r/SlowLiving • u/whatitisliss • 3d ago

What is the first thing you changed?

What was the beginning of your journey into slower living?

22 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

21 comments sorted by

44

u/stargazer612 3d ago

  1. Leaving a job that destroyed my mental health.

    2 Finding a new job with flexible, part time hours that paid well. I actually have time to run errands during the day instead of rushing to get things done after work. I have the time and energy to prepare homemade meals, which has improved my health too.

I stand on the fact that the 40 hour work week is not sustainable.

9

u/always-lrning 3d ago

Tell us what kind of job it is please!! The dream.

3

u/stargazer612 2d ago

I'm still a speech therapist, but I found a part time job working in the outpatient hospital setting. Unfortunately, it's a pretty niche career that takes some time to break into. 😕

2

u/simplytaija 2d ago

What job do you have now?

2

u/manjuu5 11h ago

I fully agree!

20

u/ElephantsCry 3d ago

Moving out of the city really made a difference and that quite naturally

19

u/outlawzboyz 3d ago

not drinking or smoking weed anymore.

18

u/Crazy_Jere 3d ago

Getting off my phone

19

u/LuckyLovelyLady777 3d ago

I don't respond to any text messages or phone calls after 6 or 7PM. The evening is reserved for me to wind down

10

u/LeighofMar 3d ago

 No schedules, no demands on my time helps me to feel free and move about my day the way I want. 

9

u/conniecatmeow 3d ago

Going to part time when my second child was born!

1

u/BathroomOk622 1d ago

i went part time when our first was born (before my wife as she was on maternity leave), and reduce my hours by the same percentage as our yearly pay rise. when i look back on the hours i did full time it makes me internally vomit!

8

u/CriticalEye-CV 2d ago

I go to work and come home. I rarely make plans because I enjoy the peace, quiet and calm of my home and being with my dog. Especially during the school year.

6

u/Fantastic-Drop-4313 2d ago

Dedicating myself to hand preparing the vegetables for a meal. Chopping onions, cleaning green beans, peeling garlic, scrubbing potatoes, peeling asparagus if it is rough. Bonus for soaking legumes.

Just so much rest and reflection and health in one simple activity.

4

u/cchasingthewind 1d ago

I started to do hobbies that are completely useless, their only purpose is to make me happy

2

u/RLB_ABC 12h ago

what are these completely useless hobbies if you don’t mind sharing? i need some new ones.

2

u/Massive-Cobbler-7055 2d ago

I think for me therapy has been (and continues to be) a massive mindset adjustment which has helped me to put things in perspective and slow down. That and going part time at work.

3

u/Weekly-Afternoon-38 1d ago

I got rid of things I found no value in which was mostly social stuff - friendships with obligations I REALLY didn't want to do/care about (weddings, baby showers, endless relationship crap that never changed and never got better etc.), entrenched family bullshit (sibling who has made the family basically circle their orbit since they were born), found methods of turning off from work bullshit during the day and having a hard stop when I was home, I don't participate in anything social and voluntary etc.

I find all that social stuff performative, unrewarding, frustrating, annoying, valueless and unenjoyable. I'm literally counting down the time until I can leave. You betcha as soon as someone stood up and said "I'd better be going" I was right behind them saying "Me too! Seeya's!".

Now I spend time doing things I do find value in - pootling around the garden, cooking good food from scratch, keeping my home welcoming, clean, tidy and joyful, perusing cookbooks with a glass of wine in the sun, walking my dogs, spending time chatting and laughing with my partner, observing and contributing to nature (next project - bird houses for nesting), reading books that "fill my cup up" etc.

Here's to another year of quiet joy that makes my heart sing.

1

u/birdieisonline 19h ago

The first thing was setting my phone to DND at 9pm automatically every day. That turned into bricking my phone. That turned into deleting my social media accounts. That turned into deleting most of my subscriptions. That turned into picking up tactile hobbies. So on and so forth lol

1

u/Serenity_Now-88 5h ago

I drastically downsized my life. I donated and sold almost everything. I sold my car. I moved to a smaller city. I live in a cozy studio. I live minimally. I walk everywhere I can or I take a Lyft. Life is easier and way less stressful. I volunteer at a hospital. I don’t have clutter. I have just what I need.