Getting Organized Feels So Good!

I never thought I'd be able to post the above title, but it's true!  I had a friend visit from out of town and our house needed a major decluttering.  It wasn't something we could baby-step any more.  It was all out!  I lost count of the number of garbage bags and recycling bags that we racked up as we decluttered.  Since we live in a pilot area for waste collection, it made things interesting.  We can currently put out garbage every other week, maximum of 3 bags.  Recycling and composting have no limit and can be put out every week.  Needless to say, we had to make a trip to the dump this week.

The result is that we can eat at our dining room table again and have been doing so for the last week.  We were able to entertain and have friends and family drop in without feeling humiliated.  I had a great visit with my friend and was sad to see her go.

Our house isn't perfect, and there are lots of things I would change if I could as well as some changes I'm working on, but it's home and it feels so much better to be here now that it's more organized.  We still have a a way to go, but it's much more livable now and I can see us becoming more social again since we'll be able to invite people over.

Feeling Better, Getting Organized

I'm amazed by how much better I've been feeling lately.  A lot of it stems back to seeing the chiropractor.  I hadn't thought that it was possible to stop taking anti-depressants before I saw him.  In fact, I was asked to write a testimonial for him and I was surprised by what I had to say.

Before I went there, feeling lousy had crept up on me until it felt like it was normal.  I had no energy and I was pretty much a spectator in my own life.  Now I have more energy and hardly any pain.  I went from having headaches and migraines frequently to hardly any at all.  I don't remember when I last had a migraine.  I have a better range of motion and can now turn my head to look over my shoulder.  I couldn't do that before.  I'm not going to try to sell you on chiropractic, but I will say that it's made a huge difference in my quality of life.  The doctor I visit is part of Maximized Living.  Check their site for more information. I'm learning a lot about my body and health.



Since I'm feeling better, I'm finding that I'm getting more done around the house.  My best friend is coming for a visit in a few weeks, so I have a deadline for clearing up the clutter. I know that she won't care if my house is a mess, but I care and that's something that I didn't feel before.  I'm working in small batches, trying to clean up one small area at a time.  So far, I've gotten our dining room table 1/3 cleared off.  I hope to have it fully cleared off this week so that we can actually sit down and eat at the table as a family.  Somehow it became a dumping ground for everything paper related.  It's like a paper avalanche hit when I wasn't looking.  I may just have a dinner party when it's done!

Slowly but surely, I'm getting rid of the clutter.  I cleared out our front hall closet one night this week.  There were so many shoes that we couldn't close the closet door and since this is the first thing you see when you come in our house, it was pretty awful.  I found several single shoes that didn't have mates as well as all of our winter boots (which are now stored in the basement) and some shoes that the kids had outgrown.  It was a relief to be able to toss some old shoes and donate some of the nicer ones that the kids are finished with.  Now I can close the closet door!  Someday I'll have to go through the coats that are hanging there and the stuff on the shelves, but I'll get there.

I'm Still Standing

 This song came to mind when I was thinking of what to write tonight, so I went with it. I've never seen the video before, and I've gotta say, it's a little weird. Rather than get into a critique of 80s style, I'll get back to my post. I've been quiet for a few weeks on this blog, but even quieter on my other blogs. I don't know quite how, but I wound up in a depressed slump.

Sometimes when I'm not expecting it, depression jumps up and kicks my ass. It started off as just not wanting to write anything. I just didn't feel like it. It kind of grew from there. Looking back, I think that it started around the time we switched to Daylight Savings Time. I don't know for sure, but I think it has to do with less hours of daylight. The ironic thing is that I was talking with my husband about my dislike for the medication I am currently taking and planning to talk to my doctor about going off it. I have felt for some time that my current antidepressant makes me numb to any kind of feeling. I don't feel horribly depressed, but I don't feel happy either. I truly believe that I needed the medication when I started taking it. Without the antidepressants, I would have continued in a downward spiral. I don't even necessarily want to go off medication all together. I just want to get off this medication.

My plan right now is to get through the holidays and then sit down and talk with my family doctor about making a change. After being on this medication for so long, it's going to be a pain to get off of it. Anyway, I'm still here and hopefully I'll be writing more again. I made the effort to get the Wii out the other day and I did a bit of time with Jillian Michaels' game. I wanted to use the Wii Fit, but my disc is hiding somewhere. Hopefully I will find it soon.

The kids and I have been trying to go out for walks after dinner every night. We just go around the block, but it does us good to get outside and get some exercise and fresh air. The nights we walk, the kids go down much better.

I've been trying to organize more by getting more clutter out. A few more boxes have been donated to the local Sally Ann. I've also been tossing a lot of stuff. If the kids leave it out, it's being trashed. I got a new bin for garbage, recycling and compost as well. The recycling was falling all over the place, so this helps to keep it contained. The kids are having fun using the bin to sort things right now. I'm sure this novelty will wear off soon.

As for healthy, I'm sticking to a vegan diet. I'm also seeing my chiropractor once a week now. I'm noticing a difference. When we started chiropractic, the chiropractor told me I had a 97% loss of curve to my neck. It turned out that he mis-read my x-ray and it was actually 107% loss of curve. After 3 months of treatment, I was at 97%. It's getting better slowly, but I feel better already. I've had less headaches and fewer migraines. I'm not falling over tired any more. I'm not as short-tempered and moody either. As I continue treatment, I'm hoping I'll be feeling even better. So, that's me for now. I'm still standing.