I’m sure I’m not only the one that feels like adulthood can simply be overwhelming. Have you too been trying to overcome your everyday overwhelm? (Try saying that 15 times fast! Ha!) This is a constant goal for me, and I’ve learned some simple, easy to implement ways to calm my anxiousness, ease my mind, and live a happier life & I hope they help you too! Here are some ways to conquer the everyday overwhelm that I’m sure we all feel, and live a more purposeful, meaning-filled life today.
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Clear The Clutter
I don’t know about you, but when I’m surrounded by clutter I instantly feel anxious. So, let’s begin this journey
If it’s your home that’s not serving you, start small with one room at a time. If that’s too overwhelming, begin with one drawer if you have to. Living in a more minimal, well-organized space will do so much for your mind and outlook on life. I don’t mean to get all Marie Kondo on you, but if an item has “served its purpose” let it go. Start filling a trash bag a day, or building a donation pile you can later take to others in need. Only keep those things that you need or that bring you joy, so that your home is a place of rest.
And, if it’s your schedule or your commitments that are causing you everyday overwhelm, declutter those aspects of life too. Learning that it’s ok to simply say “no” can be so difficult, can’t it? I’m generally a “yes, man” and often take on too many projects. They are all good things that I’d love to work on. But, eventually, I get to a point where I realize I’m in over my head, not happy anymore, and beyond overwhelmed. Do you also struggle with this?
Let’s create some blank space in our planners for more of the things that matter, like simple evenings at home, time for reading, time for resting. Why do we need to be going at full speed all the time? It’s not good for us or our spirits.
Make A List
Another thing that helps me conquer my everyday overwhelm, is to make lists. I have lists stuffed practically everywhere…in pockets, in my purse, in notepads on my nightstand, etc. I find that working off a list makes it easier to get the things done that I need to do without me getting completely worn out. Often times I start with the simplest things on my list, because seeing those little check marks indicating I’ve made progress helps motivate me to keep on keeping on. You know what I mean?
I have a few different planners that keep me on track where I love to jot down my lists. Every month, I sit down with my goal planner and map out what I’d like to accomplish that next month. It also gives me space to write down the things that have to get done in the coming days, the things that are burdening me, and what progress I can celebrate from the previous months. I love Emily Ley’s Simplified Planner for planning out my everyday happenings, but I have to say Erin Condren’s Life Planner is probably my favorite planning tool just simply because I love the interchangeable covers, her seasonal sticker club & surprise boxes, and all the decorative washi tape and markers. To read more about how I use a planner to organize my every day life, click here.
Simplify Your Systems
One thing I’ve been working on recently to help me overcome my overwhelming life is setting up simplified systems in our home. For instance, our cleaning schedule got so overwhelming on the weekends, I knew I needed a simpler way to keep our home looking decent that didn’t take hours away from our precious time together on Saturday or Sunday. These are some of the simple steps I’m trying to incorporate into our everyday routine,
Everyday Home Routine
- Bathroom Swish ‘N Swipe- pick up the bathroom in the morning after getting ready, swish ‘n swipe down the toilet and sink, empty garbage in need be
- Make the Bed- just like my mama taught me to do every morning
- Empty Dishwasher- and actually put the dishes away, reload dishwasher throughout the day so that it’s ready for another cycle in the evening, try to keep the sink cleaned out
- One Load of Laundry- a load a day keeps the (dreaded) clothes pile away!!
- 15 Minute Declutter- set a timer for 15 minutes and walk your home and put away the things that are simple and easy to (shoes, clothes, mail, etc), for all other displaced items throw them in a basket to be sorted through later
- Clean Up The Kitchen- run the dishwasher, keep the sink clean, wipe down the countertops and table, prep next day’s meals if needed
- Sweep Floors- made easier by a Roomba robot vacuum that can go through a cycle every evening to pick up crumbs, pet hair, and any other nastiness that’s found it’s way into the carpeting or tile
You can read more about my simple weekend cleaning routine, AKA Home Blessing, here!
Meal Planning
I’ve also been working on ways to simplify our meal plan since this is another area in which I struggle. We are chronic “eater outers” if you get what I mean. We’d definitely rather eat dinner out of a bag or a box over dirtying the kitchen and cooking, which is not so great for our health and weight loss goals.
We’ve learned that sometimes it’s easier to make 2 trips to the grocery store (or use a delivery service or ClickList) rather than make one big trip every week. We’ve also learned not to overbuy at the grocery store. Seeing bare space in our refrigerator and pantry is ok. It doesn’t mean we are going to starve. It just means we have fresh ingredients that aren’t going to live in there for the next 10 years (true story thanks to that random can of soup I found earlier this year when cleaning out the pantry…yuck!).
I love using a meal delivery service also, like Home Chef, that preps our meals for us eliminating waste in our kitchen and giving us back valuable time. I simply go on their website and pick out three meals from their expansive menu that we’d like to try for the week. Then the fresh ingredients are delivered right to our doorstep, all individually packaged, chopped and ready to go, with corresponding recipe cards that we can keep. So easy for meal planning, am I right? Have you ever tried a home delivery service like Home Chef?
