Clear Your Mind And Get Rid of Mom-brain With a Brain Dump.
Have you ever felt anxiety because you forgot something but you can’t remember what you forgot? Or have you ever tried to start a task (write, homework or just start cleaning) but felt like you had no idea where to start or what you should be doing?
If this has happened to you, you need to try a brain dump. This is such a simple way to prioritize all those tasks running through your head and effectively reduce the stress in your life.
Most moms these days have a lot going on than just parenting. We have careers, side hustles or entire businesses plus we manage our homes, our finances and our families. Well, just writing that made me feel a bit overwhelmed.
I like to use brain dumps to help organize the different parts of my life.
My weekly brain dump looks like this: I will list out all of the readings, assignments and general to-dos for school. Then list out everything in the house that needs to be addressed: changing the filter, adding salt to the water softener system, laundry, deep cleaning needed, lawn care. Next up is the general to-do list where I write any task that’s in my brain.
Once everything is out on paper or on my digital notebook, I take a look at the list and figure out what can be delegated out. Here’s where I come up with a to-do list for my husband and kids. Gotta love the art of delegating!
Next, I usually pull out my planner and start to schedule the tasks for the week.
Personally, a once a week approach to brain dumping is what works for me. When I feel extra stressed or stretched thin or emotional I know I need to do a brain dump and get everything out of my head.
What is a brain dump?
A brain dump is a list of thoughts, worries, and tasks that you write down in order to get them out of your head.
This is a great exercise for people who like to be organized and plan ahead. Brain dumps are especially good for busy moms who have a million to-dos in their brain and can get overwhelmed by having to remember it all.
A brain dump can be organized or random
There are a few ways to organize a brain dump depending on what you need. You can have each page of your brain dump address one area of your life. For example: page 1 School, page 2 Family, page 3 at home task list, etc.
You can use the mind mapping method, listing method or writing everything in your head all on one page. It’s up to you!
The brain dump is a place where you can put all of your ideas. You want to store all of the information that you have in one place so that you can access it when you need it.
Brain dump ideas
A brain dump is unique to you. it’s up to you what you put on the paper. Here are some ideas to get you started.
Write down lists of:
- appointments that need to be made or upcoming appointments (transfer these to your calendar)
- deep cleaning ideas (which parts of your house need a deep clean or are unorganized?)
- goals for the week, month or year
- to-do list for the week
- bills you need to pay
- grocery shopping items (what things have you run out of?)
- meal plan lists
- things you or the kids need
- easy self-care routines you can follow
- shows you want to watch
- books you want to read
- ideas for your business or side hustle
- date night ideas
- travel bucket list
- your thoughts and feels about a situation or problem
- holiday gift ideas
- holiday menu plans
Why are brain dumps important?
An overwhelmed brain can cause a lot of problems. According to psychologist Scott Bea, PsyD, “At some point, you reach a critical mass, you start missing things, avoiding things, getting angry, and struggling at work, home or in your relationships.”
Brain dumps are important because they help clear the mental clutter and help you form a plan. Doesn’t that sound better than facing brain overload?
Brain Dumps are a form of self-care
Try to view brain dumps as a form of self-care that takes care of your mind. A mind that is free from overwhelm is more focused, clear and ready for the day.
If you can include a once a week brain dump into your self-care routine you’ll begin to see immediate results.
I’ve noticed I am less forgetful. I have less anxiety because there aren’t any to-do tasks in the back of my mind that I am dreading or forgetting or procrastinating on. The weekly tasks from my brain dump are transferred into my weekly planner and that lets me know I haven’t forgotten the most important things for the week.
Helps you prioritize your to-do list, delegate tasks and identify what you can let go of.
Getting all of your thoughts and tasks out in one place helps you get a clear view of what is going on in your life. That clear view helps you figure out which tasks are important and which tasks can wait.
Every single task in your head is not actually meant for you to do in real life. You can delegate!
What’s on your list that someone else in your family or workplace can do. Delegate and let go of the attachment to those tasks. Getting things done is more important than perfection.
Help ease anxiety of forgetting
And finally, brain dumps are important because they can help ease the anxiety associated with forgetfulness, foggy brain/mom brain.
The worst part about forgetfulness is the eerie feeling you get when you know what you forgot was important and you have no idea what it is.
How to do a brain dump
Ready to do a brain dump? Here’s how to start
Grab your pen, journal or a sheet of notebook paper. I actually love using the Goodnotes app on my ipad for journaling, planning and brain dumps.
Decide how you want to organize your brain dump. Are you okay with everything on one sheet of paper? Would you rather have different pages for different parts of your life? How about folding the sheet of paper into 4 sections and using those sections for your brain dump? Decide what works best for you.
Start writing. Use a prompt list from above to help if you have trouble starting. Don’t judge anything you write. Just get it out of your head and move on.
Transfer everything into real life
Now that you have the brain dump in front of you, you can see what needs to be scheduled, let go of, or delegated.
Here’s where you pull out your planner and start scheduling the tasks into your life.
How often do you brain dump?
I recommend doing a brain dump at least once a week. Try to get into a routine and brain dump on the same day each week. Sundays are great days to brain dump because you can easily plan out your week since now you know what needs to be done.
You can also sit and brain dump for an entire month if you like to batch tasks and end up with an entire month of organization.
You can (and should) brain dump anytime you feel stressed, overwhelmed, emotional or have big changes going on in your life.
Remember brain dumps don’t just have to consist of tasks or to-do lists, you can write down ideas, feelings, goals, inspirations, really anything you have in your head!
Self-care guide for YOU!
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