I had to learn to be okay with cleaning half of the kitchen at a time, for example. It was hard at first to get used to leaving something until the next day, but now I do it all the time (I’ll dust half the house, etc.).
I’m still a recovering perfectionist but definitely better than I was before. It’s SO hard though. Cleaning actually makes me feel good too but I’m getting to the point where I’m ok if I just do one or two things. I don’t have to do it all in one day.
I think that's such a big key to all of this (and many things in life): breaking it into pieces/small steps. I've always been a very all-or-nothing person so it wasn't until the last couple of years that I finally gave myself permission to not have to do it all and do it all at one time. It was definitely hard at first when I switched to do one thing at a time or breaking it up across the week, but the energy I'm saving makes all the difference. I cleaned my toilet yesterday and put a couple of things away and I still felt just as good as if I'd cleaned my whole room and bathroom 😊
I do little 5-15 minute tidy/clean ups (with a timer so I don’t overdo things!) But we’re lucky enough to have a weekly cleaner for the big stuff that we can’t manage since things became more difficult for me.
That's really smart. Living in a two story house adds a challenge for sure but it's getting easier for me to be ok with just doing one or two things instead of needing to clean up my whole space in one day. When my parents get older, we may need to think about hiring a cleaning person too.
Ah constantly making adjustments can be hard so good for you too. Most of the time I make peace with it but right now I’m looking at the post holiday pigsty of my bedroom and wistfully wishing I could go at it like I used to!
That’s so true! With some things you can’t actually see what needs to get done, but when it comes to cleaning you can see the dirt or mess which makes it much harder to ignore it or not let it bother us
Sometimes I find there are certain people I need to use more spoons with. I feel I have to be more “on” with them, but also needing more spoons for them has made me reevaluate if they are the type of people that I want to have in my life and if they are worth extra spoons or not 🤷🏼♀️
That's such a good point. People can be one of the biggest "spoon" drainers, so that's great you're looking at who is worth their weight in spoons and who isn't 😊
Cleaning can for sure be soothing for me, and honestly it sometimes even restores my spoons to feel like my environment is more the way I want it to be, so this is relatable.
Yes! You put it perfectly. It actually makes me feel good to start the next day/week/whatever with a clean space. I did just a few things last night before bed and it put me in a much better headspace and made me feel good.
Do it when the mood strikes. That's how I go about it these days. If I suddenly get an urge to vacuum, doesn't matter what day it is (or even the time); it gets done. Urge to clean the entire bathroom when I get home from work? I don't question it; I do it. There is no schedule anymore. If anything, I do one "section" in a given day, then onto the next when the next urge hits, unless company is coming. Which I try to avoid happening. LOL. xo
I can do that to an extent (and do) but it’s much harder with a two story house. If I feel like doing something but I’m downstairs then I’m SOL, especially when my parents are gone because then I’m downstairs until late to let the pooch out and then it’s bed time. My bathroom gets very dirty then lol. But I’m figuring it out as I go for the most part. Also need to look into getting a stair lift cause that’ll help a ton.
Have you heard of Fly Lady? She has a system of dividing up daily, weekly, and once-in-a-while chores that make them feel do-able. And I really like her philosophy: Don't beat yourself up if you miss a day or more. Just jump back in where you would have been if you had been able to stick to the schedule. Don't beat yourself up.
I haven't! There's a lady online called Clean Mama who has a very similar system though. It was a little too in-depth for me but it's one of the reasons I started doing one or two things everyday or every few days instead of trying to do everything all on Sunday or in one weekend. When I read her system, I was like "ohhh yeah, I can do that instead!" 😂 It really helped. Trying to remind myself that it's ok if my bathroom sink doesn't get cleaned for a week. The world won't end and I'm too tired to care how it looks anyway. Thanks for the reminder 😊
I had to learn to be okay with cleaning half of the kitchen at a time, for example. It was hard at first to get used to leaving something until the next day, but now I do it all the time (I’ll dust half the house, etc.).
Hard same. And I used to be SUCH a perfectionist before my diagnosis.
