How To Conserve Energy: Self Care Edition #1 (clothing)

What clothing means to us is fascinating! It's how we identify with who we are or who we want to be. It can be complex. Clothing that makes you feel uncomfortable doesn't just make you want to choose something else to wear; it almost feels like an attack on who you are as a person. I would never tell you how to dress but I'd like to share some pointers when it comes to clothing that have seriously cut down on my energy consumption (in both meanings of the word).

TIP #1: Launder less.

I feel the judgement already. Bear with me here. Not everything has to be cleaned every time you wear it. Things like jeans don't need to be washed much at all! There was a study done by a student at the University of Alberta that concluded that even after wearing a pair of skintight jeans for 15 months, the bacteria observed on the jeans was not actually harmful! Gross in a cool sort of way! I don't think I'd take it that far but a month without washing a pair of jeans, assuming you don't stain them, isn't going to kill you. I often rewear loose sweaters too - my hoodies and items like that. Smell/stain check them of course but I see no harm in it. Less laundry means less energy devoted to sorting, washing, drying and putting away clothes!

TIP #2: Shop less.

Shopping for clothing can be exhausting. Riffling through racks. The trying on. The trying on again for good measure. Try not to make clothes shopping a pasttime. For many reasons but it's especially true if you find yourself in a lot of pain when you do it. I've gone through my ups and downs with this over the years and I find I'm my happiest when I don't feel guilty for overbuying and I'm not bombarded with too much stuff. When I find myself in that trap I then need the energy to sort through everything to get rid of the stuff that I no longer want which seems counterproductive to the whole spending less time and energy on clothing.

TIP #3: Minimalism.

I never gave much thought into how minimalism might help if you have a chronic condition until I heard about Courtney Carver and her famous 'Project 333'. Check out her website for more information. Basically the idea of owning a small amount of clothing and accessories, for her it was 33 items or less, for three months to try it out. What she observed was that people didn't notice that she was rewearing the same items. I think it frees a person from their need to own a lot of clothing and the idea that they need to be setting a certain statement with an ever rotating wardrobe. I am not a minimalist when it comes to clothing but I do strive to own the least amount of stuff for me and I want all of those things to bring me joy when I wear them! I really see minimized clothing as a chance to spend less energy deciding what to put on every morning. Decision fatigue is a real thing!

TIP #4: Comfort.

During a flare up clothes can feel painful. It possibly sounds crazy to someone who doesn't have chronic pain but it's my experience that the worse that I'm feeling, the more the clothes pinch, constrict, rub and irritate me. I went for many years never wearing a bra because the feeling of the band on my rib cage, no matter how tight or loose, made me want to cry. Of course my bigger boobed friends tell me that's a luxury I have because I'm not overly well endowed! The point is comfort is important especially when it comes to pain. If tight clothing hurts than find some looser styles that you find flattering and feel good in. If certain materials irritate your skin and you need permission, let them go! And as far as I'm concerned you can let go of heels forever but that's just my opinion! Good options if you're not ready to go braless and you find that they really bother you are bralettes (some are really comfortable), undershirts or nipple covers. Personally I've had huge success with Aerie bras, they are actually the bra company that elevated my standards for bra comfort! I love that they collaborate with models who don't all have one particular body type. My favourite bra is their wireless bra found here. I'm in no way compensated for recommending Aerie bras but I believe in passing on the message if something adds a lot of value to my life. To sum it up life is too short to be uncomfortable in the clothes you wear.

TIP #5: Think about tomorrow.

Maybe your mom used to put out your clothes for you every day when you were little. As you aged you desired picking out your own outfits. I never used to pick out tomorrow's outfits because I wanted to dress how I felt that day, until I started doing the chronic pain management program at Constance Lethbridge and had to be out first thing in the morning. That's when I realized it cuts down on the stress of trying to pick out clothing first thing in the morning while trying to get the kids out of the house too. Mental fatigue can lend to pain so making things easier for ourselves can make a distinguishable difference.

TIP #6: The bin system.

Dawn Madsen is a Youtube influencer and she has a laundry system that she swears by on her channel "The Minimal Mom". Check out her YouTube channel for all of the specifics but it basically involves having a minimal assortment of clothes, then dividing it by family member (read: no folding for most items) and putting into individual bins for each person. I don't do this exactly but it makes so much sense! I adapted this strategy by no longer folding my family's clothing but laying it out in laundry bins and letting them deal with it. One of my three neatly folds everything and puts it away, the other crams it into his drawers as is and the third lives out of a laundry basket! I learned to let go of my own ideas of how I think they should do things in order to have energy for the more important things in life. I'm picking my battles.

I hope that some of the things in here may give you some ideas of how to cut down on the eneregy needed to address the issue(s) at hand: cleaning, choosing, obtaining, owning and putting away clothing.