Compassion Fatigue Solutions

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You may already be familiar with the benefits of decluttering and simplifying your home and work environments. In the past few years there have been several popular TV shows and books on the topic (The show "Clean Sweep", Julie Morgenstern's book "Organizing from the Inside Out", Patrick Fannings "The 50 Best Ways to Simplify Your Life: Proven Techniques for Achieving Lasting Balance" to name a few.) which all argue that getting rid of clutter is a great way to take control over our health and reduce stress in both our home and work life.

Our environment impacts us in many different ways - working with a supportive, positive colleague can make a highly stressful and demanding work environment much easier. Being unable to find any of the forms you need in a messy office can turn a simple task into a very stressful, blood pressure elevating exercise.

I have experienced first hand the benefits of getting rid of clutter and getting organised: when my living space is organised, I feel calmer, more serene. But I also know that when life is hectic, I often don't have the time or energy to get organised and the vicious cycle settles in: too tired to put thing away where they belong, frustrated because I can't find what I need, too frazzled to look properly etc.

Therefore, I am always on the lookout for new simple strategies that can be easily woven into the life of a busy person who works full-time and has young children at home. Here are some simple suggestions and resources:

Five minutes to being clutter-free:

Put 5 minute decluttering activities in your day timer. Cleaning all the drawers in your kitchen likely feels like an overwhelming (and rather unappealling) task. But what about cleaning one drawer out? You could likely do that while talking on the phone with a friend. I often schedule simple 5 minute activities in my daytimer. Example from last week:
Monday: "throw 2 curtains in the wash"
Wednesday: "clean out 1 kitchen drawer"
Friday: "clean bathroom cabinet"
Saturday: "clean one window"

And so on. Notice that I don't have a decluttering activity scheduled each day. These small activities make me feel that I am "taking care of the to do list" yet never facing a gigantic chore which will increase the likelihood of procrastinating and putting it off.

A useful resource is the Get Organized Now website. It is a neat site that offers a monthly calendar of small activities to help you get organised. I don't personally follow the schedule but I signed up for the newsletter and get a monthly notice that there are new ideas and strategies.

Create a sanctuary - Focus on one space in your home
Another approach is to focus on one space in your home and make it clutter-free and serene. If you have young children, it may be impossible to get all the clutter out of the shared living space. Instead, can you focus on one area, say your bedroom or a little nook in the house and make it yours?

If you would like to read more on this topic, I recommend visiting Leo Babauta's website Zen Habits: Zen habits and Cheryl Richardson's book "Take Time for your Life."


Take 10 minutes per day to breathe
If you work in a stressful and hectic work environment, it is important to build in some simple strategies to decompress at the end of your day. I suggest you find 10 minutes in your day where you will be undisturbed: whether it is sitting in your car before heading home, on the subway with your ipod plugged in, or when you get home. If you are easily distracted and have difficulty spending 10 minutes sitting undisturbed, I recommend you purchase a simple breathing or relaxation cd or download a track from itunes. I suggest: Dr Mark Berber's "Creating Inner Calm" cd, available at Chapters/Indigo and on itunes "Encres de chine" by Fabrice Tonnellier and meditations with Dr Siddarth Ashvin.