I’m still a recovering perfectionist but definitely better than I was before. It’s SO hard though. Cleaning actually makes me feel good too but I’m getting to the point where I’m ok if I just do one or two things. I don’t have to do it all in one day.
I think that's such a big key to all of this (and many things in life): breaking it into pieces/small steps. I've always been a very all-or-nothing person so it wasn't until the last couple of years that I finally gave myself permission to not have to do it all and do it all at one time. It was definitely hard at first when I switched to do one thing at a time or breaking it up across the week, but the energy I'm saving makes all the difference. I cleaned my toilet yesterday and put a couple of things away and I still felt just as good as if I'd cleaned my whole room and bathroom 😊
I do little 5-15 minute tidy/clean ups (with a timer so I don’t overdo things!) But we’re lucky enough to have a weekly cleaner for the big stuff that we can’t manage since things became more difficult for me.
That's really smart. Living in a two story house adds a challenge for sure but it's getting easier for me to be ok with just doing one or two things instead of needing to clean up my whole space in one day. When my parents get older, we may need to think about hiring a cleaning person too.
Ah constantly making adjustments can be hard so good for you too. Most of the time I make peace with it but right now I’m looking at the post holiday pigsty of my bedroom and wistfully wishing I could go at it like I used to!
That’s so true! With some things you can’t actually see what needs to get done, but when it comes to cleaning you can see the dirt or mess which makes it much harder to ignore it or not let it bother us
Sometimes I find there are certain people I need to use more spoons with. I feel I have to be more “on” with them, but also needing more spoons for them has made me reevaluate if they are the type of people that I want to have in my life and if they are worth extra spoons or not 🤷🏼♀️
That's such a good point. People can be one of the biggest "spoon" drainers, so that's great you're looking at who is worth their weight in spoons and who isn't 😊
Yes! So satisfying to see the immediate results from cleaning!
It really is! Some things in life you finish but there’s not a tangible or visual result like there is with cleaning.
Cleaning can for sure be soothing for me, and honestly it sometimes even restores my spoons to feel like my environment is more the way I want it to be, so this is relatable.
Yes! You put it perfectly. It actually makes me feel good to start the next day/week/whatever with a clean space. I did just a few things last night before bed and it put me in a much better headspace and made me feel good.
Do it when the mood strikes. That's how I go about it these days. If I suddenly get an urge to vacuum, doesn't matter what day it is (or even the time); it gets done. Urge to clean the entire bathroom when I get home from work? I don't question it; I do it. There is no schedule anymore. If anything, I do one "section" in a given day, then onto the next when the next urge hits, unless company is coming. Which I try to avoid happening. LOL. xo
I can do that to an extent (and do) but it’s much harder with a two story house. If I feel like doing something but I’m downstairs then I’m SOL, especially when my parents are gone because then I’m downstairs until late to let the pooch out and then it’s bed time. My bathroom gets very dirty then lol. But I’m figuring it out as I go for the most part. Also need to look into getting a stair lift cause that’ll help a ton.
Get it! xo
I relate to this so much! The feeling in control of something, the “workout”, the spoons, the dusting lasting one day!
I'm so glad you related to this too Shondra! Thanks for reading and commenting 😊
I like doing laundry for the same reason.
Have you heard of Fly Lady? She has a system of dividing up daily, weekly, and once-in-a-while chores that make them feel do-able. And I really like her philosophy: Don't beat yourself up if you miss a day or more. Just jump back in where you would have been if you had been able to stick to the schedule. Don't beat yourself up.
I haven't! There's a lady online called Clean Mama who has a very similar system though. It was a little too in-depth for me but it's one of the reasons I started doing one or two things everyday or every few days instead of trying to do everything all on Sunday or in one weekend. When I read her system, I was like "ohhh yeah, I can do that instead!" 😂 It really helped. Trying to remind myself that it's ok if my bathroom sink doesn't get cleaned for a week. The world won't end and I'm too tired to care how it looks anyway. Thanks for the reminder 😊
Flylady.net