What/how much cleaning do you do daily?

[minieggsqueen]

Just curious as my boyfriend says I do way to much anti bac cleaning of surfaces! (I have diagnosed OCD & anxiety).

Daily I:
•Wash up at least twice
•Wipe down all kitchen surfaces & cupboard/fridge door handles with anti bac wipes.
•Wipe front door and other door handles/baby gates with anti bac wipes.
•Wipe remotes & tables down with either anti bac spray or wipes.
•Put at least 2 loads of washing in & out on the driers.
•Anti bac spray the sink before bed and clean it.

Weekly I:
•Bleach and anti bac wipe the toilet
•Clean the bath
•Anti bac spray the sink and rinse with hot water (usually do this sometimes 3x a week)
•Hoover twice (Boyfriend does this usually)

Am I crazy or to neurotic?
We ran out of anti bac wipes yesterday and I've been freaking out about not having them! He's just gone off to the shop to get an emergency supply before I go to Aldi tomorrow for a big stock up.

I agree with paintbysticker. Are you using this thread as assurance seeking? Step away. Get some more CBT - and do the exposures. (There is an NHS one specifically for emetephobia). It's terrifying but it works. Please don't lose anymore of your life to emetephobia.

Back to your original question - follow The Organised Mum. That way you will have a tidy clean house (she has a dog too) but just follow her plan, not your OCD.

Two hours cleaning every day

I work

I had two children

I like a clean and tidy house

Can’t be arsed to write down everything else but I change bedding weekly, sometimes twice a week.

Sorry meant “ have” two children

guessing that ‘wine straight from the bottle’ means no decanter or jug, grannieanne, not glugging from the bottle, bypassing glasses

Ummmmm....... ;-)

I clean for about an hour everyday -

Wipe round sinks, toilets and bath with spray and put down bleach in two bathrooms.

Wipe down all sides in kitchen, load of washing and dishwasher, do recycling and hoover downstairs and up the stairs and a quick tidy up.

Dust living room and put crap away.

Weekly -

dust and hoover upstairs (kids keep own rooms tidy and I make my bed every morning)

Deeper clean of kitchen and bathrooms (tiles and cupboards etc)

Mop, wipe down doors and windows.

Change bedding and put clean washing away.

I try and do one room a week deeper clean also so a bedroom or such.

@OfficeSlave Thank you I will really try to ignore the toilet comments! I wasn't fussed before so there's no reason I should feel I have to do it everyday now! You're right.

You do realise by all this anti-baccing you're not allowing yourself to build up any immunity to germs?

@MrsCherry I'll take a look at the organised mum, thank you!

I can't get anymore therapy on the NHS as my local adult mental health team have said they've offered me all the treatments for ocd and anxiety and I need to work on it. All I can ask for is talking therapy which is okay but a bit useless.

Private therapy is way out of my price range.

minieggsqueen. It is hard getting this right. I can be really disorganised putting stuff away so I will put away crockery, wash my hands, put clothes away, realise I have left some crockery out, wash my hands again, then on way to kitchen pick up shoes so wash hands again. Then finally put crockery away. It is really hard for me to do this methodically. My nightmare is bin night as I have to sort out all the different rubbish . Had better do it now

I use reusable jay cloths and they get washed at 60 with towels etc and a dettol spray, I use that to wipe down surfaces in kitchen several times a day plus high chair. We do have dettol wipes but I only ever use them if there’s someone I’ll/ someone’s been in our house who’s ill then I do go a bit nuts and do door frames, door handles, light switches, appliance handles, Xbox remotes, tv remotes, stair gate, cot etc!

Do likes his dettol wipes but since showing him an article that shows they can contribute towards asthma in young children, he’s got a lot better and uses them less!

@Macaroni46 I know, but I also don't get ill often so it's my safety net.

Too much! Way too much! Although we don't have kids at home, just 2 cats.

My cleaner does the surfaces wipedown, bathrooms, dusting, hoovering etc. once a week. I've never wiped a handle unless it was visibily dirty, and never wiped the front door handle. Ever!

We change bedsheets every week and wash dirty towels once a fortnight (we have lots of them).

If you have OCD, don't get a cleaner. They won't clean nearly enough for you.

@nettie434 oh no, I'm so sorry. You sound so much like me. what a nightmare. Are you an avid hand gel user as well when you're out? I can't live without it!

