The Journey Begins Here

Hello World!

Once upon a time, retail therapy was my best friend and now living with less is what brings me relief from a busy, stressful world. The below is a copy of my first post on minimalism (for those of you who are unfamiliar) which was featured on ‘Finding Happy Curves – https://findinghappycurves.com/ ‘ where I wrote under ‘Minimalism & Me’, but the time has come to branch out on my own.  I look forward to continuing to document my journey (more regularly) and in more depth here at This is Minimalism.

 

Minimalism

Noun

Intentionally choosing to live with fewer material possessions

I always had a fondness for accumulating material possessions but just over a year ago I found myself feeling suffocated by my stuff. I began to feel extremely claustrophobic and stressed which wasn’t something I wanted to feel in my home, a place which should be calming and tranquil.

Prior to this, I had been through a particularly rough and emotional time in my life. My natural reaction to this was to surround myself with even more stuff and use shopping as a form of emotional therapy and support. Feeling empty and sad inside, I compensated for this by filling my home with more and more ’things’. The instant highs I felt amongst the prevailing lows I was feeling and the addictive release of dopamine I felt with each purchase only increased my desire for more. I never ever felt truly satisfied no matter how much stuff I surrounded myself with.

Only when I began to feel consumed and overwhelmed by my stuff did I finally realise there was another way to live.

My name is Kristyn and I am a minimalist. I actively choose to live with less and I’m happier and more content within myself because of that choice.

Minimalism does not have to necessarily mean only having thirty items to your name, living in a tiny house or never buying anything ever again (as I am certainly none of those things). It simply means choosing to live with less, more simply and with purpose. It means choosing people, relationships and experiences over material possessions and focusing on what you value most.

Once I came to the realisation that material possessions and ‘stuff’ in general wasn’t going to make me truly happy, I started slowly getting rid of my belongings.

Throughout this process, I began to notice that my possessions were also occupying far too much of my time. That more stuff only means more cleaning, tidying and organising. ‘Things’ were almost robbing me of my free time and time is a valuable commodity today with our hectic and busy lives. I began to see I had spent too much time dusting shelves of knick knacks, organising drawers and shopping for even more things whenever I could.

By removing the excess things from our lives, we can free up valuable time and free ourselves from the stresses that come from being surrounded by excessive material possessions. When I decided to become minimalist, I didn’t even know there was a formal title for it. All I did was research wardrobe-decluttering and the rest as some might say, is history.

Instead of spending my free time and particularly my weekends cleaning, organising and managing stuff I wanted to make more time for other activities I enjoyed far more including walking, writing, DIY and gardening. As a side note, I won’t be adding horticulturalist to my list of potential career prospects. Although I very much enjoyed my attempt at growing cucumbers, it wasn’t what I or anyone for that matter would call a successful venture.

I did however want more of these experiences in my life, particularly once I realised how much joy experiences and spending more time with friends and family brought me over hoarding things which were just a drain on my energy and life.

Only when I began to purge ‘stuff’ from my life did I begin to feel less stressed and free.

Are you ready to live with less?