My Daily Routine & Cleaning Schedule

Stability, reliability, and consistency is so important to me right now. I’m focused on bringing more security into my life. As someone who greatly suffers from anxiety, I have found that repetition and steady routine in my daily life is enormously helpful. 🧘‍♀️👍✅

This past year, I have put a lot of thought into what my days and weeks should consist of in order to bring about calmness, happiness, and personal satisfaction. I have been seeking a balance between work and play, how to keep up with chores without exhausting myself. The key is to put in a little effort every day while still making time for what brings you joy. ☺️🕑🔑

From this point on, I vow to follow a specific schedule (morning routine, evening routine, bedtime routine, and cleaning goals) that I’ve made for myself. I’m leaving room for error and tweaking, but planning on sticking with it. 💪🌟💯

Everyone is different — maybe some people wouldn’t do well with a schedule, maybe they would find it adds more stress to their life. But personally, I feel like this is exactly what I need to help me thrive.

When you struggle with anxiety, hacking your daily routine can add more relief than any other medication or form of therapy ever could. Each day is full of so many variables. We don’t realize that the smallest changes in our schedule can throw everything off, making us panic more than we’re even aware of.

Numerological-ly speaking, I learned that I’m a life path #3, meaning I’m very creative but also very chaotic. Life path #3s thrive when they are placed under structure and discipline. It’s exactly what they need to let their creative juices flow in a relaxed mindset. Now, obviously you don’t have to be a life path #3 to relate to this. This is simply an example of what lead me to start taking self-discipline more seriously. I think anyone with a creative mind, or anyone who is prone to feeling “lost” can benefit from a personal schedule.

---

Cleaning schedule:

I broke down each room and provided chores to keep up with each day, each week, or each month. I have this list hanging in my kitchen. Everything is pretty basic but it’s a nice reminder to keep up with everything.

For my weekly chores, I try to do them on Saturday. Once a month is good to do a deep cleaning with pet stuff — dump out the litter box completely and spray it down, scrub the guinea pig cage, etc. Some say you should change your bedsheets every week but I feel like monthly is fine, I’m a small person in a large bed and I also have to pay for my laundry.

Daily routine: morning, evening, and bedtime

This is a typical work-week day. I may try to make a schedule for weekends but this is good for now.

So, a lot of this stuff is things I’ve generally been doing for a while now. But from here on, I’m trying to have a distinct schedule. Sometimes I won’t always make room for everything on this list, or I’ll do things in different order. Now, I want consistency to the point where I’m doing everything in the same order at the same time. The difference between having a handful of things you’d like to do verses having an actual time and order for everything actually makes all the difference. It clears a lot of stress, knowing you can focus on one task at a time, and that you’ll get to other things later. And it adds more repetition in to my life which leads to feelings of security and stability.

Mornings: Making your bed first thing is a great way to feel instantly productive without even doing much. It makes everything nicer, plus I think the cats appreciate it too. Then I’ll do all my bathroom stuff — by “perfume” I don’t mean those alcohol-based glass bottles you’re probably thinking of, but just a general term for “nice smelling” — deodorant, rose toner facial mist, essential oil spray, lotion. I’ll get dressed, feed cats, make sure the guinea pig has water. For a while I’ve been eating breakfast at work, or on my way to work, but I’d really like to make a point to eat at home first. I think it’s less stressful that way and also forces me to slow down. Since I have the most energy in the morning I’m thinking about holding off on caffeine until lunch, or at least until later in the morning, since caffeine is bad for my anxiety, but we’ll see how it goes. After breakfast is medication which can refer to vitamins or supplements, sometimes, but not always, I’ll take an herbal supplement such as Ashwaghanda or Lion’s Mane, etc. I also like to take CBD oil. And before actually leaving for work I’d like to make a point to first do some yoga, get my body warmed up while cleansing my mind. And if I’m feeling really tired or sick, then at least meditation. Lastly before leaving is prayer/affirmations which can mean many things, whether it’s reciting words that shift my mind into a better headspace, or repeating a specific prayer or poem, or saying out loud what I’m grateful for, or wishes or intentions for the day.

Evenings: This starts as soon as I’m home from work. I’m always very hungry at this point, so I’ll be making a snack and giving the cats some treats, holding us off til dinner. Then I might decide to take some sort of medicine/supplement to help me relax, depending on how I feel. Catnip tincture for example is a good de-stressor without causing too much sleepiness. I’ll also make tea: caffeinated or herbal, again depending on how I feel. The cats are always anxious when I come home after being bored and lonely all day, so right away it’s good to give them stimulus. Now that I have my cat stroller I may try taking them on walks. But if the weather is bad or I’m just too tired then I’ll at least play with them for five or ten minutes. Afterwards is a great time to unwind by taking a shower or just relaxing with TV or a book or something. I don’t shower every day because showering too often causes your skin to overproduce oils — my typical days are Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, of course more if I’ve had a sweaty day or I feel dirty. Then it’s blogging time! I’ll either write or try to catch up on posts from other bloggers. And then once I’m ready I’ll make dinner. Forgot to write it on the list but this also includes feeding the pets. Then I’ll do my daily cleaning, and back to blogging.

Bedtime: After I’ve relaxed for a while, and got a decent amount of blog-work done too, I’ll start to get ready for bed. Bedtime begins with sleepy-time tea. If I have the energy, I’ll prepare my lunch (or possibly breakfast too) for tomorrow. Then I’ll do more daily cleanup. And then brush and floss. I love doing exercise right before sleep to get rid of that achey feeling, although I wrote “pilates/yoga” this could be any exercise, I also like hooping or dancing or anything else. Again, if I’m feeling too tired or sick, then I’ll just do some light stretching at least. Finally, I’ll lay in bed. I’ll probably end up messing around on my phone, but I’m hoping to use this time for journaling or book-reading. I don’t journal every single day but I do at least once a week, usually a few times a week. I usually take melatonin or some natural sleep aid unless I don’t need it. Lastly, before closing my eyes, I say prayers/affirmations.

I aim to follow these routines in order to bring a sense of stability, comfort, and security in my life. I think this will help me feel more productive and less anxious at the same time. I’ll let you know how it goes or if I make any changes. Feel free to tell me what you include in your daily routine or any suggestions you might add.