There are lots of ways to think about housework. One way is to view it as unending drudgery to be avoided at all costs. I thought of it this way most of my adult life, and let’s face it, there’s a lot of evidence to back this up.

You tidy up – people (often you) mess things up again. You do the dishes – more dirty dishes appear. You put through a load of laundry – it doesn’t seem to put a dent in the pile. You feed people then turn around and they’re ready to be fed again.

Housework can be a grind. I used to think about my never-ending task list and feel crushed and exhausted before I’d even done anything. I don’t recommend this. It doesn’t get you anywhere and it’s a miserable way to live.

If you’re feeling resentful and crushed by the never-ending nature of housework you have two choices:

1. Give up on it. Truly – just do as little as possible as you need to get by. Get some help. Do other things. Consciously decide that you want to avoid housework and do everything you can to get out of it. Remember your early 20s? How much housework did you actually do? You survived. Go back to that. Just stop thinking about it in that crushing way – that’s the miserable part. Give up on housework and be happy.
2. Change your mind and use the never-ending nature of housework for you instead of against you.