10 Tips for Showering while Struggling with Your Mental Health

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I have anxiety and intrusive thoughts and I also work full time, but to be honest, I struggle at times with personal hygiene. Often times for weeks on end I live on wet wipes and deodorant, if everything is getting too much I seem to feel I don’t deserve to feel fresh and clean. Just me. I sympathise with anyone experiencing this, especially as so many people go through it worse.

how do you stay so slim on medications?

My hair got matted twice i had to cut it all off. And i didnt brush my teeth properly, has resulted in me needing fillings and i had good teeth.

Okay – so I’m back – having SHOWERED! It worked writing my way through showering procedure got me primed to take that long-dreaded shower! Asked husband to go down to laundry to get clothes out of dryer – didn’t have energy to do that, too – Working up to this shower involved doing 3 loads of laundry Yesterday because needed everything laundered – nothing clean to change into after shower! So it’s a 2 day process This hygiene thing! 3 day – have to give self home pedicure tomorrow! Took me 9:50PM-10:40PM = 50 minutes to gather stuff before shower & make sure I have everything in the shower – AND then get into shower & shower – got the bedding washed too because clean you deserves a clean bed! But haven’t got energy to get sheets/pillow cases ON the bed – have pillow & mattress covers on – good enough for now! I double washed hair because it needed it & rinsed & conditioned hair & then doubled washed body – with shampoo suds first & then scrubbed with my quite raspy gloves & lots of soap – scrub every inch – that exfoliates all that dead skin that’s been building up since last shower! Did most tasks in same order as per usual except did scrub my feet first because that task – when bent over double – usually makes me almost pass out (remember I am OLD) if I do it after a 30 minute shampoo & conditioner & pre-wash & scrubbing session – I pass out – oh – did shave underarms before big scrubbing session – but never shave legs anymore – old people have less & less hair on our bodies! Do the death defying dance to get out of the tub (after thorough rinsing) and 1/2 dry self standing on floor bath mat but – wrap huge towel around and go sit on edge of bed because I CANNOT STAND on swollen feet ANYMORE! Had remembered to prep bed with fresh towel – keep bed dry! Sitting on towel now – forgot my hair brush & hair elastic & deodorant but do have psoriasis 1% HC creams & gel to spread & treat spots – still have about 20-30 minutes work to finish getting ready for bed! SO HALLELUJAH! I finally showered – blessings to all! Hopefully if you write/think your way through the whole showering process you can feel this refreshed, too! Best thing is CLEAN HAIR! ❤ BTW I do suffer from a disorder that causes bouts of depression – weeks long – sometimes months long which is when showering becomes such a challenge! If you suffer, too, spend some time planning & gathering & preparing for the shower – no it is not stupid to plan and prepare – you are taking care of yourself – do this so you won’t get frustrated mid-shower because you forgot something – frustration makes you feel like a failure and the pleasure of becoming clean is destroyed by more dark thoughts! I’m very glad I got clean – it’s embarrassing being out in the world when you’re not which just makes you withdraw even more. It takes so much energy to do this but give yourself permission to have this boost to your self-esteem! Even if you only stand in the shower under the water – that’s a start! ❤

eww

Showering can actually take a lot of physical energy. It's basically a mini workout. If you have a lack of "mental energy" (for example, when suffering from depression), this is pretty much linked with your physical energy you have available on a given day (getting out of bed, doing everyday tasks, …).

The point I'm trying to make is that not showering as often because you simply don't have the energy is NOT a sign of uncleanliness and there is NOTHING to feel ashamed of. It is merely a result of the big picture you are struggling with.

Try to start with one "big" task a day (or even less) and then build up a routine. Routines are incredibly powerful and minimize the mental strength you need to start with something. Once you have started, it usually is not so bad at all. At least this is my personal experience.

All the best and thank you for this video!

I can totally relate to you. I usually shower twice a day; however when I was diagnosed with schizoeffective; occasionally I only shower three times a week due to my schizoeffective, Anorexia, Anxiety, Depression and my stress. This was super useful for me. In the past my Mother abused me and I had bad experiences in the past, so this video helps me to remind myself to take two showers in the morning and one before midnight. Before I was doing that, now I will, I always washed my hands though. I washed my hands seven times a day if I don't always want to shower because it just takes a long long long time so
Times, eventually I'll have to forgive my Mother, get counseling and just take a sponge bath like you thanks! I always washed my hands and use hand sanitizer. I can't always wash my hair either. It just takes forever I use a quick Barbie blow dryer for five minutes. Thank you

