A 4-minute trick for when you’re losing it

Amy Shearn
Forge
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1 min readMar 4, 2021

✍️ Today’s tip: Make an “I did” list.

When you’re overwhelmed, your to-do list can feel as long as one of those never-ending CVS receipts. A way to quickly regain perspective is to stop, put your list of tasks aside, and write down all the things you’ve already done that day.

The writer Lena Gilbert explained on Medium how she uses this technique when she’s feeling unraveled — on one particular day, her list of accomplishments included putting away laundry, getting her son logged onto Zoom, and watching the news. While these things may not sound remarkable on their own, taken as a whole, they are meaningful and necessary.

Make your own “I did” list on days when you feel defeated. Capture every action you’ve taken to simply continue being a person. You’re doing a lot, and sometimes, it just feels good to remember this.

😌 More from Forge on soothing anxiety:

You Don’t Have to Feel Hopeful
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7 Ways to Deal With All This Anxiety
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Put Your Worries in Perspective With ‘The Catastrophe Scale’
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Amy Shearn
Forge

Formerly: Editor of Creators Hub, Human Parts // Ongoingly: Novelist, Essayist, Person