Do you hesitate before sharing vulnerably on social media?

I do. I created this account to have a space to share about my Beautycounter business and my decluttering journey. Those may seem like unrelated topics, but both are solutions to reducing overwhelm in my life and caring for myself.

However, I haven’t posted very often because it’s challenging to show up and be vulnerable—especially on a public account for the “world” to see. Posting my struggles with clutter and a messy house definitely feels vulnerable, open to judgment from people I know in real life, as well as strangers who might feel the need to leave unhelpful comments.

Yet, I keep thinking about the woman who feels overwhelmed in her home—a mom to young kids trying to keep up with everything but just trying to survive.

She might not know yet that others also struggle with these things and that her brain works differently around home tasks than some of her friends and family’s. She feels defeated by the clutter and mess, with more stuff (thanks to kids) coming into her house every day from school, Christmas, birthdays, etc. She might not know yet that it’s okay to get rid of some things.

She wonders,

• “Why can’t I just get it together?”
• “Why is ‘adulting’ so hard for me?”
• “How do other people do all of this?”

I wonder about her because I was her—or rather, I am her.

I still live with too many things in my house in every single room. I have felt like a failure because I just couldn’t keep up or “get it together,” and my home didn’t look like others’. I didn’t understand why things felt so hard for me, and perfection, in some ways, had become my ideal.

Over the past several years, I have learned from other wise people both online and in real life that my brain isn’t broken, that I can declutter things from my home (it just might take me longer), and that I am the mom my kids need—not a different mom.

I want that woman to know that I get it—that I know she’s an intelligent, caring person who just feels overwhelmed and can’t figure out the next step.

I want her to know she’s not the only one who has a messy home (it can feel that way when someone says, “Oh, excuse the mess!” and their mess looks like my house on a really good day).

And though I don’t have much of my own advice to give, I might be the one who introduces her to some others who have helped me along my journey.

If I can help someone else feel seen and known (which is what we all want, right?), then I think this posting will be worth it. I’m glad others shared vulnerably online so that when I came across them, I didn’t feel as alone.