The Benefit of Routines

In this time of great uncertainty, it is difficult to feel like we still have control over our lives. For me, I have recognized that I only really have control over what I do and say. Incorporating a morning and evening routine is something that has helped me kick off my day on the right foot, and wrap it up nicely as well. This practice has definitely helped in my transition to dental school, as part of the first-ever D1 class at Stony Brook to begin fully online. One of our professors compared our learning as “attempting to drink from a fire hydrant” and honestly, that’s pretty accurate. With the barrage of new information and exams, papers, and quizzes to test our learning, prioritization is key. I believe that you have to take care of yourself first before trying to process this vast amount of information. So without further ado, I’ll take you through my evening and morning routines, which are still a work in progress themselves!

Evening

A good morning starts the night before, so I’ll start with the evening routine. Some practices that have helped me get some rest:

• Write a to-do list of the next day’s tasks. This is absolutely essential to stay organized and not forget any important things that you have to do! I also write a task list for the coming week each Saturday or Sunday.

• Go to sleep at the same time every night. I have seen this one over and over when searching for tips about sleep hygiene. I typically go to bed around 10:30 PM.

• Cut out screen time about 30-60 minutes before bed. Even if you’ve got night shift on to avoid blue light, try to avoid the mental stimulation of scrolling through social media.

• Use sleep aids (melatonin, Benadryl, etc.) if necessary. Most are not suggested for long-term use. There are also many sleep sound apps or recordings available; my personal favorite is Headspace. More information on sleep hygiene can be found here.

• Read a book for 15-20 minutes. Fiction is recommended over non-fiction for before bed (something I need to adjust myself!)

• Keep a journal. I brought this practice into my routine a few weeks ago and have loved it so far. I use Notion for my journal, as well as for general notetaking and organization. A journal template can be found here, but this is really up to personal preference as there are so many ways to journal.

Morning

Since most hard-hitting academic things happen in the morning, I have had to adjust from my summertime sleeping in to become a morning person again. Here are a few things I do essentially every morning, whether that’s at 6 AM on days with early classes or a few hours later on the weekends:

• Journal. Keeping this journal has been a really nice way for me to bookend my day, as it lets me set my intentions for the day and then reflect at the end of the day. It also incorporates gratitude statements, which have been shown to increase happiness.

• Meditate. I have been using the app Headspace to meditate since my first year of college, and I feel that it has helped me become less anxious and stressed. It’s also helped me remember to remain present to make the most of every moment and connect with others more meaningfully.

• Exercise. I may have a pre-workout snack depending on if I’m doing a more strength-based or high-intensity, quick workout. If I do have a snack, I take that time to do some Anki flashcards or some other task on my to-do list that’ll take 45 minutes to an hour. This can also be a morning bike ride, run, or yoga. All up to the individual :)

• “Cold” shower. Washing up after the workout is a must, and I put cold in quotations because I really just lower the temperature for the last minute or so to fully wake myself up.

• Breakfast. For me, this usually means some combination of eggs, breakfast meat or smoked salmon, cheese, and bread. And coffee. An alternative is overnight oats, which has actually become my go-to pre-workout snack in recent weeks.

• Time for class! By this point, I usually cut it pretty close to class start time, but I give myself 10-15 minutes just to skim over the material we’ll be covering that day.

That’s pretty much it! These are the main practices that I have found to help me start and end the day by taking some time to take care of myself first. I have incorporated each of these one by one over time. That way, it didn’t feel overwhelming when building this routine. So if any of these appeal to you, just try them out one at a time. Hopefully, this helps someone, and if you’ve got a favorite morning or evening routine let me know!

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This post was contributed by Gil Barahman, Director of Collegiate Pre-dental Education at ADEA COSRF District 2 and student at Stony Brook School of Dental Medicine ('24). Instagram: @license2gil