My Authentic Daily Cleaning System As A Neurodivergent Mum.
There is no one size fits all method when it comes to cleaning. This cleaning system that I have created for myself may feel unconventional to some and/or inspirational to others, but the main takeaway from this system is that it focus’ on progress over perfection! Perfectionism breeds procrastination. This is coming from a recovering perfectionist- myself. I have tried so many cleaning systems out there and none of them have worked for me until I realised one main reason why. It is because they do not align with my values, lifestyle and design!
I am a late diagnosed Autistic female, and to add to that I am also diagnosed OCD with C-PSTD, and I am self diagnosed (which is valid) with an ADHD brain. The trendy name for an Autistic and ADHD brain is AuDHD. In a nut shell, I am a part of the neurodivergent community (also my two sons and husband, are also a part of the neurodivergent community). Why did I mention this to you? Because this is all related to what my design is. My brain controls how I am designed to function with daily tasks and with life in general. So in saying that, a boring and predictable cleaning routine is not going to cut it for me. No siree!
We all have a unique design, and we all have different values. Not to mention we all have different beliefs. I value and believe in astrology and human design. I also believe and know that nature’s seasons and cycles influence our moods and productivity. We also all have unique inbuilt cycles that influence our daily moods and productivity. For example, the menstrual cycle.
I’ll break all of this down in further blog posts, but for this blog post I am sharing my authentic daily cleaning system, and the reasons why it works for me. So that you can see an example of how a system or routine can be customised to suit our unique values and design. So let’s get started!
‘My Authentic Cleaning System’
Each day I have allocated sessions for cleaning. Allocated cleaning sessions create boundaries for me when it comes to cleaning. I used to get overwhelmed with the amount of cleaning that I thought that I needed to do each day. I felt like I was ALWAYS cleaning. But this way of thinking was unsustainable. I felt like I was always cleaning because I wanted to have a clean and tidy home ALL of the time. But what I came to realise is that this is not a realistic goal for my values, design and lifestyle. The only way to achieve a clean and tidy home ALL of the time is to get rich and hire cleaners. I had to get very REAL with myself. So I did some reflecting on what my current lifestyle looks like, and then looked at how I could incorporate cleaning systems into my life that felt right to me. Here is what I implement now:
On a work day (when I work my admin job), I have one cleaning session after work.
On a content creating day, I have one to two cleaning sessions (depending on how busy I am).
On the weekend or in the holidays, I have three cleaning sessions (because the kids and hubby are home for most of the day). 😅
I work on one zone of my house at a time for an allocated amount of time before moving onto the next zone. I have 12 zones in my house, they are:
The Garage
The Kitchen & Pantry
Outside
The Living Area
Boy’s Rooms & Play Room
The Laundry
The Mud Area & Guest Room (Lukas’ Room)
The Main Bedroom & Walk-In Robe
The Hallways
The Office
The Dining Area
The Ensuite, Main Bathroom & Powder Room
I utilise my ‘5 Steps To A Tidy Space’ method in each room. This helps me to break down the tasks, so that it doesn’t seem so overwhelming.
‘My 5 Steps To A Tidy Space Method’
This is a method that I created during the early years of having my boys. When they were babies and toddlers. It helped me to drop perfectionism and to make progress with my cleaning. I use this method when working in an allocated zone or for the whole house. I use this method within my authentic daily cleaning system. These are the steps:
Remove any items that do not belong in the space
Remove rubbish and dispose of appropriately
Do a task that needs priority attention
Declutter (and/or clean) floors
Declutter (and/or clean) surfaces
I will dedicate a blog post in the future to this method, but for now we will move on.
‘The Productivity Tools That I Use’
I use the following tools to help me to stay focused and interested in cleaning. They are:
A timer
‘Which Cycle Phase Am I In?’
How I go about my authentic daily cleaning is determined by which menstrual cycle phase that I am currently in. I have noticed that my energy levels are different in each phase of my cycle. So I honour my energy by making required adjustments accordingly. For example:
Menstrual Phase (Low Energy) = First day - complete rest (if possible) and then the other days I will do 5 mins ONLY in each zone of the house per cleaning session.
Follicular Phase (Medium to High) = I will do 15 mins ONLY in each zone of the house per cleaning session.
Ovulation Phase (High- with short periods of rest) = I will do 20 mins ONLY in each zone of the house per cleaning session.
Luteal Phase (Medium to Low) = I will do 10 mins ONLY in each zone of the house per cleaning session.
I use my tools for productivity during these sessions. If for some reason my energy is low during the follicular phase, I will follow the menstrual phase guideline. It truly is about listening to your body and determining what is sustainable for the current day that you are experiencing. Humans are designed to flow rather than force. We are not robots. This system works for me because it gives my autistic part of my brain enough structure and routine, it gives my ADHD part of my brain enough novelty, competition and spontaneity, and it gives my OCD part of the brain stability and order. But above all, it gives me space to breathe and I can feel less overwhelmed.
So that is my authentic daily cleaning system. It works for me, and it may not work for you. But I hope that you can take what resonates with you and begin to truly reflect on what system would work for you according to your values, beliefs, design and lifestyle.
Remember: “Some is better than none”, however none is important when rest is needed.
Watch my video on YouTube showing how I implement this system.
Thanks for reading beautiful soul! I hope that this blog post was inspiring. If you liked this post, please feel free to share it with your family and friends.
Until next week. I am sending you lots of peace, love and good health.
Cassie xo
