Whether one moves frequently or for the first time, changing your address can be an intensely emotional experience. The underlying psychological issues caused by moving stress can set in around your home and cause a major headache.
As they say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. There are steps you can take to tackle the stress-filled period of your local relocation. Here’s why changing your address is so overwhelming, even if you’re only going to the other side of the city, along with a few tips to help you overcome it.
Understanding Moving Stress
Sooner or later, the four walls in our bedroom transform from just a blueprint into our matrix of safety. It’s natural to think of those walls like canvases that your memories are painted on, and disruption of these profound attachments can result in overwhelming anxiety and waves of emotions.
Packing and sorting through a life’s worth of belongings can be gut-wrenching unless you choose to get professional packing services from local movers near you and nip this thing in the bud. But if you decide to face the entire local move on your own, you should brace yourself for some gut-wrenching feelings at the beginning of the process. When you add the financial calculations of the move and the uneasiness that comes with putting all of your savings into the new home – the complex feelings you end up with are entirely natural.
While it’s inevitable to feel grief or loss, it is important to remember that a lot of wonderful things can come with the change of address, even if you’re only going a few blocks down. Meeting new people and having new experiences are some of the things to look forward to. Remind yourself of these opportunities constantly, and bear in mind that this is not a tragic loss. All of the memories and past experiences in your current home have contributed to who you are today.
Yes, Moving is Stressful – But it Doesn’t Have to Be
Change is inevitable, and the rite of passage of leaving your favorite stove and cracked bathroom tiles behind can be stressful for anyone afraid of change. It is natural to build bonds with the place where you live, as it is natural to be scared to leave it behind.
You can make a big difference in your mood by adjusting your mindset when approaching the upcoming transition to your new home in another part of LA. There are ways to build a barrier to piling stress, and we’ve put together some advice that will help you make your move memorably happy instead of notably hard.
Adopt the right attitude
Establishing a positive mindset will benefit your levels of anxiety and enhance excitement about your new environment. Try adopting a can-do attitude that will help you through tough tasks and keep in mind that the move itself is just temporary.
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Reflect on what is important to you
As you pack your belongings and reflect on the neighborhood you are leaving, make sure to ask yourself why this particular place is so important to you. Think about aspects you consider to be the most important so that you can intentionally pursue them in your new home.
Rework your old routines
A lot of research shows that people experience a significant reduction in anxiety levels when they recreate well-known settings. It would be smart to write your old routines down and work them into your new schedule. This will boost your feeling of security and familiarity and reduce the sense of loss when leaving your home behind.
Lean on your friends and family
Talking about emotions and current surroundings can be a therapeutic way for you to minimize the stress levels during your local relocation. Talk to the people around you and your loved ones who are probably even more excited about your upcoming move and your new home more than you are. Whenever you start to feel lost or uneasy, turn to people around you for comfort.
Allow Yourself to Be Emotional and Accept the Stress of Moving
Overcoming any issue starts with acceptance. Bear in mind that such feelings are just a natural human response to a demanding circumstance and that it is completely natural to worry about the unforeseeable. Once you answer the why question, the whole process becomes less stressful and a bit easier to handle.
Do Your Due Diligence: Practical Preparations
Think about extra expenses like overlapping rent payments, storage rental, cleaning and packing supplies for all of your things, etc. A lot of these and many other factors contribute to the stress piling up, and they could be under your control. Think through the entire day of the move and calculate every aspect of it along with the expenses. Once you have collected all the information you need, create a moving schedule with a detailed to-do list and exact time frames.
Write this all out at least a month before the move, and make sure to break it down into manageable steps. You’ll enjoy a big relief and some satisfaction after you check off an item from your moving checklist.
Get Rid of the Clutter
One of the best ways to ensure a stress-free local move is to declutter your home. This can also be an excellent way of honoring the memories you cherish and saying goodbye to all unnecessary things. If you, by any chance, have trouble with saying goodbye, especially to your favorite goods, you could rent a storage facility and leave goodbyes for later.
Establish clear criteria and decide what to keep and what to let go. Sort your items into piles and create a system for identifying the final destination of your belongings. You must sort and label all of your items and start decluttering as soon as possible. It will be easier to fill out the dream of a stress-free move to another part of Los Angeles with less clutter tying you down.
Treat Yourself
It’s essential to savor this rare experience and do things you enjoy most. Be kind and love yourself during this time. If you are tired, get a good night’s sleep, or if you need the time alone – give it to yourself. Get a hairstyle you’ve always wanted, make your favorite meal, or binge-watch your favorite show.
When having feelings of loss or grief, it’s crucial to stop being hard on yourself, at least momentarily. Anytime we’re facing change, even a small one like a local relocation, that is inherently stressful, we need to make sure to indulge ourselves as much as possible.
Hire Professional Help
Stress is a part of life, and what matters most is how you handle it. If you continue to have inappropriate or exaggerated responses to your current moving situation, it would be smart to turn to the local medical association that can recommend a therapist or counselor to help you handle your stress better.
Hiring a team of reliable moving pros, such as All In Movers, in your area is not a bad idea, as professionals help people with this kind of transition day in and day out. If you have decided you won’t be able to go through your local move and the perfect storm of emotions and stress it brings along – get much needed local residential moving services.
