When we suffer from constant chronic fatigue, house work might be the last thing on our mind. How can we be bothered with dirty dishes and piled-up laundry when our bones are aching and we’re too tired to get out of bed each morning? Because the truth is, clutter makes us more tired. Living in a chaotic household makes us more depressed each day, and that’s true for every single family member. Here are some realistic, helpful tips for managing chronic fatigue and house work, and avoiding the hurricane-hit-my-house syndrome.
One small step…
You know how the rest of that goes…try taking on one new habit, and commit yourself to it every day. It should be something that will be part of your daily house maintenance schedule.
Decide today that before you get up from eating a meal, you will wash every plate and piece of silverware that you used. Or, make your bed every morning, regardless of how tired you feel.
Choose something that will visibly improve your living situation- something that you can manage each day, not counting flare-up days of fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue. House work routines that are learned gradually are more likely to stick and become automatic.
Is Chronic Fatigue your Middle Name? Maybe it’s…
Lose weight
No, not body weight; lose the weight of all that clutter that you have amassed over the years. Every item in your house should “live” somewhere, either in a closet, drawer, or plastic storage container. If you can’t find a place to put most things in your home, then you probably have too much stuff.
As a rule of thumb, if you haven’t worn a certain pair of shoes in over a year, then you might as well lose it. Is it worth keeping something that takes up physical (and mental) space, just on the off-chance that you might use it someday in a few years?
Even if you don’t suffer from chronic fatigue, your house work efforts will suffer if you don’t make a habit of cutting down on the clutter.
But nobody’s expecting you to get it all done in one day. Plan on spending fifteen minutes each day just picking out things you don’t need, and getting rid of them. Donate something to Goodwill or have a garage sale, but do what you need to do- your chronic fatigue and house work situation will improve.
Take a day of rest
If you suffer from chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, or any other sort of chronic pain disorder, then you know your limits better than anybody else. Choose a day of the week to rest, regardless of what the house looks like; set aside certain other days of the week for accomplishing house work goals.
Never try to get caught up on your house work when chronic fatigue flare-ups are slowing you down and keeping you constantly tired, though. Even if you end up canceling a workday because of chronic fatigue, your house work efforts will shine, just by sticking to a schedule.
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