A Week of Feeling Overwhelmed and a Wardrobe Sort Out - Part One - W/E 7th June 2025

This week began as most weeks have lately, with a shift at work on Sunday. I was due to work 11am to 3pm, but almost as soon as I got there, I was asked if I would work until closing at 6pm, which I agreed to do seeing as I was already there.  I did have to go out at my break and buy a very unappetising and a not too healthy lunch from a nearby shop, as I'd not taken anything in with me, but such is life.  

The shift itself was probably one of the most stressful I've experienced in recent months. It was Payday weekend and we were very busy with shoppers, which is good for business, but I seemed to get a lot of complicated transactions come my way and by the end of the shift I was mentally and physically drained. 

I was so happy to go home and chill, but then didn't sleep well, as I got to thinking about LB, who was facing her final Uni deadline and I knew that she would probably be pulling an allnighter, which she was, as she messaged us to that effect the following day and to tell us that everything was finished and done. I was so relieved for her.

I headed out of town to do the weekly shop as usual on Monday. It was quite an expensive shop as were were out of quite a few things and I needed to get a couple of small gifts for OH for Fathers' Day. I also dropped into the charity shop for the first time in a few weeks. I had a good look through the rails, but this time I concentrated only on items made with materials made from natural fibres i.e. cotton, linen, viscose,etc.  

I tried quite a few things on, but many of them looked awful. I did come away with 4 items of clothing though; a navy linen top for £3 (which I intend to shorten), a blue floral linen dress for £5 (which I'm going to cut down to make a skirt), a floral viscose top for £2 and a very pretty viscose dress for £5. 

It really makes looking a lot easier, when you're only looking for natural fibres, as there are so few of them to look at. Most clothing in this particular shop, as in many charity shops these days, is synthetic, so it rules out a lot of what is on the rails. I've been inspired to do this by the books I've been reading lately, as they suggest that these fabrics are more sustainable. ( although viscose and cotton not so much!) I'll post about my finds in this months clothing purchases post.

I was working again in the evening, so after getting home and unpacking the shopping, I had to get ready and head into work. A couple of new staff started work tonight and I caught my first glimpse of our new Store Manager. It was busy again tonight though and as it was my fourth consequetive shift, I felt really tired and overwhelmed. I was so glad to go home at the end of the night, knowing I had a couple of days off, before it starts all over again.

On Tuesday, I managed to get booked into my usual class at the gym. I was looking forward to it as I'd missed the previous week on account of my dentist appointment. I made myself boiled eggs for breakfast and then did some financial stuff before heading out. I'd received my tax rebate, so I redistributed it into savings accounts. I also checked my Premium bonds and was happy to have won £100, which was a major bonus. 

My gym class was okay, not as good as usual though. When I came home, I made some lunch and then got ready to go out to my sewing class. I was looking forward to going back, as I'm loving sewing at the moment and feeling very inspired by some books I've been reading lately and the camaraderie at the class. 

I enjoyed the class. I didn't do any real sewing, just prepping of my fabric pattern pieces ready to start constructing the garment. The teacher did a little teaching session on different types of zips and how to install them and also demonstrated how to change the thread on the overlocker which was useful. It feels lovely to be amongst fellow sewists, as it's often something I do alone at home.

Talking to another class member, I discovered one of the reasons why I'm probably working so many shifts this week. Eid is taking place at the weekend and many people are buying gifts for family members, which is partly why work is busy. In addition, I think that many of the staff may be taking time off to celebrate with their families, hence my getting more shifts, which is fair enough. It's just come at a difficult time for me, as I have a lot going on out of work at the moment, which makes life a bit overwhelming at times.

Anyway, I took out a few more library books after my class (which takes place in a library), as I've almost finished the previous book I borrowed and will be returning it next week. Here's a picture of the books I borrowed:

After supper, I decided that I needed to sort out my wardrobe. I've been buying quite a few items of clothing lately, and I think it partly stems from feeling like I haven't got any nice clothes to wear that fit well. To be honest, my wardrobe was so packed full, I couldn't see half of what was in there, so it was quite enlightening to go through and try everything on, remove what didn't fit well and just leave what did, so I know what I've got to choose from. It made me realise that I had more choices than I thought. 

I think I'm just feeling annoyed with myself for putting weight back on. Some of the things I used to love wearing when I lost the weight, I can no longer wear, and it is so disappointing. I'm hanging on to quite a few of them, just in case, and some other items from my wardrobe I may alter to make them more wearable, or cut them up for the fabric to make something else. Some other things I will donate. 

One positive from doing this, aside from having much more room in my wardrobe and a clearer idea of what I can wear everyday, was that I found some extra clothes to wear for work this summer that still fit (just). 

Here's a photo of how it looked when I'd finished:

Everything is now much more accessible and seasonally appropriate which should make getting dressed every day much easier. I do feel much better now it has been done and it may just curb my urge to spend money on more clothes, although I don't like to make promises I can't keep.