Get Real With The English Sisters - Mind Health Anxiety

Rise, Shine, and Make That Bed: A Path to Success

• The English Sisters - Violeta & Jutka Zuggo • Episode 72

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Ever wondered how making your bed in the morning can impact your day? Discover the surprising benefits of this simple routine as we, The English Sisters, share our experiences and hilarious childhood memories, including our dog Otto's sneaky bedroom antics!

Join us as we reminisce about our school days, emphasizing the importance of self-discipline and how maintaining tidy living spaces can help us stay focused and efficient. Learn the power of making your bed and how it can set a positive tone for the rest of your day, boosting productivity and keeping you on track with your goals. Don't forget to connect with us on Instagram and share your thoughts on this fascinating topic!

Hypnotherapy coaching sessions can help if you are struggling with anxiety.  Please email us at englishsisters@gmail.com if you would like help with an issue, mentioning this episode of our podcast for a special discounted rate. We work with clients worldwide over Zoom or Skype. Buy our Book Stress Free in Three Minutes available on Amazon and Kindle, to help support our work. Thank you!

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The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Making your bed in the morning. Do you like doing it? Do you do it? You know I do it. We were like trained to do it, yeah, but not always. Not always, but yeah, definitely. Anyway, sometimes I don't, yeah, that's what we'll be talking about today The importance of mundane tasks and why making your bed in the morning can have an amazing effect on the rest of your life.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

It's incredible, isn't it? So join us, yeah, join us in. Get Real With The English Sisters. Hello everyone, hello, hello, hello. Here we are today.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Yes, some dread bed making, it used to make me cry when I was little. What Having to make your bed did you hate it? I can't remember. It was so hard we didn't have duvets then. Oh, yeah, i can't remember actually hating it, but certainly it wasn't something I remember enjoying. But I can't remember I mean, i know that mum would like grill it into us that the bed had to be made in the morning and you know we had to like smooth over the covers, the sheets and the blankets. It was a big deal. And then, when we got the duvet, you remember, oh, the duvet was super easy. The duvet was so lovely, yeah, but with the sheets it was harder Because they had the sheets and blankets and then the little cover on the top, the cover, bed spread, bed spread. Yeah, there was a lot to do and a lot to tidy up. We had identical beds and matching bed linen. Yeah, of course it was all identical. We had that one with all the flowers on it. Yeah, because I think it was the 70s. Of course it was the 70s. Yeah, it had all these flowers on it. Yeah, it was cute, though.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Anyway, why, i mean, why, make the bed? Why do you make it? now? I think I just make it because I find I like to see it like sorted, like it's like. See it sorted Like the underground Yeah, what is it they say in the UK on underground trains? See it, say it, we'll sort it. No, see, oh god, what is it like. So if you see something that you might think is a bit dodgy, like a suitcase that's been left there or a bag Or any, or anything, they say anything that could be Dangerous. Yeah, they say What did they say on the subway, underground! They say see it, sorted. Yeah, anyway. it, say it and we'll sort it. Yeah, that's it. So no one else is going to sort a bed. If we see it, see it's messy, come do it. Yeah, we see it ourselves. When we say, oh no, sort it out. Well, that's what I mean by saying it's like sorted, it's like I've set a template for the day when I've made my bed, and you know that, oh, that's sort of done, and you know it makes me feel better about the rest of the day. Yeah, it does.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I was thinking that, even when, when my cleaning lady comes once a week so we've got big houses I still make the bed. I make it, i make the bed. Yeah, she doesn't make my bed, she doesn't make mine either. No, i make my own bed. And you even make the beds in the hotels, don't you? Oh, i know, i know that's a perfection, but you put it all tidy. No, i do. I make it tidy because it makes me feel as if right now I know, yeah, you're right, yeah, i didn't even realize I did that. So my husband pointed out as well. He goes what are you doing Making the bed? Stop it. Yeah, well, we're in London.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I noticed she makes it all tidy. It's because then afterwards it likes sort of you know sets it, doesn't it? It's a mental thing. It's a mental thing, yeah, but they have actually been studies I was reading. There's been studies on it that say that the people that participated in the scientific study were the ones that made the bed were much more likely to complete tasks throughout the day and be more productive. There you go, because it, like, sets you up. Well, it's like first task, isn't it Done, tick, ah, then you can go on.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Sometimes I did, i made my bed, but then a bit a bit scruffy today, no, mine was a bit just like, not perfect. I never like pristine, pristine, but it looks okay. Sometimes it's better. If I know there's gonna be a video made of it, oh my gosh, if you know that's gonna be, i just flatten it up a bit more, yeah, but normally it's decent. Yeah, i do love the bed, but I mean, i mean, i mean the linen and everything.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

