Why I Started Living a Less Toxic Lifestyle

Notice the title of this says “less toxic” and not “nontoxic.” That is because it is impossible to live a nontoxic lifestyle. Toxins are all around us! Whether we want them or not, they’re there. We can do our best to rid the toxins that we are personally convicted on, but we can’t get rid of everything.

In my personal experience, going down the nontoxic road can be dangerous. I started my less toxic journey over 5 years ago and many times I found myself obsessing over everything to the point where I was so stressed out and overwhelmed by eliminating everything I possibly could. This was just as bad if not worse for my health than all of the chemicals I was trying to rid from our life! I’m sure there are people that can be completely nontoxic (as much as they can control anyways) and not obsess or stress over it, and if that’s you- all the respect to you! But it’s just not me. I also found myself in the financial situation where I literally couldn’t afford to go completely nontoxic. 

I started following all of these super crunchy moms on Instagram - some with actual education on nontoxic living and some with just years of experience from living that way - and I realized I couldn’t keep relying on them for telling me what products to switch to. They were way too expensive! For the most part, those moms would share some brands that were more affordable, but most of the time I found myself clicking their links and having total sticker shock. It was pretty obvious that they were living off of some pretty good incomes and could afford to ditch and switch to the more expensive brands and buy whatever they wanted. Being in a completely different income bracket meant I needed to take a step back and think about the areas that were the most important to me. Which products did I want to focus on? Which toxins were the worst of the worst that I definitely wanted to eliminate? What could I let go of so I would no longer obsess over living 100% toxic-free?

Let’s start from the beginning. I have always had sensitive skin. I remember using the products labeled “for sensitive skin” as a teen and young adult. I didn’t really know what this meant, what ingredients made it safe or unsafe for sensitive skin. I just bought what the labels told me I should buy. But nonetheless, I knew I had sensitive skin and I had to be somewhat picky about what I used on my body and face. 

Fast forward many years and I became a mom. I never liked cleaning or strong smelling products, they gave me headaches. I loved the idea of “natural” and “nontoxic” and even “organic,” but I never really became educated about why these things were important. And the price tags often scared me off. It wasn’t until a friend of mine shared some information with me that completely blew my mind where my eyes were really opened. It was this independent lung study that stated the effects of using national brand cleaners just once a week is as bad for your lungs as smoking A PACK OF CIGARETTES A DAY! I couldn’t believe it. I mean, I knew they smelled bad, but they were actually harmful to our health?! This became a life-changing moment for me. It sparked the many years of researching, learning, growing, slowly getting rid of toxins, and diving deeper and deeper into health and wellness as a whole. 

At the time of learning about the harmful effects of the ingredients in household cleaners, we were staying in a short term rental where the cleaners were stored under the bathroom sink with easy access and I found my two year old son spraying himself in the face with bleach spray. It was SO scary and all I needed to get me on the nontoxic bandwagon. I hopped on the website my friend shared with me that she shopped at for all her household essentials and immediately ordered some nontoxic cleaning and home necessities to start swapping out products and convert our home.

I am very much a “go big or go home” or “all or nothing” girl, so I of course wanted to get rid of all the things and start fresh. But I started with the cleaning products so I wouldn’t be overwhelmed. I wanted to first rid the air in our home of the toxins and then continue to switch things out as time went on and as I became more educated on all the common harmful ingredients in everyday products. I never even considered that my skincare, hair care, makeup, bath and body products or laundry products could actually be harmful to me and my family’s health. There are so many terrible, toxic ingredients out there that are used unnecessarily and not regulated. Ingredients that cause cancer and infertility, disrupt hormones, cause allergic reactions, and much more.

I started my journey by shopping at this online wellness store that has hundreds of household products, many of which are cleaner and safer than the options at the store. It was a great way to first start converting my home as I continued to research and educate myself as it was actually affordable and I was able to get many of the things for my home in one place.

Once I started following those crunchy moms, I noticed all of them putting down the online wellness store. That’s when I realized that I was definitely not in the same “crunchy” category as those moms. As I mentioned before, I’m not in the place to be completely toxic free. And that’s okay! I finally realized I didn’t need to feel bad for shopping at my online wellness store because it was the perfect fit for MY family- a lot less toxic while STILL being affordable. And made in the USA, which is another aspect that’s important to me. We’re big believers of voting with our dollars and this company has all the same values as my husband and I.

I’ve compromised my true self too many times, thinking I needed to be like those other crunchy moms. There are definitely some similarities between me and them, but for me to think I needed to be on their level when my family couldn’t even afford it was just silly. It’s gotten to my head too many times, causing me to be confused and feel like a failure. 

I’m happy to report I’m finally at a place where I feel confident that I’m doing the best that I personally can for my family, and the areas where I can’t quite switch over to organic or nontoxic or sustainable I have peace about. When it all comes down to it, I don’t want that to be my number one focus anyways. I don’t want people to look at me and say “oh, she's the mom who is obsessed with nontoxic living.” I want people to look at me and see Jesus. I would much rather them say things like “she’s the mom who loves Jesus and loves people, and she also likes sharing about living a less toxic lifestyle.” NOT that it’s about what other people say or think… But as a daughter of the King, it is my purpose to exemplify Him and to shine His light above all else. I’m tired of living a materialistic, worldly lifestyle. I just want to live for Him.

I know I went off on a tangent there, and if you stick around you'll notice I do that often, haha… BUT I just wanted to share some of my heart from my journey of going less toxic. It’s not wrong to avoid certain toxic ingredients while not stressing so much about others, or to only buy the products/brands you can afford, regardless of how clean they are or not. What’s wrong is making people feel ashamed for doing so. We’re all on different journeys, with different incomes, convictions and things we’re passionate about. I’m all for educating, giving tips, and sharing info in love, but not in a “if you use this product or ingredient you’re not a good mom” way. Ew. I want everything I do to be done in love and with grace. So I hope you hear my heart in all of this and if you ever have any questions or want to open up a conversation, please don’t hesitate to reach out on Instagram or through an email. 

So, if you’re like me, and you want to live a less toxic lifestyle without the stress of trying to be completely nontoxic, and you want to shop at a one-stop shop for all things less toxic- click the link below! I would love to share more about where I shop; it truly has been a lifesaver! Not only do I get a lot of our household essentials here and they’re all less toxic (some are actually completely nontoxic), but it has shaved money off our household budget and saves us money. Big win for this budgeting mama!

I’m also going to be completely honest and say- I don’t get EVERYTHING there. I’ve found some products I love to still have some ingredients I don’t want to use so I’ve spent some time searching for brands that have similar price tags. It IS possible to live less toxic while living on a budget, I promise. I’m proof ;) whether you shop at the online wellness store I mentioned or not.

Check out my Shop My Faves tab and you’ll be able to see some affordable less toxic brands and products that I personally love. Most are on Amazon, but I also have some small shops listed/linked. As a disclaimer, if you click one of my affiliate links and make a purchase I will earn a small percentage at no extra cost to you. It helps to keep my blog running and I greatly appreciate it but of course don’t expect it. :)

Have a blessed day!