Do you ever feel constantly overwhelmed by your to do list? Or feel like life keeps hitting you in the face and you can’t catch your breath? Do you feel like life is passing you by and your missing the important things that mean the most to you? Are you feeling like you are missing out on the things that matter because you are SO busy and stressed? Do you want to simplify your life but have no idea where to start?
Because I have.
How I got the idea for “A change for simplicity”
It all started about seven months ago when I moved away from my family for the first time, my husband was working a lot, I wasn’t taking care of myself like I should, and I was spending A LOT of time at home. In addition, personal things were coming up that made me question who I am and what I was doing here. I felt like I was just going through the motions of life, and checking off the endless ‘to do’s’. To put it simply, I just really started to doubt myself and my capabilities as a wife and a mother.
I started asking myself questions like, What am I doing? Why am I here? Does anyone even care? Why am I not as ‘happy’ as I want to be? Why is it that I find myself complaining and obsessing over trivial things? Why do I keep letting others decisions determine my happiness? What is it really that’s stressing me out? And why after all this work, do I still feel like I’m lacking in all areas of my life?
All these things got me asking myself is this really what I wanted out of my life?
And it wasn’t.
So finally one day when I was feeling sorry for myself and throwing a pity party, it hit me.
Realizing that although I may not have power over all aspects of my life, I do have power over what I put my time/energy into and what happens within the walls of my home.
I am the only one in charge of my happiness.
So I decided that if I wasn’t happy, I was going to do something about it. And that’s when the idea “A change for simplicity” was born.
Time for a change
I started by taking charge of what was stressing/overwhelming me and tackled these areas slowly one at a time.
I did a lot of research, listened to a lot of other mamas, I read books, I tried for less screen time, and made changes in my daily routines. I started decluttering, organizing, reevaluating, and prioritizing our lives as a family and tried to refocus my mindset. Any and all changes to try to simplify my life.
And you know what? I discovered that I was SO much happier! Of course it didn’t get rid of all my problems, but I felt more in charge of my life. I was finally starting to feel a weight being lifted off my shoulders, see progress, and experience more joy in my life!
- I saw my relationships improve
- I had more time for the things I enjoyed
- I was a better mom
- I took better care of myself
- I felt closer to God
Why I’m sharing this with you
I knew that other women felt the same way I did, I just didn’t know how many. I started doing some research too see just how many when I found a lot of disturbing studies and facts. One in particular said
Eight out of ten women have felt that they have been unable to cope in the past year. Another extensive mental health study shows one in three felt suicidal and one in six self-harmed.
This blew my mind, I knew a lot of women felt this way, but it absolutely broke my heart to know that women are struggling so severely that they would hurt themselves to escape it.
I WANT EVERYONE READING THIS TO KNOW, THAT THIS IS NOT OK!
And you know what else? It’s affecting our kids, A LOT.
The American Psychological Association reported that almost a THIRD of children said that they had experienced a physical health symptom associated with stress. Parents don’t realize that their own stress is affecting their kids, 69% of parents say their own stress has only a slight or no impact on their children. But just 14% of youth say their parent’s stress doesn’t bother them.
This really got me thinking. If our stress has taken over our health and lives plus our families lives, what in the world is it that is making us feel so overwhelmed?
I dug further, doing a little more research and found the top stressors that we as mothers face. Here is what I found:
- Time demands
- Finances
- Clutter in the home
- Relationship demands
- Child care
- Self doubt
- Time alone
A Change for Simplicity
After taking in these studies, and listening to other women’s struggles, in addition the experiences in my own life, inspired me to start discussing topics on my blog that aren’t really addressed a whole lot on social media.
I share this all with you to preface my future posts on my goal to help women find their version of simplicity.
Simplicity to me is identifying the essential, and eliminating the rest. In short, keeping life simple so you can enjoy more.
I am on a mission to help women find what it is they value and enjoy in life and get rid of the rest. I want us to stop stressing and putting our precious time and effort into things that don’t make us happy. To have more time for our relationships. Have more time with our children.
I want that for me, and I want that for you.
Now I don’t ever want to give off the illusion that I’ve got life figured out or that my life is perfect, because trust me when I tell you, I don’t and it’s not. I have my own weaknesses, shortcomings, and trials. I simply want to share the things that I have found helpful to me to simplify my own life, and possibly yours too.
But if this sounds like you, whether you are a mama or not, I hope you stick around and watch for upcoming blog posts. I promise you, it will help you so much to clear out the clutter and start being present for the things that bring you joy.
See you next time,
XO, Jamie