The thing is that I noticed that the bed was tidy but there's a lot of mess around my room. Yeah, what do you mean? clothes? I left in a bit The clothes hanging around. Yeah, i don't, i've got a little clothes on. Yeah, no, i've got, i've got the clothes on the chair. I've even left a nightie on the bed today. Oh, big crime. And then, yeah, otto's not allowed in our room. No, but he goes in and if he can.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

When I left the house this morning to come to you, and then I saw when I came back in, because I've forgotten to get something and I see him trundling out the bedroom, oh, happy, oh, yeah happy. Oh, mum's away. Yeah, i'm hanging to have a little sniff. Yeah, if I leave anything on the floor, it's the end. Yeah, that's the end. Yeah, he'll go and grab it. Socks, underwear, he'll get it all, won't he? I've seen him run off with it And then you can't catch him. He thinks it's really funny. I can't catch him because he goes under the table. Yeah, he's a terrible rascal, but yeah, getting back into the theme of the bed, the mundane tasks have been proven to They actually help relieve anxiety.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

And you would think why was making my bed help? So if you are suffering from anxiety, feeling a bit anxious, you know you could just do this little tiny I mean tiny as opposed to it's all that tiny, like what we were saying but make the effort to make your bed. Well, mine takes a few minutes. Mine does because I haven't even got to do it right now in the summer, sometimes I don't even air it. I just straighten the pillows out. Yeah, you add the pillows, add the cushions. No, i straighten the pillows with sleep on out, then I add the duvet And then I just put the cushions on top. But it takes that. It must take literally two minutes. That's what I mean. It can't take that long Because I don't like stretch all the sheet and the under sheet out. No, we're not. We're here at home. It's not professional bed making we're talking about, but it's just making it so that you can see it looking nice And then maybe you go and have your breakfast or something. You know, that's what I do.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I find that if the bed is made, then even if there's a little bit of clutter and mess around it, i can sort of navigate through my day. Yes, you navigate through your day, gosh, so it's really important. Then, if it's not made, then it's like the whole bedroom is just in the mess and I can't see what I'm doing. Getting my clothes out, getting dressed, no, no, no. So usually I make it with as soon as I get up. Basically, yeah, me too.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

They say you should air it, but I don't bother. Just by the time you get a shower or something, yeah, it's air, isn't it? Just a few minutes? Yeah, it doesn't take that long, i don't know. Yeah, just a few minutes. I mean, if my husband's still on his side of the bed, or make my side, and then he said, talk about giving me a hint to get up, i can't. No, no, stay. But it's like because your bed's massive, it is big, yeah, it's very, it's a very large one. Yeah, that is true, yeah, but anyway, yeah, i mean, but aside from that, yeah, aside from that it is, it can be helpful.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Yeah, to make your bed. It's so funny, isn't it? Because it's one thing, but it's something that you know, you can all think of. Maybe it's a discipline, it's something that you're disciplined to do. So you just do it every single day And, like, our mum actually taught us to make the bed, but I never did, actually, you know, reinforce it in my own. You don't want to install that. No, i didn't either. But you know, now, thinking about how important it is to have that discipline, no, there weren't rebellious, it was us. So we just I never really insisted on it. I just I didn't insist on it from when they were two. No, that's what I mean.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

If you, you start early, don't you Like when they're six or something, you might start saying, yeah, i might make the bed now, do they? Yes, are you sure about that? Well, daughter does do it. She loves it. I sound sometimes, yeah, yeah, i don't know. I mean, yeah, i don't, i don't know mine.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I think the thing is that we, we grew up with so much discipline that we didn't really want to pass on that discipline. No, but now I'm wondering you know, this is a little tip, it's a good one without being hurt. It can't hurt. Yeah, you can do it in a sweet way, i don't know. Yeah, if it's something done wit h gently making the bed become a little habit, a nice, healthy habit, yeah, that in a nicer way. Yeah, without making it a big deal.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I think you had negative connotations before because that when you were for the, especially for boys, when they had to used to go to the army in certain countries, oh, yeah, it was obligatory. I remember our Spanish cousins would say they would. Yeah, because they get really shouted at the bed, wasn't, you know? perfect, in the right order. Yeah, it's a bit. Yeah, so that would have been. Yeah, i think that's still like, that's still the same in the army today. Maybe that's why it has these negative connotations as well, that associated to it. Yeah, maybe you're right.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Actually, like you see it in the films, don't you now The screaming and the whistling and yeah, but hey, maybe you know some people that require that kind of discipline can benefit from it. That's why they do it there. That's what I mean. If you think about it, why does the army make such a big deal about making your bread and making it perfect? because that's the first, probably, task.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

