ADHD friends, this week was the one. As I started week 4 of the #LWSLClutterFree 31-day challenge, the daily projects officially became too much.
Beginning — and ideally ending — a new project every day on top of my other responsibilities was too taxing on my focus and energy. Some projects, like the office and main bathroom, hit on sore spots I already found overwhelming. In the case of the office, 90% of the clutter and mess issues aren’t in my space, so I didn’t know how to approach it.
Many of these projects should have spanned multiple days. It takes time to dig through the mess, donate or freecycle unwanted items, get input from others who share the space, purchase new storage solutions, and put everything back together. There was no way I could have accomplished assignments for our home’s problem areas in one day.
Because I knew another project would be coming my way the next morning, I didn’t even start potentially overwhelming ones this week.
That brings me to my second point: open loops. As hard as I tried to make each day an open and shut case, I ended up with loose ends. Those loose ends finally reached a critical mass and pushed me into ADHD overwhelm.
To get my mood and focus back on track, I spent this week closing as many open loops as I could. I freecycled most of the hangers from our portable closet and got it ready for relocation. I packed up five bags of donation items and scheduled a Purple Heart pickup. I deep-cleaned the bathroom that had so overwhelmed me the previous week.
By the end of the month, I hope to have finished all the projects I started. Our entire life and household may not be clutter-free, but I’ll be several steps closer.
Despite the slow week, I’m feeling good about my progress. I’m even proud of my successful self-regulation once I realized I was getting overwhelmed. Instead of continuing to start new projects I couldn’t finish, I took a step back and asked myself how I could eliminate some of the mental clutter.
Are any fellow ADHD’ers working on this challenge? How did this week feel to you? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments.
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