When Washing Feels Like Too Much
For the stretch where showering, teeth and clean clothes have all slid, and the longer it goes the harder it gets. It helps you pick the smallest version of each, lower the bar on purpose, and get one thing done without a verdict attached.
Self-Care · Self-Care · Depression · 8 items · whenever you need it
The checklist
- Pick one thing only, not the whole list — a shower or your teeth, not both today.
- Use the wipes, dry shampoo or mouthwash — the shortcut version counts as done.
- Sit down in the shower if standing is too much — nobody is marking how you do it.
- Put clean clothes where you will see them — the decision is easier when it is already made.
- Set a two-minute limit and stop at it — a short attempt beats a postponed proper one.
- Put something loud on while you do it — the task is easier with company of any kind.
- Skip the catch-up on everything you missed — starting from today is the only option available.
- Tell someone if this has lasted weeks — a long stretch is worth saying out loud to a doctor.
Use this checklist Free account: tick items off and keep each day's record.
How to use it
Run through it whenever you need it, honestly and without scoring yourself. A checklist is a way of noticing, not a test: an item you cannot tick is information about the day, not a verdict on you. Over a few weeks the pattern of what gets ticked and what does not says more than any single pass.
With a free Theraglee account the checklist remembers each pass, so you can look back. Without one, you can still read it here and keep your own copy.