"Itsy bitsy baby steps" is my most reliable way of getting through the hard days/weeks/months/years. Pressing myself too hard when I am feeling maxed out seems to create more messes than it cleans up. Giving in to those feelings and doing nothing, whatsoever, ushers in dissociation and apathy.

It is far easier for me to manage small steps than grand designs. Nudging myself to clean **just** the counter is easier than pushing myself to clean the entire kitchen. It happens quite often where cleaning **just** the counter gives me the confidence to tackle **just** the sink, **just** the overflowing trash can, **just** this, that or the next thing, One itsy bitsy baby step often grows into 2 or 20 until my to-do list is suddenly far shorter. If one itsy bitsy baby step is all I can manage, that's okay. I rest a little better for having given it my best shot.

I agree with baby steps precious.... I also lean on gratitude when I'm feeling rough

I get out a pen and paper and daily write 5 things that I have to be grateful for..

I try to have a plan in advance for the little steps that I want to take... It may just be a shower and making my bed .. It's steps in the right direction.... Big hug....xo

Thanks for sharing that with me, arfie and SunCloud

*SunCloudJD

I keep a gratitude journal, too, PMH. A member here suggested it to me 4 years ago because with our PTSD hypervigilance symptom for survival we're wired to see a threat before a blessing. It's 800 pages long now. Who knew there were that many blessings?

For me like muji is finding gratitude Daily (Muji still working on writing it down Daily), I have DS support, my therapist and case Manager (only one out of three). I was given meds but my body reject it. Sometimes I go show kindness to others or just find someone to be supportive to by text or sending a card. When I take the focus off my self I do much better. My therapist is shock that it helps me when I take the focus off myself. I remained her that I am weird lol

PMH,

My best therapist told me this “small victories, focus on the small victories”

She also told me the following:

(I’m having a hard time following these steps but I’ll share them anyway):
1:) wake up and get straight into the shower
2) brush your teeth & hair
3) breathe
4) make your bed
5) etc

Also get a journal or use DS as your journal.. it will help!


Everyday we battle an uphill battle, but if we just focus on the small victories we can climb a mountain. You’ve got this, we got this.

-Kayla

Yeah kaylab reminded me, PMH, that in addition to keeping a Gratitude Journal every day I also make lists on typing paper with big magic markers. The list names the things to do that day big and small. From "brush your teeth" or 'wash your hair" to 'live stream Zoom meeting with coworker at 11am."

Then as each victory is achieved, both big and small, it gets crossed off but stays up there as victorious evidence. I left each day's crossed off list up day after day. It especially helped me through the mostly locked down pandemic year of 2020 for me in the States. My college campus closed and I had to teach only from home. Groceries were no contact delivery only.

Life could easily have turned into that Bill Murray movie "Groundhog Day" where he keeps reliving the same day over and over. Those lists, though, were proof I was making progress through the week day by day. I'm not in lockdown now that I've retired and moved to Mexico. but I still keep those lists. As kaylab said.we've got to celebrate the daily victories we had the daily strength to achieve.