And then it sets your mind like to obey, discipline. Obey, but when we're talking about that's what we hate because we're such rebels. But what I mean is obey your own discipline, your own self discipline. We do obey our own discipline. Yes, that's why I'm not sure that's the right word, it's not. But it's like you're obeying that. It's like you're getting towards your goals more than obeying. But it's like if you want to do something and you tell your mind, like you say today, i want to get this and this done because I know it's going to be helpful for me in my life and then you manage to get it done, then you've like, not obey, but you've like accomplished something that you wanted, that you set yourself to do. That's a. That's some more, it's probably a nicer way of saying it. Yeah, you don't obey, obey your own commands, but you do in a way, because your brain can be programmed and we know it can be programmed and you. A lot of what the things you say to yourself is like self hypnosis. So I think it's like brushing your teeth, making your bed Yeah, it's a, it's a, it's a first. It's a first. Doing your hair Yeah, you know, i didn't actually realize. That's why the army makes such a big deal about it. They do and they make a big deal about it. Also, maybe because there's some.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Do you remember our school uniform? what big deal it was. We had to come home, take it off, hang it up, hang it up, look after it, take extra care. Yeah, you're right. Yeah, polish the shoes. They're going to be thrown on the floor. Well, i can't remember, but I don't know. We had those school blazers. There was a big respect for the school badge and all of that stuff. Yeah, gosh, i didn't like that at the time. No, no, you did. Oh my god. It gives me the cringes to think about that. I don't even know if that's the right word. I mean, oh my god.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Well, maybe there's part of me that it would be cute to see some of you know, especially the girls, that I had such a big love. Of course you would. I would remember seeing them. Of course I would. I didn't have any friends. There's no point in me going back.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Yes, you did. You did have friends. You had Michelle. You had, yes, michelle. No, no, there was a younger, another late, another lady, another girl called Michelle, when you were really little. No, am I making mistake? Diamond. Then There was one diamond. She was really cute, winnerfrid. That's it, winnerfrid. She was adorable. Come on, you, probably, if you think hard. No, i do have a good friend. Yeah, but I don't know if there would still be a round. I mean, i haven't heard from many where.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

That's not the point. No, the point is making the bed Yes, we get it. Making the bed Yes, and self-discipline. I suppose it's the same as like washing your dishes. That my daughter does tell me that when her little studio flat is tidy it helps her. She's a scientist, so she says it helps her mind, you know, be more focused and clearer and she really enjoys it, even though it's really hard for her to keep it tidy. She says, because it's a big effort, especially when you're tired Yeah, you've been at work all day, or if you've got children, and you think that's what I mean.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

A lot of people they just say, oh god, i can't even be bothered to me, i just stumble out of bed and stumble into the bathroom and there's no way I'm going to be bothered to make my bed, i'm just going to go back and make it messy again. you know, in the evening, yeah, but it is nice to get into the tidy bed and actually say people sleep better if you've got a good bed to sleep in, that's tidy. I wouldn't be surprised by that. Yeah, i wouldn't have thought of that. But it does make sense because if it's nice and tidy, you know like smoothed, yeah, smooth, fresh linen. You know Fresh linen helps a lot. Yeah, smells around the room. Yeah, i love that.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I'm obsessed with washing the sheets, but not that much. But yeah, i do enjoy that. I mean, i used to take my sheets once a week, once a week, regular, every two weeks because we have so many showers every day. Yeah, i know, but I still really like it. I just like the smell of the fresh linen and the whole thing about hanging.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I mean, obviously, if they're smelly, i would change them. Oh God, i don't know what to mean about. I hate that. How could they be smelly? They never. Are They never smelly? I mean, even if it has a nape after 10 days, i think they need to be freshened. I would freshen. Oh, yes, you wash them. Yes, but now I do try and keep it for two weeks. Really, that's quite a long time because of the environment. It's what I think it was soap and the water and everything. I know, i know I do. Yeah, i know why you're doing that, and we have so many showers. It's good for you.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I mean, when we were little, we used to have a bath once a week I know we sound like medieval times nowadays Twice, and when we were older, twice maybe, i don't know, i can't remember it much, but I think when we were older older like I don't know what to do When we were little, it was like every night Oh right, i thought it was every night, every night, and our dad removed tiny And then afterwards, though I remember once a week, were you sure, come on, we must have got full. We're a little filthy-headed. No wonder we were just saying before that we were. You know, when we were little, our mum would dress as identical. Nothing much has changed. If you watch us on YouTube, you'll see it. However, it was funny because you know people in the streets like we were like kind of famous in our own little world because of course, we didn't know it. But the fact that we were always identical in everything and our mum would make our own clothes which is very special because she was a dressmaker Once she made us these adorable little red capes with these little hoods. We looked like two miniature red riding hoods walking along, but I mean I thought we were famous for that, not for the stink, i mean. No, mum used to wash us every day when we were little and then when we were older Maybe that's what it was It was like little washes, like, because bathing was like why?