Capsule Wardrobe
There are so many ways to simplify your routines to make everyday life less cumbersome. Other ways I’m doing this is in my beauty/makeup routine by building a simple makeup capsule, as well as creating cozy seasonal capsule wardrobes that make getting ready in the morning a breeze. I don’t want countless bathroom drawers filled with makeup, lotions, and face creams I never use. And, I don’t need a closet full of clothes that either don’t fit or
You can also read more about my journey to simplify my life in my brand new eBook, Seeking Simplicity. You can download the first chapter below for FREE!
Click Here to discover more about this cozy way of living.
Shut Off Notifications
One simple thing you can do right now to conquer every day overwhelm (that only takes a matter of seconds) is turn off notifications on your phone. The only notifications I receive on my phone is for the weather app (so I don’t get blown away in a tornado) and for my bank account (so we don’t go broke).
Otherwise, I don’t need to know every time there’s a new comment, pin, or like on my social media. I don’t need to know every time a new spammy email hits my Gmail, or when there’s a sale on underwear at Target (although I’d love to know! Lord knows I love me some Target. Can I get an “Amen”?!). Keeping my phone from buzzing and dinging all day long has done tremendous things for my mental health, and I know it will for you too! Give it a try! You won’t regret it!
Prayer/Meditation
I feel as though I can be in a constant state of prayer throughout the day. Perhaps it’s because that how my mom taught us to be. I can pray in traffic, at the bedside of my patient, while running errands, etc. Prayer doesn’t always have to take place at the dinner table or before bedtime. I can talk to God about mundane things, simple things, as well as the things that are weighing heavy on my heart anytime, anywhere.
Meditation, though, is a struggle for me. I even took an 8 week-long class on mindfulness to learn more about the health benefits of meditation. I was surprised at what I learned. I thought meditation was some mystical, mysterious thing that only yogis did. Boy, was I wrong. There’s so many forms of mediation from simple breathing routines, to body scans, to mindful self-compassion, and so much more.
I use the Insight Timer App to find my favorite guided meditations. The benefits that meditation brings to my overworked, clamoring mind is hard to describe. If you’re new to meditation, give it some time. Practice gently pushing those negative thoughts away from your mind, allow yourself the time to focus on the positives, and you too will reap the peace and calm that can come from regular meditation.
Go Outside
Going for a simple walk does wonders for clearing my mind. We love to go for nature walks every Sunday night together, and I swear we come back from those walks rejuvenated and refreshed. It’s simply the best thing for my spirit…breathing the fresh air, listening to birds and the rustling of leaves in the breeze, and surrendering to my surroundings. There’s not much else to do on a walk but focus on the beauty around us. So, if you’re feeling overwhelmed today, go outside. Walk around your neighborhood, sit on your porch, do whatever brings you joy.
Find A Friend/Support
I think making friends and then maintaining those friendships can be really difficult as an adult. I mean as a kid, we were thrown into a small classroom and forced to play at recess with a whole host of friendship possibilities every single year. Things perhaps weren’t so complicated back then. But in adulthood, when we could really use the support system of friends that know us well, it’s often hard to find those tried and true, loyal, constant friendships.
I’m thankful I have a core group of friends that I know I can turn to whenever I need to. We are all four nurses and met on the Mother-Baby unit where we just so happened to be scheduled on the same weekend shifts. We meet once a month for Girls Night Out and have done so for many years despite wedding and babies and life. I also have a sister who I know I can go to with anything and a husband who was my best friend before we ever even started dating.
I have met an amazing community of women here online thanks to my blog, and I have friends from years ago that I keep up with on Facebook and Instagram. Ah, the marvels modern of technology. Also, I have so many amazing friends that I get to work alongside at the hospital, that have become more like family to me than coworkers.
Friendship can be such a gift. If you are struggling to build a good support system, try joining a mommy group, or a Bible Study, or try volunteering for a cause that’s near and dear to your heart. Sometimes you can find friends in an online community too as I’ve found here. Remember,
Show Yourself Grace
One thing I’ve had to learn over the years, is that guilt is the main ingredient in the recipe of my overwhelm. I feel guilt over the smallest things…not being present enough, not having spotless floors, not being able to do everything I’m ask to do, not cooking every meal we eat, not finishing every task on my to do list, etc. The list could literally go on and on.
There are a few books and lovely ladies of faith that have helped me learn to show myself grace just as I would with any other human being. I would never walk into my friends home, and proclaim my disgust for her because she has stuff piled on her countertops, and a glob of mild Taco Bell sauce splattered on her shirt. But, when that’s my current state of life, I give myself the hardest time. Learning to show myself grace in my times of overwhelm has been invaluable.
I found encouragement in Grace Not Perfection and A Simplified Life by Emily Ley, as well as in Cultivate by Lara Casey. As Lara says,
“You can’t do it all, and do it all well.”
That quote always rings in my head when the guilt creeps in about my “failings”. If you too need to learn how to show yourself grace and hear it from two other amazing ladies that everyday overwhelm is not a problem that only you face, check out these books. They are on constant rotation in my house.
What ways to do conquer everyday overwhelm? I’d love to hear your ideas. And, if you simply need a little encouragement and an online friend, I’m here for that too! Just jot me a note in the comments below, and I’ll get back to you! I hope this
