Depression and Anxiety with Life: Handling the Monster Pile of To-Dos

The first thing you may want to do is write a list, putting the most urgent on the top so you can just work your way down. If lists don’t work for you, then reminders in your phone or use an agenda or even picture your day in your mind. Find a way that works for you to prioritize what you need to get done.

Don’t just put homework on that list either, put household chores and appointments on there as well. This will help you maintain a realistic goal for the day. Please keep in mind that, it’s okay if all you have on there once in a while is a shower and three meals. You are not a failure and you are trying your best.

If you have a lot to get done or that list is more than half a page, that is okay. Don’t get worried about how much there is or the possibility of not getting it all done in time. This will just make the situation worse and it’ll be harder for you to start chewing down on that list.

Keep in mind that you are human and there is only so much you can do in one day. Remember that you still need to eat and sleep and let your mind and body rest.

Once you’ve prioritized what you need to get done, figure out what you know you will be able to accomplish in that day. Worry about necessities such as, doctor’s appointments and homework assignments due that night or the next day. Don’t worry about needing to organize your closet quite yet. You’ll get there.

If you need a stylish and formatted to do list, you can find many of them on the internet. Just Google "to do lists". Pick out the one that fits you. Try to make this process as enjoyable and stress free for you as you can.

Now that you have a good idea as to what you want to accomplish, start doing it. Take a shower and brush your teeth, have some breakfast, and play some music maybe. Make sure you feel semi-okay with and about yourself before you start. If you can’t like yourself, even just a little, then you’re not going to be able to respect the boundaries your mind and body will need.

Another thing to keep in mind, is that you can’t just keep going and going until it’s all done. You’re going to need breaks here and there. So, set a timer for anywhere from thirty minutes to a few hours, depending on how much motivation you have and how long a task or two is going to take. Then when the timer goes off, or you’ve reached that 12 o’ clock mark, set it again for thirty minutes to an hour for you to plan out what to do next and to get a glass of water and a small snack.

Please don’t ever forget to give yourself little rewards here and there. You need to get into the habit of feeling proud or happy about yourself for doing something, which I know is extremely difficult to do. Start with a small sweet treat for eating breakfast or cleaning up your room. Move on to other rewards, but make sure they mean something. Don’t just splurge twenty dollars at the thrift shop for waking up. Make each reward mean something to you and tell yourself you deserve it. Tell yourself why you deserve it and that it’s okay to enjoy it.

The whole point of this is to try and retrain your mind to see daily to-dos less as an impossible thing and more as a rewarding experience in the end. To try and show you that there’s always an end to the hardship with chocolate or going out to the movies. You deserve to be happy and you need to have some happiness or enjoyment to get through your troubles.

If you have a hard time trying to dictate what deserves a reward or you tend to forget to reward yourself, you can always try a chore chart, or a rewards chart. You may have used them when you were a kid and loved them. They're fun, stylish, and a to-do list within itself.

Possible rewards:

• Ice cream
• Netflix
• Eat out
• Color
• Draw
• Read a book
• Drink some tea
• Take a walk
• Play a game
• and so much more...

You are human.

You are deserving of happiness.

Take a small step each moment, you don’t need to jump to succeed.

Don’t forget that you need to be a friend to yourself.

Please don’t ever stop trying.