ameline
New Member
Digging through the muck daily
Joined: March 2014
Posts: 4 
|
Post by ameline on Mar 13, 2014 18:12:50 GMT -5
So good to see I have something right! I started doing this a month or so before I even joined this forum. Yay! That means I'm not as resistant to cleaning as I thought - I'm putting one foot in the right direction. It's ok to praise myself right? This method is great, especially for those with physical limitations because we don't get up much but when we do, what's the harm in taking a few dishes to the sink on the way to the bathroom, etc...? Not only that, but you get a small sense of accomplishment that most of us didn't have before. Small positive steps in the right direction are so much better than the big backwards negative ones.
|
|
|
|
Post by reb on Feb 6, 2015 14:44:07 GMT -5
Here's a funny one I sorta invented awhile back for video game players. Some games have horrific load times if you don't clear out your game save files. When I'd want to do a big clean I would keep all the save files and every time I had to reload I would run around like a loon tidying, decluttering and cleaning while waiting for the game to start up again. The 'while you are up' method is brill  |
|
|
|
Post by lostchild on Feb 6, 2015 17:00:52 GMT -5
ameline praise yourself and I praise you too! Great job!!!
|
|
binbag
New Member
Joined: November 2015
Posts: 34
|
Post by binbag on Nov 4, 2015 13:39:54 GMT -5
I have mobility problems and must use a scooter to get about outside. Indoors I should have a walking frame, but my home is too messy to allow me to use one. So I have to walk hanging onto the walls.
A variant to this method that I use, because my hands need to help me walk, is to walk with a bucket. The bucket carries anything I need to move from room to room with. Also, since it's waterproof inside, I can use a bucket to carry wet or messy things.
This method works great (buckets) as long as you remember to empty them. Right now all my buckets are full and I have not put the rubbish in the buckets into bin bags. I think that's my mental health problem, that sometimes I get 'stuck' and progress gets derailed.
|
|
|
|
Post by danny15 on Nov 4, 2015 13:55:50 GMT -5
 binbag, we all find what works for us as individuals. Maybe limit yourself to 3 buckets, or whatever suits you, and try to empty those before filling more. |
|
binbag
New Member
Joined: November 2015
Posts: 34
|
Post by binbag on Nov 4, 2015 14:59:57 GMT -5
Yes I have three buckets. I just need to bring myself to empty them when I bring them out of my bedroom.
|
|
|
|
Post by dustydaughter on Dec 3, 2016 10:43:26 GMT -5
Here's my tip for using the BDG method: MAKE LISTS!
I'm just getting over some foot trouble that's kept me from moving around as much as I usually do. When it first hit, I remembered the BDG method and re-read this thread. It helped, but it worked the best when I finally figured out that I had to use lists. Maybe if this stuff was already habit, I wouldn't need them. But I'm not used to having to plan my "journeys" and had to think consciously about everything I was going to do when I got out of my chair or the bed. Also, my prescription was making me mentally foggy. I kept forgetting things I could be getting done when I was on my feet briefly.
So for the past couple of days, I've been keeping a little shopping list pad with me in my living room chair. If I remember I need to water the plants, or bring something down from upstairs, I write it down. Then when I'm going to get up anyway, I already have some ideas for what to do when I'm up--plus it gives me little jobs I can get my husband to take care of. It seems kind of silly to write down such tiny tasks, but it helps.
|
|
|
|
Post by creativechaos on Dec 7, 2016 19:08:11 GMT -5
Great idea about the lists, dustydaughter ~ I share that brain fog and that is especially true when i'm in pain. i'm glad that you are (hopefully) getting over your foot trouble and working smarter, not harder. may you heal well with full recovery. I just had a back spasm and thought of the BDG method a lot when i was less able to move well. I'm always happy when this thread resurfaces again, so thanks for sharing something to make it even better. |
|
|
|
Post by angela on Dec 10, 2016 23:50:58 GMT -5
That's a super idea dustydaughter! I think I could make this work for me. My obstacle is usually the cold I have to fight to function in the downstairs of the house. When I go to the trouble to get the trash burner going in the kitchen, it is worth my while to do as much as I can while it is warm enough to function. Same with the bathroom.. I have a little old spiral bound notebook and could use that. I also like the idea that I would only be making lists and planning a short time ahead. That would be doable for me. Thank you! |
|
|
|
Post by itsybitsy on Dec 11, 2016 0:24:17 GMT -5
Yes, great idea dustydaughter, it's amazing how writing it down makes it more of a commitment to do something. I also like that it takes the thought out of my mind and on to the paper. I don't have to return to the thought or worry of forgetting something. Once it's written down, the pressure eases as it shifts to a written log that I can refer to when I want/need to. |
|
|
|
Post by CourageouslyLion SeeksSerenity on Aug 22, 2019 15:32:02 GMT -5
This "BDG method" thread is already in the "favorite threads" section,
but it might have been missed or forgotten by some of us.
I'm adding a post to bring it to the attention of those who might find it useful.
|
|
|
|
Post by itsybitsy on Aug 22, 2019 22:11:44 GMT -5
For those of us with two floors, I have a "drop-off" basket that sits on the bottom step (it is molded to the stair with a step-up so stays put) for items needing to go upstairs. Upstairs, right near the stairs start so I can't miss it, is a tray sitting on a side table. I place things there for when I'm headed downstairs. This really helps. For really big items, I do have to put them on the floor by the stairs, but it helps when I'm puttering around upstairs to place something on the tray and I know to look at the tray before I head downstairs.
|
|
|
|
Post by mylittlescholar on Aug 23, 2019 15:16:03 GMT -5
I am so grateful for what I have learned here. Part of the beauty of this is that it has helped me build better habits. Or re-build them, when I have had a period of depression. They are like the "defending my space" concept, except with time.
For example, this last round of coming out of my annual May low period, I started by using the time I was waiting for the coffee to drip to load or unload the dishwasher. I could do a lot more than I expected in those few minutes. (being blessed with a working dishwasher helped!)
Then as I reheated my coffee during the day, I would add another 60 seconds of kitchen work. Somehow I was able to wrench my brain as I was staring at the microwave impatiently, to the idea of taking action. Then I began to defend that mental shift, and now it is an automatic synaptic pathway again. yay!
I have also have an assortment of baskets, building on itsybitsy 's idea. Big, robust ones I got at the goodwill. I use them for PEEPing, which saves a lot of steps walking though the house, as I rotate through the rooms distributing things "towards" their homes. I also keep a big basket in my office that I can toss things in when I am not leaving my office yet.
The trick with the baskets is to keep them "live," instead of a black hole. Sometimes they can become a place for deferred decisions or actions (typically errands, things that go to the car) that go off of my radar if I haven't written the actions down.
|
|
|
|
Post by NewLifeToday on Jul 4, 2020 9:06:48 GMT -5
mylittlescholar. I really like what you wrote about "defending my space". For me, that goes to the core of living. Thank you for writing that. Doing something each time I get up, doing tiny spot cleans, often leads to my doing more. Cleaning, getting a letter or package ready, exercising, while something is brewing or cooking, etc., has helped me a great deal. As you wrote, I have to keep this activity "live". For me, this is a gold-star Favorite thread.
|
|
|
|
Post by larataylor on Jul 4, 2020 13:38:33 GMT -5
This is a wonderful thread, and a wonderful idea. I realize that this has become a habit for me, although I don't have mobility problems. Someday I might! For now it just feels efficient to me to do a few seconds here, a few minutes there, wherever I am.
|
|