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

why? I mean we had normal homes. I think I remember having the tiny bath. I think we had little vests, those little white cotton vests that were changed once a week, but it was the underwears every day, and I mean, people didn't use to have so many baths. No, you're right, they're not old. You know what it was. I think it was a shower, it was a washing of the hair. That was a big palaver. That's because we used to have the long you know the long curly hair. I think that's what she used to do. I think that was once a week. I remember having a little bath. I think we would fill it up with a little bit of water, but then it was the one. The daily, the weekly bath was like a big deal when we she would have to get this jug and pour the water over our head. That's when we were older, though, like 10 and 11, and then, well then, memory, because when we were tiny it was every night.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Could you remember when we were tiny? you were tiny yourself. All right, okay, i mean, this is, i wish you said, when we were tiny, where you like, remember mom and dad. I remember it because I remember dad would give us a bath and we really loved it, and then afterwards it was big story telling. Remember mom said dad can't give you a bath anymore. Oh, yeah, i remember that. Why we didn't cry. Yeah, we would say daddy, yeah, daddy had a better bar time. Stories and put little toys. Yeah, we would be. We'd probably spend longer in the bath. We stay for ages, yeah, until the water got cold. Basically, yeah, we were quite. I was thinking when we were tiny.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I remember coming home from the kindergarten, from the nursery school, i was filthy, i mean. I remember how could you not have a bar a bar from your time? because she was a. She was a what's it called a nanny? she was. She was a nanny as well. Yeah, we used to bathing all the can, tessies and counts. Oh, yeah, she was. She was a posh, yeah, yeah. Yeah, you're right, yeah, yeah.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Yeah, it is weird, but anyway, yeah, all going back to self discipline, nothing is nothing is by chance. Nothing is by chance. No, the things you do today, memories of what you learn in the past, they're like picked up, learnt behaviors, and they're like memories that stick with you, though like not, not memories that you don't do anymore. They're like no, i mean that's one word, memories, but I'm cuz anchors, yeah, that you do it again and again and you repeat that they're repeated. Yes, learnt behaviors from the past, except for now, we do have a daily shower, so if you do see us, you can come and say hello safely. I sure love your resonance. Yeah, it's like that for us as well. Bought in the 70s, yeah, even in the 80s.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I mean, obviously it depends on how you're living as well. I know what you've got. What you've got, yeah. Yeah, that's true, i mean, it makes you appreciate it does. Yeah, right, podcast is over. It's supposed to be talking about self discipline, but now, yes, we need you. Oh, well, well, well, this, anyway, this is a true thing. This is it's a true thing because it sounds really trivial. Oh, yeah, make your bed. Yeah, but the truth is that there's a lot of discipline behind it that can be applied to the rest of your life. So all the other tasks that you're doing throughout the day as well will have a reflection on those.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Well, yeah, everything in life can seem hard at first. Until then it seems easy. So I think you do have to have that self-discipline just to do something that might seem hard and tedious in the beginning, but it sets you like a little, you know, like you're in balance, you're you're more ready. You're ready to be more social as well, because, let's face it, if your bed is made, you might invite people around. You might think, oh yeah, house is kind of tidy, i might have a few drinks run. Oh yeah, the bedroom's nice, Yeah, then the rest of it sort of not that, not anyone's going to come in, kind of friends, i wasn't thinking of that, but even that, yeah, if you want to have a romantic evening, your room is tidy, yes, yes, yes, you'd be more open. You know, in all, yeah, you'd be more ready, wouldn't you? So definitely, you'd be more willing to say, yes, yes, you'd be more willing to, to, to invite people and you free your mind of congestion, that's it. That's it. Yeah, you're freeing your mind of congestion Because I think the bed, the thing about beds, are that is, they're so massive that they dominate your whole room.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

