Clear out the clutter…💚✨

💛 Summer of Healing with Donna Marie

✨ A gentle journey back to yourself ✨

Summer Reflection | Week Seven – Clear out the clutter…

I think sometimes life has a funny way of telling us when it is time to stop. Not necessarily in a dramatic way, but through that feeling of being completely overwhelmed, mentally cluttered and just a little bit "yuck" – which is probably the best word I can find for how I've been feeling today! After the last few weeks, my body has been through a lot and now my minor op is out of the way, I am finding that my mind hasn't quite caught up with the fact that I need to slow down and look after myself too. There is still a list in my head of things I need to do, messages I need to answer, work I want to get finished and a million little thoughts jumping around at once. And if I'm honest, I think I need to stop trying to organise all of it and simply give myself permission to clear some of the clutter.

This week's Energy Whisper was Frog Spirit 🐸 Clear out the clutter, and it really couldn't have arrived at a more appropriate time. I pulled the card upside down, which was a protective message about looking at what is taking up space in our lives and asking whether it actually needs to be there. We often think of clutter as the physical things around us, but there is so much more than that. There is the clutter in our minds, the emotional baggage we carry, other people's opinions, responsibilities we have taken on, conversations we keep replaying, worries about things that haven't happened yet and all those little "shoulds" that seem to follow us around. Sometimes our energy is being drained before we've even got out of bed because our brains are already processing everything we think we need to deal with.

I've been thinking about this a lot today because I know exactly what helps me when my energy feels low, yet sometimes when I am so exhausted and overwhelmed, even the thought of doing those things I love feels like another job or an effort. I know that getting outside helps me. I know that putting my feet on the grass, spending time in nature, dancing, doing self-Reiki, holding my crystals or simply sitting quietly with a cup of tea can completely change how I feel. But when your brain is overloaded, even choosing something what might help can feel like too much. That's why I think energy hygiene needs to be simple. It doesn't need to be another routine you have to get perfectly right. Sometimes it is simply noticing that you are overwhelmed and choosing one tiny thing that brings you back into the present moment.

So today, instead of trying to push through everything I feel I should be doing, I am going to take some of the eclipse energy as an invitation to pause and reflect. I'm going to get my journal out this evening and allow myself to write everything down – the things I'm worrying about, the things that are taking up too much space in my head, the things I can control and the things I can't. Sometimes getting those thoughts out of your head and onto paper is enough to make them feel a little less overwhelming. I know I don't need to solve everything today, I just need to create a little more space.

There is something really powerful about physically writing something down and then deciding, "I don't need to carry this anymore." Perhaps it's an old belief about yourself. Perhaps it's somebody else's expectations. Perhaps you're constantly trying to keep everyone else happy. Maybe you're saying yes when every part of you wants to say no, or perhaps you are spending far too much of your precious energy worrying about what somebody else thinks. We cannot control everything around us, but we can become much more intentional about what we allow to take up residence in our energy.

And that brings me back to the image of the little frog sitting on his lily pad. I absolutely loved this message because I could picture that tiny lily pad getting more and more crowded with everyone else's clutter! Other people's drama, opinions, expectations and problems being dumped onto it until there is barely any room left for the frog himself. How often do we do exactly that? We take on somebody else's problem because we want to help. We get pulled into somebody else's drama because we don't want to upset them. We carry somebody else's emotions because we are empathetic. We keep trying to fix things that aren't actually ours to fix.

✨Sometimes you have to let people croak and create their own drama whilst you stay on your own lily pad! 🐸

That doesn't mean you don't care or that you aren't compassionate. It simply means that you recognise that you CANNOT pour from an empty cup and you CANNOT protect everybody else's energy at the expense of your own. There is a difference between supporting someone and carrying them. There is a difference between being there for someone and becoming responsible for how they feel. Learning that difference has been a huge part of my own healing journey.

I also think there is something to be said for clearing physical clutter when your mind feels cluttered. It might sound simple, but sometimes clearing a drawer, tidying your workspace, deleting things from your phone or simply opening a window and letting some fresh air into the room can create a surprisingly different feeling. I don't think it is about having a perfectly tidy home or becoming obsessed with decluttering. It's about noticing how your surroundings affect you and asking yourself whether they are helping you feel calm or adding to the noise.

For me, this is what energy hygiene has become. It isn't about protecting myself from every negative thing in the world or pretending that difficult things don't exist. Life is life, and there will always be things we cannot control. It is about becoming more aware of what drains me, what replenishes me and where I am giving away energy that I actually need for myself.

After everything that has happened recently, I think I need to practise what I preach a little more.

I've spent a lot of time thinking about what I need to do for everyone else, what needs organising, what needs answering and what needs finishing. Now I need to turn some of that attention back towards myself. My body has just been through the mill and it deserves time, rest and kindness. My mind deserves some quiet and my energy deserves protecting.

And perhaps yours does too.

💛 Donna Marie's Summer Soul Practice

This week, I want you to grab a notebook or journal and give yourself ten quiet minutes.

Don't overthink it, just write what comes to mind.

Start with:

💚What is taking up space in my head right now?💚

Then ask yourself:

✨ What am I carrying that isn't actually mine?

✨ What is draining my energy?

✨ What am I ready to let go of?

✨ Where do I need a boundary?

✨ What would I like to make more space for?

And finally...

✨What is one small thing I can do this week that will nourish my energy?✨

It might be a walk, a bath, some self-Reiki, sitting in nature, dancing around the kitchen, meeting a friend who makes you laugh or simply giving yourself permission to rest.

You don't have to clear everything at once, start with one little corner of your life. It could be:

🤍 One thought

🤍 One boundary

🤍 One cleared out drawer

🤍 One "no"

🤍 One thing you are ready to release

Then notice how you feel – I can guarantee you that you will feel better in yourself.✨

💚 Donna Marie's Energy Hygiene tip of the week

Clear your mental clutter before trying to fix everything.

When your mind feels overwhelmed, don't immediately add another ten things to your to-do list in an attempt to feel more organised.

Get it out of your head first.

Write it down. Breathe. Separate what is yours from what isn't.

Then choose one thing.

✨Your energy doesn't need more pressure, it needs space.✨

As I sit here writing this, I think that is probably the reminder I needed today as much as anyone else. I don't have to have everything figured out or keep pushing because there are things I still want to get done. I don't have to carry everyone else's energy and I certainly don't need to feel guilty for putting myself first while my body recovers.

Sometimes clearing the clutter isn't about throwing everything away. Sometimes it's simply about making enough space to hear yourself again. So this week, I'm going to clear a little space on my own lily pad.

And perhaps you could clear a little space on yours too. 🐸💚

Love and light,

Donna Marie x