5 valuable lessons from my decluttering experiment

Apr 24 2010 Published by under Inspiration

Six weeks ago, I started my decluttering experiment. Although I made some progress, the results that excite me most lay not in the renewed order of my personal environment but the knowledge I gained during these past weeks.

Allow me to share this knowledge with you, as some of my insights may be of value to your life too.

Lesson #1: Knowing what and how to do is not enough. Nothing gets done without taking action.

Confession time: I have countless books, e-books and info on decluttering and organising. I’ve read them all. I have a deep knowledge of the topic, as well as a natural ability to organise any space (I was trained as a Home stager). However, during the past few weeks, I procrastinated, postponed, re-scheduled, searched and found really valid excuses, etc.

Saying that, there were a few good days that made my overall progress very noticeable. So, here comes…

Lesson #2: Just a few actions taken in the right direction towards your goal lead to noticeable changes.

Imagine what a consistent plan of actions could deliver you? Which relates directly to…

Lesson #3: Consistency breeds new habits.

My inconsistency halted the development of new habits. As I did not plan and take steps daily, my old habits took over on most days. My lack of visible success led me to frustration, disappointment and struggle on a few occasions. I also fell a victim to introspection and self-blame a few times, which uncovered a new lesson for me.

Lesson #4: Letting go is essential to developing trust in yourself and others.

One of the reasons for my inaction was my fear of letting go. I underestimated my current ability to release things and trust that if and when I needed them again, I would find a way to reclaim them from our abundant universe.

Pondering further, I realised something very profound.

Lesson #5: You need vision, clarity and focus to make true progress.

It is hard to decide what to keep or what to let go if your mind is muddled with endless possibilities or appears to lack clarity, focus and vision.

I am so grateful for these lessons and I am going to take my new insights into account and act accordingly. I will keep you posted!

By the way, while I had no intention to report these lessons as a suggestion for a depression recovery plan, I noticed during my writing that they are indeed invaluable if you are searching for ways to get better.

I hope my insights can be of help to you and I can’t wait to receive your insights, ideas, opinions and feedback.

Stay strong, remain hopeful and seek inspiration!

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5 Great Reasons to Smile a Lot and Often

Mar 23 2010 Published by under Decision, Information, Inspiration

How often do you smile? Do you naturally greet people with a smile or are you saving your smiles for better times?

In case you are wondering ‘What is there to smile about?’, ‘Why smile when I am feeling pain or numbness inside?’ or ‘Why deceive everyone with my false smile?’, I hope I can encourage you to review your attitude.

Smiling is good for you! Here is why:  Continue Reading »

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Chomping depression away: lessons from hungry caterpillars (part 1- Banana)

Mar 06 2010 Published by under Decision, Determination, Information, Inspiration

I’ve decided to dedicate a few posts to evaluating and promoting some good-mood food.

Are you are familiar with caterpillars and their eating habits or at least Eric Carle’s classic book, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”? They are very fussy and picky in what they eat, but once they find the ‘good stuff’, they eat loads and at an amazing rate!

Today’s good stuff for you to consider is:

Bananas 

Continue Reading »

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Chicken soup for the depressed soul?

Feb 27 2010 Published by under Decision, Information, Inspiration

Did you know that in olden days soups were prescribed to you if you were unwell? In many cultures, it is still the first food served to a person recovering from an illness, especially a long one.

Soups are made all over the world, hence the endless types, varieties and flavours. Making soups is a very old tradition. It is said that restaurants were originally created to serve soups (restoratifs) in 18th century Paris.

What makes soup so special?
Continue Reading »

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How to handle the mornings when all you want to do is crawl back into bed!

Feb 25 2010 Published by under Decision, Information

Do you wake up each and every morning totally exhausted and feeling much worse that the night before?

When I was depressed I used to hope every night that in the morning I would wake up refreshed, eager to jump out of bed and face the new day. I was frustrated and disappointed that no miracles had happened overnight. I would open my eyes, assess my feelings and declare: ‘Yep, depressed today… as usual!’ Then I would have to drag myself out of bed, feeling extremely tired, acutely miserable and totally helpless for most of the day.

Mornings are tough for a lot of people, no doubt about that. However, it is a different battle when you are depressed.

You have such a poor quality of sleep. Your sleep cycles are very different from ‘normal’ sleep cycles.

Your body is producing stress hormones all night long. You either have nightmares or very vivid dreams, usually of a disturbing nature. You cannot possibly wake up refreshed. You are bound to feel your worst first thing upon awakening.

So, here are a few suggestions on how to handle your mornings:

1. Never leave planning your day for the next morning. It’s bad enough to wake up tired. It’s even worse to realise in the evening that a whole day has been wasted due to the fact that you did not feel like doing anything first thing in the morning and did not have anything planned. You must avoid this vicious cycle of disappointment and discontent.

2. Establish a morning routine: tasks that you will perform upon awakening. Create a list; for example: out of bed, shower/wash/brush teeth, dress up, glass of water/juice, breakfast, check the daily ‘to do’ list (the one you wrote the night before). Write your ‘morning drill’ down and follow it every day for at least twenty-one consecutive days to establish a habit and make it automatic. Persevere and soon you would feel the difference.

3. Unlearn to lock your thoughts on your depression first thing in the morning. A thought ‘I had such a bad night sleep’ will not turn your day into a waste. ‘I feel so depressed’ will. Begin your day with a positive thought: ‘At least I know my morning drill!’ and get yourself up and moving!

4. Allow yourself 7-9 hours of sleep each night. There is a tendency to sleep more, but you don’t really need any extra sleep. Set an alarm clock to ensure that you are not oversleeping.

5. Respect and follow your evening decisions, disregard and ignore your early morning whines.

Are you finding it hard to start your day every morning? Do you have any tips to share that work for you? If so, please post a comment.

Love, light and healing!

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