It’s amazing how vacuuming the floor, cleaning up the kitchen, and straightening up clutter can improve your mood. Although you won’t feel like doing anything when you’re depressed, sometimes it’s helpful to push yourself to get active anyway. Accomplishing a few chores might give your mood a boost when you’re feeling depressed.
Rinse and put the dishes in the dishwasher right away rather than let the dishes stack upGet in the habit of sorting your mail and organizing what you need to keep. It’s much better than throwing a pile on the kitchen table.Spray down your shower when you’re done to prevent mold and mildew buildup and make deep cleaning a whole lot easier.
These are just a few examples, but it’s the simplest things that make a difference. By taking care of things immediately, your home will stay clean and clutter free. For instance, you might clean the bathroom on Sunday, then toss in a load of laundry on Monday. Plus, if you’re not in the mood to clean, a chore that takes less time is easier to handle than a long and seemingly endless list. This could be as simple as taking a top-down approach to sprucing up the living room. Begin by removing clutter, then give furniture a quick dusting before getting out the vacuum. It also helps to gather all your supplies from the start. This will erase the need to run to the cleaning closet every five minutes. Some people find it useful to add fun to a cleaning routine. Go ahead, turn up the music and dance through your chores. No one’s watching and time will fly by much faster. You don’t need to disinfect the bathroom so you can eat in there, right? If the laundry gets folded and put away, that’s great. Don’t stress that the drawer needs to be cleaned out so clothes can be donated. Get everyone to do their part and help you clean the house. Assign weekly or daily chores so the burden doesn’t fall on you alone. Some families even designate a cleaning time and everyone gets to work for an hour or two. Reluctant kids or partner? Have some fun with the housework and create a lottery system. Write down all the chores on slips of paper and have everyone draw from a bowl. One week they might get something easy and another week may be more of a challenge. Who gets to clean the bathroom this week? That doesn’t mean you should depend on them to do everything though. Even when you’re feeling depressed, it’s important to work on managing some of the day-to-day tasks on your own. If you’re struggling to function it’s a sign that you need depression treatment or that your current treatment is working. Talk to your physician if you’re having trouble managing your home and keeping things clean. For more mental health resources, see our National Helpline Database.
