how to clean an overwhelmingly messy home when you’re struggling with your mental health, exhausted and don’t know where to begin:

hello quarantine queens,

i hope your home is feeling like a safe space

i’ve always struggled to keep my house clean when i’m struggling with my mental health to the point where it’s been so overwhelming.

hope this thread might help you if you’re the same way.

0/ first of all, start this on a day when your energy levels and pain (both physical and mental) are at their best for you to succeed. give yourself permission to rest and recover

because i know so many of you are spending extra time in your bedrooms, we’re starting there!

1/ if you have a floordrobe going on, start by grabbing all of the clothes and soft stuff (teddies, towels, bedding) and piling it up on the bed.

(if you don’t finish it today, you’ll need a chair / box / something to shove all this stuff on so you can sleep)

2/ remove all of the rubbish you have in the room (like food wrappers and stand out rubbish you don’t have to sort through)

3/ sit on the floor with your favourite tunes on and sort your things into piles (or even better, bins / boxes) of things that are alike e.g. paperwork and mail, books, electronics, toiletries, jewellery, art supplies, stationary, shoes... etc etc

4/ repeat step 4 but with things on your desk, shelves, bedside tables and other surfaces

5/ (simultaneously the easiest and most difficult step) resist the urge to start any big projects or make any changes to the layout of the room. want to move that bookcase? it can wait until everything is clean, i promise. don’t unnecessarily add to your workload now. trust me.

6/ take out anything you’ve shoved somewhere it shouldn’t be and sort into the piles / boxes you created.

7/ tackle the piles and boxes one by one. put everything away except for the paperwork, which you’ll likely need to sort through before this is all done.

start with the smallest pile and work your way up.

8/ once the floor is clear, hoover / sweep and straighten your rugs if you have any. stomp around with pride and do a little happy dance. you’re doing so damn well!

8.5/ give your surfaces a little wipe

9/ divide the laundry you piled up on your bed into load sized bags (if you have bags for life knocking around your house, i find these are perfect) and then put the first load on

10/ make your bed. sit on it. lie back. congratulate yourself.

++ shower / bathe for bonus points ++

tomorrow you’ll sort through your paperwork and get on with your laundry but for now, you are DONE i’m proud of you.

just a little note: if you’re feeling like you can’t tackle any of this today, skip straight to number 10. you have no idea how much of a difference making your bed will make to your room is an extension of your environment