Let’s be real—whether you’re a working or stay-at-home mom or both, your mental load can get heavy. It may be heavier at some times than others, but these are just a few ways that I’ve found to keep a clearer mind.
Merge All of My Calendars
Whether personal engagements, work dinners, kiddo’s appointments, or a grocery store pickup, I put it all in one calendar. Separating my personal life from my work life tends to make things more complicated, and if I’m being honest, there is so much overlap in my work life and personal life that it just makes sense to combine it all. I would rather see it all at once than filter through the separate calendars!
Purchase a Car Wash Membership
I know this sounds like a strange suggestion for this topic, but do hear me out. Ever since buying a membership to an automatic car wash that I pass by often, I have one less thing to worry about whenever I’m home. If I happen to be driving that way, I’ll go through the car wash, vacuum out the seats and floorboards, and empty my car trash bin—all in about ten minutes.
If you have kids, you know how easy it is for the interior of your car to feel out of hand, and with how much driving we do as a family, I want the inside of my car to feel tidy and clean. This membership has been a small price to pay for a sense of peace in one area of my life!
Schedule Grocery Pickup/Delivery for Busy Weeks
Or any weeks! On the weeks that I know are going to be busy, I intentionally sit down for ten to fifteen minutes to order a grocery pickup; it could be at home or while I’m sitting in the drive-thru for coffee. My favorite time to pick up groceries is on Sunday right after church—that way if I forget anything on my pickup order, the store isn’t very busy, and it will be a quick in-and-out trip.
Utilize the ‘Do Not Disturb’ Feature on my iPhone
When people give me a hard time about not answering texts or calls in a timely manner, it’s often because I suffer from a little thing called notification fatigue. I’m not sure if that’s a real thing or not, but essentially, my phone will buzz at least a couple hundred times a day for various reasons, and this has led me to 1) adjust my app notification settings and 2) utilize DND on the busy days. I do try to check through everything every couple of days, but I never want anyone to feel bad for following up if they haven’t received a prompt answer from me. I’m working on finding a little more balance here, but DND and the iPhone “Focus” feature have been lifesavers for my sanity on many days.
Dedicate One Evening to “Me” Time
Lastly, I prioritize one evening each week to do things I enjoy. It might be painting my nails, doing a face mask, watching one of my favorite shows or movies, reading some articles I’ve been saving—all while sipping a glass of wine or an herbal tea. This night doesn’t have to fall on the same day each week for me, but I do enjoy my evenings of “me” time. This helps me feel like I don’t just exist for the purpose of working, keeping the home, being a mom, etc. While all of these responsibilities and roles hold their own levels of importance, it feels good to just serve myself every now and then.
We all carry a lot of thoughts, reminders, and tasks to do up in our minds, so I think it’s really important to build some habits that make life feel a little bit easier. What do you do to lighten your mental load?
ANNIE BOYD SOWELL 