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in Lifestyle, Writing & Blogging · March 21, 2016

My Morning Routine

My life is in a weird place at the moment. Two days a week, I work in Cambridge, and since I start at 7:30 AM, I’m up at 6 at the latest. Two other days a week, I have class in the afternoons. The weekends are for homework and blog work and Wednesdays are for blog work and medical appointments. With all this change in routine from day to day – although my schedule of what happens on what days of the week remains the same – it’s extra important for me (and my anxiety) that I have a morning routine on the five days I week I’m not out the door at 7 AM. Since it can be interesting to see what other people are up to, I’m sharing that routine today.

A Writer's Morning Routine

When I first wake up – I like being up on the earlier side, depending on your definition of early, so I’m up around 7, and definitely by 7:30. It takes around an hour for my morning stiffness to wear off (thanks, arthritis), and I take that time to drink my coffee, catch up on what happened online while I was asleep, and to watch news programs. I’m personally a big fan of the Today Show, so I have that on in the background. If there’s my bread, granola bars, or my breakfast cookies available, I eat that after I drink my coffee. If there isn’t, I make oatmeal for breakfast about an hour after I’ve woken up.

Getting down to work – I am significantly more productive and in less pain earlier in the day, so I try to start working by 9 AM at the absolute latest. If it’s a day with a new blog post, once it goes live at 8 AM EST, I share it on Google+, the blogging Facebook groups I’m a part of, Tumblr, and Instagram if applicable. (There’s actually a lot I do to promote my blog posts.) If I don’t have a new post, I make sure that I have promotions scheduled for an old post. I also try to respond to emails and comments, participate in Facebook groups, etc. A large part of being a blogger is social media presence, so I’m very aware of posting regularly, what I post, etc. I spend some time at the beginning day making sure that my scheduled social media is all good to go, and that way I don’t have to worry about it later in the day.

Serious work time – This is the work that requires serious concentration and the work that is the most important. The day of the week and what I’ve accomplished so far that week dictates the work that I do. It’s either writing a blog post – which can take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours – or working on TLM. For those of you who aren’t familiar with that, it’s my second novel, which I am 77% of the way through. TLM stands for the current title, but since I’m not 100% sure if that’s going to be the final title, I refer to it as the acronym. When I’m able to, I try to write a couple thousand words of it, but that’s not always possible. Regardless, I write several thousand words every week through blogging, which is great because writing is a seriously important part of my life. I’ve been a writer for as long as I can remember, and I feel wrong if I don’t write. It’s a major part of who I am, which is why setting aside several hours every week to write something is so important to me.

With all of the work I do, plus the constant pain and anemia, coffee is a crucial part of my life. I drink anywhere from two to five cups a day, often half-caffeinated so I can drink more without getting shaky. So you can imagined that I jumped at the chance to review some coffee from Atlas Coffee Club.

Atlas Coffee Club Review

Atlas Coffee Club is a monthly subscription where you get coffee from around the world. “Each batch is hand picked, roasted fresh, made to order, and shipped to your door so quick the “roasted on” date stamp might still be wet” – that’s how fresh it is (info from here). You can subscribe to the club or buy individual bags. Their coffee is from all over the world so you can try all different kinds of coffee depend ing on you preferences.

They sent me their Brazilian blend, a medium roast coffee with notes of hazelnut and chocolate, giving it a full-bodied flavor. I can definitely taste a (delicious) difference in it! It is definitely better than some of the coffee I buy elsewhere. And the coffee came with a card explaining the region where its from, the short version of coffee growing in Brazil, how they recommend you brew the coffee, and where the beans fit along the spectrum of light to dark. I prefer medium or light roasted coffee, as that is less bitter (and actually stronger), and the Brazilian coffee they sent me definitely fits the bill.

The Atlas website features profiles of all the coffee they have, as well as profiles of the communities they work with. This is especially great a) if you have very specific coffee preferences or b) if it’s important to you to be aware of the impact your purchase has in the community’s source. And if you subscribe to the club, you’ll get a bag of coffee delivered either every 30 days or every 15 days. You’ll never have to leave the house to get more coffee!

Overall, I have been very satisfied with the taste and quality of the coffee as well as my interaction with the company. All good things! I definitely recommend them, especially if you’re interested in trying new types of coffee.

What’s an important part of your morning routine? What is your coffee preference?

Disclaimer: I received this coffee from Atlas in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own! For more information, check out my disclosure policy.

Kate Mitchell

Kate Mitchell is a blogger, chronic illness patient, and advocate who helps people understand chronic illness and helps chronic illness patients live their best lives.

