The Nurses' Breakroom with Jenny Lytle, RN

44. Simplify Summer Stress: Use the Toss, Tweak, or Treasure Method

• Jenny Lytle. RN

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Feeling the shift of summer but still stuck in survival mode?
In this episode of The Nurses’ Break Room with Jenny Lytle, RN, we’re kicking off June with a simple yet powerful summer self-care strategy: the Toss, Tweak, or Treasure Method. Whether your routine has changed or stayed the same, this quick exercise can help you reassess what’s truly serving you—and what needs to go.

🧠 Inside this episode:

  • Why summer is the perfect time for a self-care switch-up
  • How to do a 10-minute brain dump to uncover hidden energy drains
  • Questions to ask yourself to decide whether to toss, tweak, or treasure
  • Real-life examples for simplifying chores, routines, and even expectations
  • How to protect the habits and moments that truly light you up

💡 Take Action:

  • Toss: One thing draining your energy
  • Tweak: One routine you can simplify
  • Treasure: One moment or habit you’ll protect this week

🎯 Perfect for nurses, caregivers, and busy women who want less stress and more peace—without overhauling everything.

If you're feeling overwhelmed, burned out, or like there’s never enough time, I’ve got something just for you! Head to https://selfcareisntselfish.com to grab your FREE copy of my book, Self-Care Isn’t Selfish: The Compassionate Nurse’s Step-by-Step Guide to Personalized Stress Relief. It’s packed with simple, effective strategies to help you prioritize your needs—without guilt—so you can feel energized, focused, and ready to take on the day. Go to https://selfcareisntselfish.com 

Looking for connection with people who get the stress and self-care struggles of nurses and caregivers? Check out https://thenursesbreakroom.com

Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennylytlern/

More ways to connect here: https://linktr.ee/jennylytle



Speaker 1:

Hello and welcome back to another episode of the Nurse's Break Room with Jenny Lytle RN. We are right here on the first Monday of June and I felt like it was a great time to do a bit of a self-care switch up for the summer. Summer is a little different. Sometimes it's time off and more time with family and more time outdoors. Other times work schedules may be the same, but maybe there's more family events or maybe you've got kids at home that normally are in school. Either way, summer just has a different feel to it, and so I thought that we would start this off with a quick and easy way to simplify some things in life, to maybe reduce stress a bit that way.

Speaker 1:

So I came upon this tool called Toss, tweak or Treasure, and it's a great way to look at some of the lists of tasks and obligations and habits that we have and figure out what to cut or delegate or what to keep. And so you do just a 10 minute brain dump and come up with the things that you're doing on a regular basis, and you can use this for your to-do list and commitments and habits and even maybe the people that are around and thoughts that take up a lot of space in your mind. So what you do is you set a timer for 10 to 15 minutes and you do a brain dump of those things, those current stressors and habits and responsibilities, and then you go through each one and you mark them as toss, tweak or treasure and so, for example, like with the toss, what are the things that that you want to let go of? So maybe asking things like is this draining me more than it's helping me? Is this something that really is necessary or just something that I've gotten in the habit of doing? Or maybe that has been expected of me and would something bad happen if I didn't do this? Some examples of that are things that you volunteer for, not that you want to do, but just because you feel guilty, or the mindless social media scrolling that is so easy to do, or getting into different chats with people, whether it be at work or at home or via text, that really aren't very productive and just aren't going anywhere. I'm talking about the ones that don't bring meaning to your life or that aren't completely necessary. But there's some group chats that we just get stuck in and then we check them and there's nothing really in there for us in and then we check them and there's nothing really in there for us. Something else to toss is those expectations that we put on ourselves that maybe don't really have any reason to be there. We hold ourselves to a high standard and that can be great, but when it becomes unrealistic or unattainable or just another should, then maybe it's time to look at that. Attainable or just another should, then maybe it's time to look at that.

Speaker 1:

So, moving on to tweak, what things can you make more manageable? So are there things on your list that you could make simpler or quicker or maybe make them a little more enjoyable? Is it something that you could delegate? Can you add something to it to make it a little more calming or motivating? Something to it to make it a little more calming or motivating? So some examples of that are cutting your meal prep in time. You can do things like getting bagged salad or pre chopped veggies or rotisserie chicken. I love Sam's Club rotisserie chicken. It's just, it's a go to in our house and we eat it by itself. We use it for different meals that we're making and it definitely cuts a huge amount of time and, honestly, money too.

Speaker 1:

Maybe there's things that you can do If you have chores that you have to do, you can play music while you're doing it or listen to an audio book a book you've been wanting to read but maybe haven't had time to. I love audio books for my drive time and my otherwise busy time, and I know that I probably don't get as much out of it as I would if I were sitting down and reading a book, but at the same time, I don't spend a lot of time sitting down and reading books right now, so it's a way to get some of that in. Maybe you could shorten a meeting or make it something virtual. Or, if you're catching up with a friend over the phone, you could both walk while you're doing that or meet in person if it's someone local. Could you adjust your morning routine or your bedtime routine a bit to make them feel more relaxing or rejuvenating or invigorating, depending on the time of day, or rejuvenating or invigorating, depending on the time of day.

Speaker 1:

And last, treasure, what are the things that bring you joy and peace and purpose and energy, and those things that are aligned with your values and with your goals, and what Are they? Things that you want more of in your life? So some things for me and maybe for you like, I love starting my morning with tea and I was doing coffee, but I found that some decaf green tea starts me off better of a morning when I'm already naturally perky and I don't really need that extra caffeine boost and I just saved my caffeine for a little bit later in the day when I could use a little pick me up. But I love that and having my morning God time when I read through my devotionals and it just really it sets me off on the right foot. And so figuring out what that looks like for you and maybe it's a midday walk or family time or just having a little bit of alone time some time that is just about you and maybe that's in nature, maybe that's in your car somewhere, but just taking the time to figure that out and then making sure that you protect it because it matters.

Speaker 1:

So I encourage you to consider working through this and just take one small action this week for each category and see how that makes you feel, and I'd love it if you would share that with me. Feel free to just reply to this if you're listening on Buzzsprout and you can send a text that way, or you can just email me at Jenny Lytle, at Jenny Lytlecom. And until next time, remember, self-care isn't selfish. It's essential if we want to continue to care for others and live our best lives. Thanks so much and have a great week.