Conquering the Dishes!

So, I gotta set the mood for dishes. As part of my night time wind down routine, I turn the lights and use warm glow lamps, make a hot chocolate (but don’t drink it yet!) find some fantasy tavern keeper background music and start to gently “tidy up my tavern after a busy evening”. This helps me to do the extra steps like wipe down the benches, dry and put away pots, sip my hot chocolate. I hate hate hate gloves and sudsy murky water so I wash under running hot water but use a sponge on a stick that dispenses soap so I barely have to touch water or soap. I have discovered that soaking is a lie that just defers the task to a later time and takes up sink space. Do it all on the spot in a relaxed way and it only had to be touched once. The low lights take away the visual ick of the dirt and I actually get a dopamine ping when I’m done if I stay a few minutes more admiring my quiet tidy kitchen and sipping my drink.

I run clean hot soapy water prob a billion times and have to redo it later because it just sat until it was cold.

Im just about to buy myself a dishwasher after the itger broke down few months ago. I just hate dishwashing. Im so much on point when i have a dishwasher and declutter my kitchen on a regular basis, im only allowed 3 sets of plates etc.! And the spices: i mix them per cuisine: 1 for mexican, 1 greek, 1 oriental, i asian, 1 italian and i will buy myself really colourful ceramic holders with lids, like ceramic lemon, strawberry, favorite animal etc....what i love i tend to clean more often..

I do the exact same & I DO have a dishwasher!! I haven’t always been like this; I used to be a mega neat freak. I just don’t care anymore, or no one is going to see it; so, why try?

I do good when I remember to rinse right away but once it gets away from me I’m screwed

Mine looks the same

Great 👍🏻 job!

My husband takes care of a lot of things here like the dishes or the meals… When he is not here, I just grab a piece of bread (homemade by him by the way) and some cheese or butter and a fruit… so : no dishes and no meal preparation 🫣!

I too like to wash with my hands but haven’t got the sponge-gloves YET. But I know I need it. 🙌🏽

You should paint the window

I wish I had a double basin sink😭

Luckily my partner has worked many years as a dishwasher and just says I’m fast as fuck and does them as fast as he can without worrying about making a mess! So I just cook and he does dishes! But when I’ve live on my own the trick was always using a newish sponge cuz the ick, I would get 6packs from dollar store!

Congratulations! Good for you…having that sink clean for3 days is the hardest part. Keep going mama. Teach those boys to be helpful hubbies or partners when they see mom doing it

I had the same problem - in the end I just got a table top dishwasher, it only hold a few things but it is a life saver in terms of those really challenging days

While cooking I wash as I go. It's actually good as it breaks up the cooking. So then it's just plates glasses n cups that pile up and perhaps the main pot I cooked in. But knives chopping boards and other mess from cooking is all done before I sit to eat.

Dishes and trash are my biggest issues. Half the time dishes don’t even make it to the sink and when they do they just pile up. Then they get crusty and smelly and my dishwasher is not very good so I have to soak the dishes before I do them and so I’ll try and do that but then loose my motivation after wards and the dishes get worse and over whelming. Need to somehow figure out a system.

I recently learned that if I use a scrub brush instead of a sponge, then I’m more likely to quickly wash whatever we just used. Typically putting on the gloves is crippling and I don’t want to take the time to put them on, but the texture of the sponge working gloves is gross to me, so now I just grab the brush, carefully wash my item without getting my hands too wet, and on the dry rack it goes. My enormous farm sink is still clean after 3 days and 5 males (4 sons) on the loose. 🫡

Been there, have had that! No shame my friend! What I like to do when it gets this bad. Set a timer for so many minutes and go for that long to knock down what you can. Even if it’s two minutes, it’s two minutes of dishes you touched. And if you’re not ready because you’re too anxious by the mess. That’s ok. You can start with just washing whatever you use now right away. I’ve been trying to get in the habit of NOT moving on until I’ve washed what I was using first. So if I made a smoothie, I wash everything I was using before I drink it. When I make my egg bowl at night I clean the skillet, the spatula, the air fryer trays, the bacon rack, and whatever else I used before I eat it. I make the food my reward for accomplishing a job well done. That endorphin kick. It helps! The ONLY thing I STILL struggle with is when I make food and there’s still food left in the pan after. Like when I make beans and there’s still beans left in the skillet. Because for WHATEVER REASON moving it to a storage container is just ONE STEP TOO MANY for my adhd brain! And I put it on my husband! And then get annoyed when I wake up to THIS in the morning. And know I’ll have to clean it all because he gets so overwhelmed by it all that he shuts down from it. We ALL have that area that we just max out.

Time for paper plates for sure!!!

Man i thought i was the only one, and i have a dish washer

Oh that’s not too bad! Looks like you are doing great to me!! Also… I loooove that planter cup thingy!!! I am also very anti-social… as an adult…. Unless I’m drinking lol I guess that’s why I was such a fun young person! 🥃 🍺 🍹 🍷🥂 Now I am a boring mom/wife 🤣

Congrats!!! I did 10min of dishes today 🥳

I don't invite people because my house being a constant mess overwhelms me. My husband doesn't help & sometimes the mess is because of him. But, I avoid doing stuff when it gets to be a lot!

I feel you! ❤️ I struggle with the dishes too. It’s embarrasing at times, being a grownup and not being able to keep the kitchen clean… but the ick it gives le is just too overwhelming. Listening to a podcast helps me focus less on how nasty it feels…. And whenever my boyfriend or my best friend comes over they lovingly just do the dishes for me. I sometimes force myself to wash the thing I need right now instead of getting something clean… I wish I had some super trick that would work, but no… dishes remains my biggest issue.

I’ve attempted to keep reusing bowls, cups, plates and cutlery by cleaning and wiping them down for different foods and drinks so I can cut down but I still get lazy sometimes. I also attempt to help by clearing up the table after meals and doing dishes with someone to be accountable with me.

I’m lucky enough that my partner wont let the sink get to this point.. but that’s my issue with laundry! It piles up until there’s literally nothing clean left before I spend a day doing loads after loads. Vicious cycle as I’m constantly mentally kicking myself in the butt about it

I make my own Dawn Power Wash (24 oz water, 10 or so pumps of Dawn soap and a tablespoon or splash of rubbing alcohol in a large spray bottle). Eat. Rinse. Spray. Scrub brush. Rinse. I have 2 drawers designated with silicone drying mats in them to hand dry. Even with the drawers closed the dishes dry. My mug and glass cabinet shelves have liners so they can just air dry in the cabinets as well.

I have a compact dishwater that is set on the kitchen counter and run one cycle a day. It makes it much easier for me to wash the dishes!

I moved into my basement and rented the top of my house out. The basement has a dishwasher but no stove. I air fry or bbq but I usually forget to eat or cook so I have protein shakes and protein bars

Portable dishwasher

Disposable plates

Dishes are my biggest struggle. I’ve started washing dishes immediately after eating which means only a few to do, and then if they back up or I used a lot while cooking, I’ll count them (yes I am OCD as well as ADHD haha), and usually the count I choose is up to my age. If I have that many dishes it’s because I’ve let them back up or I went on a real cooking binge. And so that I’ll get up to my age faster so it’s a faster task I’ll actually do but it FEELS big, I count every separate part of something so the pot and the lid, bottles with tops, the tiny pieces you sometimes forget about, etc.

Thanks for sharing :) I do something similar and it’s so helpful. I’ve also tried the - everytime I walk to the sink, I wash 1 or 2 things. And that’s it. Then I pat myself on the back for it!