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  1. Amanda @ Anchored to Sunshine says

    March 21, 2016 at 1:42 pm

    I love reading about how others start their mornings! Coffee is the focal point of mine as well 🙂

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  1. Kate the (Almost) Great | Boston Lifestyle Blog - My Evening Routine - Kate the (Almost) Great | Boston Lifestyle Blog says:
    February 7, 2019 at 7:01 am

    […] written before about my morning routine, so when I got the opportunity to review these awesome sheets, it seemed like the perfect […]

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Having decades-long health problems sometimes mean Having decades-long health problems sometimes means coming across something in your health history that you completely forgot about⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate. Follow me for more content for chronic illness patients and their loved ones!⁣
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Here are some ways I practice self care, aka talki Here are some ways I practice self care, aka talking care of myself AND who I am as a person separate from illness⁣
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This is my Wonderful Things jar. Every day, I write down something wonderful or good that happened that day. ⁣
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I know it looks like I'm forcing Harley to sit like this, but he was making this face before I put my arm around him. Dog snuggle time is the best!⁣
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I got a Kindle this year and it has been amazing. It's so much easier on my body than lugging around books and it makes borrowing from the library a lot easier.⁣
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3️⃣ A Kindle on dark mode in Kate's lap⁣
4️⃣ 3 open pill cases on a yellow bedspread ⁣
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What I Bring To the Doctor _______ Video: a pa What I Bring To the Doctor 

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Video: a pan of an exam room. White text reads “What I Bring To the Doctor ” and the “1. Planner/notebook
2. List of current medications 
3. Notes on my biggest concerns and questions 
4. My kindle for wait time” 
The intro to Maroon 5’s Priceless plays. 

#AlmostGreatHealth #ChronicIllness #ChronicPain #RheumatoidArthritis #SjogrensSyndrome #Fibromyalgia #Endometriosis
💃🏼 Week 17 of #2025Weekly 💃🏼⁣
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1️⃣ She’s married!! ⁣
2️⃣ She married the best person in the world for her!!!!!⁣
3️⃣ I got dressed up! ⁣
4️⃣ The reality of doing fun things with chronic illness and pain is that then you have to recover from the fun things. It took … a while. One million percent worth it, but this is why I don’t do big events on a regular basis. ⁣
5️⃣ And then I had to be a person again for an appointment!⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 7+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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2️⃣ Kate and Emmie stand next to Matt, Emmie's husband. He is a white man.⁣
3️⃣ Kate takes a mirror selfie. she's in the same red dress but now also wears a jean jacket and holds a cane and mask.⁣
4️⃣ Kate takes a selfie while giving a thumbs up. She looks tired. She's now wearing a pink flowery dress. ⁣
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On the one hand, you should always believe what pe On the one hand, you should always believe what people tell you about their bodies.⁣
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On the other hand, I’ve had so much ridiculous and unconnected health things happen that I do understand why people might not believe me.⁣
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⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate. Follow me for more content for chronic illness patients and their loved ones!⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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Last week, I talked about how it surprised me how Last week, I talked about how it surprised me how systemic autoimmune arthritis can be. But something else that surprised me was how much pain can be caused by small things.⁣
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In this picture, I was getting ready to have an MRI on my knee. It has been bothering me a fair amount the last 6+ months, so I'm trying to do something about that. ⁣
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Unsurprisingly, some of the tissue is damaged, but it's not bad. What's probably causing it to bother me so much is a teeny tiny cyst. ⁣
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Baker's cysts are a type of cyst in the knee that are generally caused by arthritis. But having a cyst in my knee means that it's causing pressure on that damaged tissue. ⁣
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The body is a weird thing, and one of these weird things is developing tiny cysts that cause a lot of pain. ⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 7+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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1️⃣ Spring has sprung … ⁣
2️⃣ … Which means I am overheating! ⁣
3️⃣ A quick view of NYC on my travels ⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 7+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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If I met my newly diagnosed self for coffee ... ⁣
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I tell her how things would get worse before they got better. ⁣
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I'd tell her to stop eating gluten, dairy, corn, soy, and eggs immediately (although that would have been a lot harder in 2010, more than it even is now). ⁣
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I'd tell her that she still needs to keep advocating for herself. ⁣
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I'd tell her that having a diagnosis unfortunately doesn't mean everything automatically falls into place. ⁣
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I'd tell her that she'll develop many more illnesses but her quality of life will actually get significantly better. ⁣
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I'd tell her that she would eventually have to get her right foot fixed, although she does expect that.⁣
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I'd tell her that using a cane is not a sign of failure, but a tool to make life better.⁣
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(I did a sort of tongue-in-cheek post about this a while ago and thought I'd post a more serious one).⁣
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⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate. Follow me for more content for chronic illness patients and their loved ones!⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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The thing that surprised me the most about autoimm The thing that surprised me the most about autoimmune arthritis is how systemic it is. ⁣
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Like with most things, it's one thing to know the fact and it's something else to experience it. ⁣
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Yes, my joints are affected (a lot). ⁣
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But I've had enough serious infections thats I have to see an immunologist because we need to be aware of my antibodies and I sometimes need help recovering from illnesses. ⁣
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And, yes, I see pulmonology because of my asthma, but we also have to keep an eye out on developing rheumatoid nodules in my lungs. (So far so good!)⁣
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Not to mention that, when I developed POTS, the hospital admitted me to run every heart test to make sure that, at 26, I wasn't experiencing heart failure. ⁣
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Plus, when I developed endometriosis, I also went through a number of GI tests because one theory was that I had ulcerative colitis. ⁣
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Anyway, RA is so much more than "just" joints. If it wasn't, I wouldn't have to kill my immune system every 3 months like I am in this picture.⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 7+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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#AlmostGreatHealth #RheumatoidArthritis #RheumatoidDisease #Rheum #Autoimmune #AutoimmuneDisease #InvisibleIllness #ButYouDontLookSick #Sjogrens #SjogrensSyndrome #POTS #PosturalOrthostaticTachycardiaSyndrome #Dysautonomia
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