Does the winter blues have a grasp on you this year? If so, please know you are not alone. This is more common than one might think, not everyone shares what they are going through with others. Being that I battle seasonal affective disorder every year, for as long as I can remember, I can deeply empathize with how you may be feeling. The depression that comes with this season can suck out all the energy from one's body making it extremely hard to shake! Sometimes it's a battle just to get out of bed let alone take a shower or tackle those household chores. Personally, my chores fall by the wayside. The trash, dishes, and laundry pile up and start feeling like daunting tasks. Even the thought of tackling them can leave one feeling overwhelmed and tired.
During this last bout of depression, I kept waiting for the day where I had the energy to completely reset my home all in one day. Finally, I realized that day may never come and that the best solution to achieving a tidy and organized h0me is to break the tasks down into small steps.
The following is a seven-day plan to getting oneself back on track and build momentum towards beating depression. On day one, get rid of any trash that has built up. This is important because you don't want to give bugs an invitation into your home and cause you a whole other set of problems. This small step may feel like a huge hurdle, but it shouldn't take long to accomplish. For me this single chore left me feeling exhausted and I felt slightly ashamed for not doing more. If this is the case for you make sure you acknowledge that you did a great job by taking the first step towards feeling better, and that's enough! If the task gives you the energy to move onto the next chore by all means do so, just remember that accomplishing one thing will help build your momentum towards beating them winter blues away.
Day two involves cleaning all your dishes and putting them away. Again, this is important, so you don't unintentionally invite bugs into your home. On day three it's time to tackle that pile of laundry that is just screaming to be washed. And just with the dishes don't forget to put away all your clothing as well. Your energy and momentum should be building up by now giving you renewed strength to continue tackling all those chores.
Now that you are on day four it's time to tackle any other clutter that has built up in your home by putting everything back where it belongs. The key here is to do this one room at a time. Let's say you start in the kitchen, and you find something that belongs in the bathroom, instead of walking that item straight to the bathroom place it just outside of the kitchen. Then when you finish the kitchen you can grab that item and take it to the bathroom and start tackling that area. Leaving a room before its finished can be distracting and is not the most efficient use of your time.
Alright by now you are probably feeling pretty good about everything you have accomplished these past few days and are ready to start the, often dreaded, task of deep cleaning. This can take time so give yourself day five and six to do so. Just go one room at a time as you did while clearing the clutter.
Day seven is quite important in my opinion because it's time to really acknowledge all the hard work you put into creating a clean and tidy environment from which your mental health can thrive. Make the only thing on your agenda be self-care. Take a long shower or bath. Pamper yourself a little bit. Get your haircut or beard trimmed. Have your nail done or start exercising again for an added boost on endorphins. Anything that floats your boat and will make you feel better about yourself. You have done so much for yourself over the past week, you deserve a day of pampering.
I hope these steps will wipe away those winter blues and give your energy and self-esteem a much-needed boost till the warmer days are upon us! And that you enjoy all the additional benefits that come with a tidy and organized home!