Thank you a lot ❤❤❤❤

Haven’t bathed in 2 months. I feel so ugly and gross…

I'll be honest showering is something I also struggle with a lot too…I'm really grateful you made this video and it's really great advice too I really needed this video I don't have schizophrenia myself but I do struggle with Major Depressive Disorder and I really feel this advice could help me as well so thank you it really shouldn't be so stigmatized showering issues in general in my opinion even an average person I feel has at least one moment in their lives when they are really struggling it could be the death of a loved pet or just exhaustion from a long day at work and you'd rather go home and rest…we are all human afterall too so no one is perfect society often has an image of what people should look and act like they have a check list that they wish people would constantly follow in my opinion it's not possible to be perfect humans aren't perfect and sometimes things just get in the way and showering is the very last thing on your mind…it's upsetting that a lot of society is very judgmental and it's very upsetting that if you don't fit their normal often people are shamed for it or bullied and that's not okay society has to change in my opinion and show others compassion and empathy when going through a hard time people should be loved for who they are not have to fit someone else's check list…I'm not saying that people should avoid showering forever it isn't healthy to do that forever but don't beat someone up for it if things are going on…self-care is very important to everyone but sometimes you can't be 100% all the time were all human afterall but overall I want to thank you for making this video it's something I myself is having a hard time with too lately thanks for the advice and fighting the stigma and telling me that it's okay and not to feel bad about the struggle of showering I often feel very upset and often stay in my bedroom all day to avoid people and feel like they will say a mean comment to me for not looking or acting normal but most important thank you for encouraging me to take care of myself and the importance of self-care it's often a struggle but at the end of the day it's still important and I've got to try my best so thank you for the advice I'm going to try really hard and try some of the things you had suggested in the video but to everyone else here you are important you matter and give yourself the love and care you deserve self-care is important and you matter and you deserve the love and care you give to others show yourself the same love and care because you matter too and the most important person in the world is yourself plus you can't help others until you help yourself just like you can't pour from an empty glass you matter and don't give up show yourself the love you need I hope everyone here has a nice day and remember you matter very much! ❤

This video is increcibly helpful. I am strugglingnsi much with self care and personal hygiene. Es0ecially when you were talking about how just getting into the shower to let the water run over you and then getting out if you have no energy.. Idk 2hy i never thouvht of that

This situation just seemed to slowly creep up on me. I used to shower every day, then two days….etc etc tilll i am now going long periods. I still wash my hair with a no rinse shampoo and shave but the thought of going through all the steps to get ready to shower is just overwhelming . I should add I have had severe panic attacks, anxiety, agoraphobia etc since I was 13 years old but I managed to get through school a Jr, College and hold a job for 40+ years. I am 70 now but still in pretty good shape….I'm slim, I don't even have grey hair yet. I just feel terrible about this showering thing. . It seemed to get bad when all my friends started dyeing off….I'm at that age . All but one person I knew from high school is still alive. Also things in my life are not going well. AND NO I do not want to seek professional help from a shrink or psychologist ….I have spent my entire life doing that with basically no results. I will try and take a shower today, I hope. Well, thanks for letting me vent.

Thank you so much!! It took my ages to find any advice about this on YouTube, which shows how unspoken it is, but me and my friends have all said privately to each other about this struggle. It was a big relief to find your video. And yes, I’ll be doing that, prepare all the steps for afterwards before getting in the shower! Great tip! I think that’s what I’m procrastinating the most! 🫶

Thanks

This is a new symptom for me 😅

Thank you for this, it really helped! ❤😊

I think people just don't understand the extent that depression can get and they're pretty quick to start judging you as "lazy". I'm not lazy. Before my depression kicked in, I was very worried about my looks and self hygiene. I'd spend hours in the bathroom shaving, using dozens of products. And then… Suddenly I barely have the energy to force myself out of my bed… For 2 years. How could that be laziness?! If you knew me IRL before that, you just wouldn't recognise me. I let my beard and hair grow during those 2 years and only took a bath or brushed my teeth maybe once a month, at maximum, so I looked like the most stereotypical homeless person. I dropped out of my favourite university, I stopped doing my martial arts, I stopped learning languages, I stopped reading books. All I could do was stare at the ceiling and maybe cry when I could.

Depression is a serious illness and it should be treated as such.

I'm trying to rebuild my life from scratch again, although I'm already at yet another depressive episode.

"Shouldn't be stigmatised" isn't helpful. You can't change other people's perceptions.

Like a lot of tasks, it sometimes works to tell myself I'm only taking one small step. I plan to just sit on the edge of the tub and put my feet in warm water. A lot of times that makes me feel like I can go ahead and undress and shower. Sometimes I just let the tub fill, undress and sit in the water sometimes I can pour castile soap into the water sometimes not. Just soaking in water isn't enough but it's better than nothing and there's always the chance that locked up feeling will break and I can take a real shower. I also cut my hair to make washing easier. I like to wear long hair but sometimes it's too much.

Thank you for making this video. I have been struggling with the worst depression of my life four years. I used to shower twice a day and take pride in my appearance. I didn't understand why showering, brushing my teeth, doing my hair and makeup etc had become so overwhelming. BTW you are a beautiful woman. It was comforting to see such a lovely, well put together woman talking openly taking about the struggle of depression. Also, thanks for the "only fans" joke lol.

thank you.

nice and very informative but you couldn't start a only fans you are below average or average if its comes to looks but everything else about the vid was so helpful thankyou for sharing you're tips and tricks

Thank you so much that really helped