breakfast planned. Some people swear by a workout. Others need a podcast, a journal, or 15 minutes of staring at their dog. It doesn’t matter what your thing is, as long as it’s something you actually care about. Find it. Use it.

Take Your Damn Vitamins

Scandinavian winters are infamous for their effect on mental health, and for good reason. The lack of natural light disrupts our circadian rhythms, making it harder to wake up and stay energized. The good news? Vitamin D can help. The bad news? You actually have to *take* it. Shocking, I know.

I leave my vitamin D tablets out on the counter because, as it turns out, owning vitamins isn’t the same as consuming them. Pro tip: check your B12 levels while you’re at it. Deficiencies there can screw you over in ways you didn’t even know were possible.

Oh, and eat some damn vegetables. I get it, grocery shopping in winter is a nightmare. Everything’s gray, cold, and overpriced. That’s why services like Aarstiderne—they deliver vegetables to your door so you don’t have to brave the frozen wasteland that is your local supermarket.

Also, if you’re feeling like crap all the time, maybe it’s not just the weather. Depression is no joke, and it hits hard in the winter. If this sounds like you, don’t “tough it out.” Talk to someone. Seriously. Doctors exist for a reason, and so do resources like Lifeline. You’re not alone, and there’s help available.

Be Kind to Yourself (And Accept That It’s Going to Suck Sometimes)

Here’s the hard truth nobody tells you: some mornings are just going to be awful, no matter how much you prepare. You’ll wake up late, spill coffee on yourself, and realize you forgot to charge your phone. It happens.

The key is to not let one bad morning ruin your day—or your week. Screw-ups are normal. Stop treating them like some kind of moral failure. Learn what you can, fix what you can, and move on with self-compassion.

Remember, we’re all in this together! A Danish poet called Henrik Nordbrandt wrote the following poem “The Year Has 16 Months:”

Året har 16 måneder: November
december, januar, februar, marts, april
maj, juni, juli, august, september
oktober, november, november, november, november

November is hard. December is okay because of the distraction of Christmas. The crystal clear snow of January is dazzling in its beauty. But then February is a shocker.

Some mornings will be hard, but that doesn’t mean you have to be hard on yourself. Finally, I’m happy to say I’m a morning person and actually mean it.

….Or if all else fails, head to Spain.