Handling Stress with Cleaning: Turning Your Chores into Therapy.

Everyone experiences stress on the daily. Sometimes you just can't figure out how to combat it or how to minimize your stressors. A dirty home is a stressor for a lot of people out there, but what if you turn cleaning your home into a stress reliever? Relieving stress and eliminating a stressor at the same time! This is something that comes pretty easily to me and is part of the reason I opened a cleaning business, but I'd like to share with you some tips and tricks to help you to use cleaning as a de-stressor as well :)

Make a game plan

A game plan is always the best start to a cleaning day. It sets things up, so you know what to expect. Writing a physical checklist and checking things off as you go allows you to stay focused and gives you an extra feeling of satisfaction after completing each task.

Don't know where to start with your checklist? Here's my checklist for a basic cleaning day! (I usually do this at least twice a month)

• Dishes

• Pickup

• Dusting whole house

• Bathrooms

  • Scrub shower

  • Clean toilet

  • Clean vanity and sink

• Kitchen

  • Clean microwave

  • Clean Stove and oven if needed

  • Wipe down outside of all appliances

  • Clean counters and sink

• Vacuum

• Mop

  On days where I have more time and patience a lot of little things are added to this list. Things like the inside of the fridge or washer or cleaning off all of my shelves. I find that the more patience I have and the more I'm able to do, the better I feel afterwards!

starting small

Cleaning your home is a big chore, so starting with smaller tasks is a good way to get the ball rolling. I usually choose the dishes or picking things up as my first task. After I get my small tasks done, then I move onto cleaning my house from one side to the other top to bottom, starting with bathrooms and ending with floors.

Choose your motivators wisely

I have a couple go to's when it comes to choosing a motivator. Those are... a soda, music, or a show. These all work pretty well for me. But I have to choose wisely depending on my situation, I have to listen to how I feel and keep in mind how much time I want to spend cleaning that day. If I have a lot of time and want to truly get lost in the cleaning and do things like deep clean my washer, I grab a soda and put on my favorite binge worthy show. If I'm not feeling it or am limited on time and just want to get it done, I put on my favorite pick me up music (usually ABBA) and grab a soda or coffee if I'm low on energy and need an extra pick me up.

Giving yourself some time and patience, writing out a list, starting with small activities, and choosing motivators that work for you will help you to get your home clean and feel five times lighter afterwards! So put on some ABBA, grab your favorite beverage and get to it!