Chronic Pain and Clutter

While revamping the minimalism post, I came across a blog that sort of pressed my buttons.  I stepped away from the computer and decided to do something else as I processed the WHY this blog irritated me.

The person writing the blog did not come from a place of a person with a chronic illness.  Her blog was solely aimed at those healthy enough to follow the advice.  I tend to forget there is a difference and not everyone understands what it is to live with a chronic condition.  So once I got that through my head, I sat down and re-read the blog but put a spin on some of the information.

Chronic Pain, Clutter, and Mental Health

Photo by Sasha Freeman at Unsplash

Clutter isn't always a representation of our mental health.  More often than not it is a reflection of our PHYSICAL health or inability to clean and stay on top of our cleaning due to our conditions.  For example, last fall I had a flare.  My joints and back ached so badly that the little bit of pain medication I could take did nothing to stop the pain.  Add to that the fatigue from not sleeping due to pain and it was all I could do to just get out of bed and smile most days.  The chores backed up.  Declutter kid closets and our outside shed, I think not.

Decluttering Isn't A Marathon Session

Photo by Pau Casals at Unsplash

Decluttering takes time and diligence.  We can't just choose a day and declutter every single room.  Experience has taught me that's a sure fire way to bring yourself a world of needless suffering.  You'll be in pain, tired, achey and will probably have a much larger mess to deal with.  Then your mood will follow because you feel like crap and you accomplished nothing.

If you're decluttering to achieve a state of minimalism, you need to take it slowly.  Minimalism is a lifestyle - something you'll be doing...forever.  You've been a clutter bug all this time so expect it to take some time to transition into another lifestyle with different habits.

Don't Go It Alone

For an independent person who suddenly finds themselves limited by chronic illness, it becomes imperative that you reach out.  Ask family, friends, volunteers, charity organizations for help when it comes to decluttering.  Many will be willing to come for an afternoon or two to help.  Offer pizza!

Pace Yourself

Do one room at a time.  If one room is too much, do half the room.  Little by little it will start to add up.  Try to work for ten minutes at a time.  If that is too much, do five.  You can get a good deal done in five minutes.

Use Checklists

Just about any declutterer / minimalist will agree checklists can help focus on what needs to be done.  Go into a room and write down different areas you want to tackle.  For example:

Bedroom

• Bed - Make bed hotel nice
• Nightstands - Clear off
• Dresser - Organize top
• Dresser - Purge drawers
• Closet - Purge shoes
• Closet - Purge pants

And so on!

In no time at all you'll see a major difference.

You Are Responsible For Your Stuff

Photo by The Creative Exchange at Unsplash

Stop cleaning everyone else's room.  That's right.  Your children are responsible for their own rooms.  At some point parents stopped making children be responsible for putting their things away.  Let them clean them themselves.  I worked in a daycare once.  Toddlers know how to pick something up and put it away if you show them.  Make it a game.  Sing and dance and offer a small reward when they do what they've been asked.

Elementary, middle school, and high school kids know better.  Make them be responsible.  You have enough going on without cleaning their room too.  Be old school.  They don't clean - no phone, no tv, no friends, no excuses.  It's okay for them to be mad at us.  They will live.

For more tips, check out the article by Gabrielle Savoie at MyDomaine.com.  This is perhaps the most thorough article I've read on this subject.

Above all BE GOOD TO YOURSELF  

 

Photo by Tim Goedhart at Unsplash

You're already fighting hard against yourself with your chronic illness.  Don't make battles where they don't need to be.  Take your time, focus on what's important, and do what you can. Last I checked, there weren't any competitions on orderliness.

I hope this helps.  Thank you for reading.

As always, keep moving forward!

4. Supplies

Supplies

Now we've got all the hard work done.  We know:

• What our journal needs to do 
• How many pages we need and for what 
• We've decided on a layout

If you missed any of that, please click here to go back to earlier posts.

Now it's time to get our supplies together.

First thing's first

Being on disability, we are about saving money here at Generic Soda Money.  Before we spend one dime on any supplies, let's do an inventory of our home and see what we already have that we can use.  A lot of people think you need an expensive binder full of paper and fancy stickers with the word PLANNER stamped on the front.  Not true.  Below is a list of the most essential things you need to bullet journal.

1. Pencil or pen
2. Paper

The end.

Not what you expected?  Well it's true.  You need something to write on and something to write with.  If you have several sheets of paper and a binder to keep them in or even a folder, you're already there.  Here are a few other ideas:

• A spiral notebook
• A composition book
• Loose leaf paper and a binder
• Colored paper
• Graph paper

For writing you can use:

• Ballpoint pen
• Pencil wooden school or mechanical
• Glitter pen
• Gel pen
• Fine liner pen 
• Crayola marker
• Micron fine pen
• Color pencil

A ruler of some kind is good but not necessary.  You can use anything with a straight edge like:

• A cereal box
• The edge of a book
• The edge of a dvd
• A plastic card
• A piece of cardboard

Don't laugh.  I'm just saying.  If your kid has made off with the ruler and you don't feel like tearing their room apart to find it, you can use alternatives in the mean time.

Here you'll find a list of other items you can use for bullet journaling.  I want you to take this list and go on a scavenger hunt around your house to see if you already have them BEFORE we go out to buy anything.  Remember, we're doing bujo for the broke, busy, and artistically challenged.  Inexpensive, easy, and quick is the name of the game.  Hightlight the list and print it or screen shot it for easier finding.

Good luck and keep moving forward!

Next edition:  Buying options from ZERO to Twenty dollars.