Good luck with the bins- I usually get my boyfriend to do those. X

You really shouldn't be anti backing everything. It's very bad your gut and skin bacteria and therefore your health to use anti bac everywhere all the time. Normal cleaner and a cloth is perfectly sufficient.

And you certainly don't need to anti bac all that daily. It's not necessary. Some exposure to germs is good for you!

Have a read of The Diet Myth by Prof Tim Spector.

Daily:

• Wash any dishes that need doing
• Take rubbish down
• Wipe down kitchen surfaces with anti bac spray
• Wipe down DD's table with anti bac spray
• Bleach the toilet
• Scoop the litter tray
• Load of washing
• Hoover living room floor

Weekly:

• Change cat litter
• Dust surfaces in living room using one of those sprays
• Windoline the TV, photos and windows (inside)
• Clean the bathroom with Anti Bac Spray
• Sweep and Mop bathroom and kitchen floors
• Hoover Bedrooms and Hallway (Live in a flat)
• Take DDs Nursery uniform for ironing (my mum does it)

Fortnight:

• Change both beds (One week I do DDs, next week I do mine)
• Put the wheeled bins out (Blue one week, Green the next)

I'm not overly clean though. I probably could do more, but it's just me, DD (3) and a cat so doesn't need loads

@mineeggsqueen no worries. Stop. Breath. eat a couple of mini eggs

I saw upthread you're studying. I was at my absolute worst at that point. I am the person who hauled the fridge out from under the counter and cleaned behind and underneath it, at 3 a.m. the night before my final Finals examination. That sense of achievement finally got me to sleep. It's probably not helpful that I actually got the best results of all for that particular exam...

Now that the pressure of exams is off and has been for many years I'm a much more chilled out person. As long as the loo and kitchen surfaces are clean I'm happy. And I've managed to raise two lovely children who don't have any weird allergies, which I do think hyper-cleanliness may contribute to.

@Jaxhog Definitely no cleaner- I hate having other people in our apartment spreading germs. It's quite small anyway so no room to have people over.

Cleaner is expensive too.

Cats are my worst nightmare- walking on surfaces, furniture etc. our dog has his own area and is not usually allowed in the lounge or bedroom etc. Sometimes the sofa for a snuggle when he's just had a bath but that's about it! Also the sofa is leather so easy to clean).

@MiniMum97 thank you for the recommendation I've got a lot to look up now :) x

@AlpacaLypse I just ate a whole bag earlier when I started this thread how I'm not overweight I'll never know!

Wow that sounds stressful! Congrats on doing amazing in the exam though

OP you do much less than me but I have 3 small children.
Daily:
3 loads of washing
4 loads of washing up
Hoover
Wipe over bath/ sink
Clean toilet
Kitchen surfaces
Empty bins

A few times a week:
Mop floors
Dust

Weekly:
Change beds

Bloody hell this is boring to write but you get the picture. When at home I am cleaning or cooking or changing nappies... with a bit of playing thrown in.

I don't do any cleaning most days. Dishwasher and washing up?

Once a fortnight we have a cleaner that comes for 4 hrs.

I clean the kitchen and dining room daily, so sides, dishes (soapy rinse first then dishwasher) and I clean the appliances down too. Once a week I mop the floor and do the kitchen windows.

Living room, again daily! I have a sticky 2 year old so a full polish and clean every day including the windows. Hoover 2 times a day and I clean the carpet by hand once a week.

Hall and landing pretty much the same as the living room.

Bathroom and downstairs loo, every 3 days I'll give them a really good scrubbing down and everyday I put a bit of bleach down the loo/clean any thing away that shouldn't be there!!

Bedrooms... toddlers and our room obvious tidy daily, nursery I'll give a quick once over. In terms of cleaning the bedrooms, once a week? Probably a bit lazy but I'm pregnant and about to pop so limited energy!

1 load of washing daily- will likely increase when new baby arrives!

Daily: nothing

Weekly: load dishwasher

Monthly: several loads of washing in washing machine.

Cleaner comes weekly

Daily - muck my horse's stables out and sweep the stable yard and feed room. Clean out the fire in the house.

Every couple of days - put dishwasher on, sweep/Hoover and/or mop kitchen and living room floor if it can't be seen for dog hair. Wipe kitchen surfaces.

Generally every 3 weeks (fits with my monthly week off) - Hoover the rest of the house, properly clean bathrooms, change bedding, towels and dog blankets. These jobs get done inbetween the three weeks if they're looking particularly grubby.ŷ

The wipes! Op, think of the planet. Please stop using so many.