If they're messy, yeah, that's it. Well, well, awesome, isn't it? But I mean, even if you just have a single bed, it's big, it's big, it's big. It's usually one of the biggest pieces of furniture in your room. You're right, yeah, yeah, so if it's messy, it's going to dominate the whole room. Yes, and it's going to. Yeah, you're right. So, as soon as, then, as soon as, if it's tidy and the duvet's on, then you can put all your clothes on top. You can see where your clothes are, Exactly What happens if your clothes are messy. It's most of the room is kind of tidy, i agree.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

And then it also improves your sleep hygiene, which, as we were saying before, is very good. It helps you set your daily goals Yes, it does, and it helps you set a daily time management schedule, which I'm reading now, but yes, that's what I meant by setting and sorting my day out Daily time management schedule. I didn't realise it. Yeah, and that is a very precise way of saying it, because you're getting up in the morning, it's a bit like it's a ritual, isn't it Making the bed Here?

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

it says it helps you develop courage. Now, that's something I would never thought of. Courage, courage, i mean, if a bed is ever worth making, it's worth making for courage. Why would it be for courage? Well, it says, try to do the thing you fear the most. If you hate, if you hate making your bed I mean, we're making light of this now. But if any of you do really hate and fear it and you think, no, i can't, it just seems overwhelming. Well, you know, maybe the courage to do it Like, change your duvet by yourself. It is possible to change it by yourself. That's hard, it's quite hard. I've learned how to do it. It's really one side than the other side. Yeah, you do one side, then it's quite a sense of achievement. When you manage it, yeah, it feels good after we. So, yeah, we're not where.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

You know, i always get my husband to help me, do you? No, she's so petty. No, i don't, she's so petty. No, i don't, because I can't be bothered. I just do it by myself. I do it by myself.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I thoroughly enjoy it. I love it. I like it. I like it, i love making. No, i don't, i don't.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

I always help you when I'm here. You always take it. You rarely Rarely, rarely, if I can. If I get a bit, yeah, but it's not. How often have I? You helped me? now in the past year I've never seen you, mate. There you go, there you go. It's not like you can't say I'm always asking you help coming out, mate, no, but you would. I think you would ask for help if you had someone to help you do it. Well, my husband hates it, so there's no point I'm not going to. I'd rather involve him in all the things.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Yeah, you can do it by yourself, and there's also YouTube tutorials on it. Yes, there is, there is. You should have to do it simply. And also, i was thinking, if you simplify your bed as well like as soon as we got DuVeys, it was much nicer making bed. Yeah, definitely, it makes it easier. So, if you can simplify that and maybe not have so many, we've got loads of pillows and things on top because we actually enjoy them But if you don't, no, just keep it simple. Keep it simple. I think that's the way to go And definitely I will confess that my bed is made, but the room is not very tidy today.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Yeah, there's lots of clothing things hanging around, but I think yours is quite tidy, isn't it? I don't know, i can't remember today, but yeah, more or less, it'll probably be all right Be some clothes hanging around, probably because I did run out rather early today, but they're easy to put away. Yeah, yeah, Anyway, let us know what you think. Do you make your bed? Do you think it's a good idea to make your bed and complete Monday tasks And then also do the test, like you, don't make your bed for one day and then make it for the next day and see how you feel.

The English Sisters Violeta and Jutka Zuggo:

Just start noticing how you feel when your bed is made. You know, and you sort of like put some effort into it and you make it, you sort it all out and smooth it out, and then you look at it and you think, ah, because it makes you want to kind of do your hair and make it look a bit, make more effort with your clothes as well. I think when you make your bed. I didn't realise that, but I think like it sets your mind for other things for the day, but it puts you in a more proactive, productive mood. Definitely proactive and productive. Baby, you've said it there, yeah, so please leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, wherever you get your podcasts, and come and see us on Instagram. I'd get rid of it With that English sisters, or I'd rather account that English sisters. If you come on both, we're happy to say hi. We're happy to say hi and let us know Love you lots. Bye, bye. Let us smile and laugh from the English sisters. Bye, bye.

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