7 Tips to Avoid and Deal with Coupon Burnout ~ Part 1

With as much fun as it is to find deals and save money, do you ever feel overwhelmed?  Stressed out about using or sorting coupons?  Nervous about going to the store and dealing with cashiers?  Do you wonder if it's worth it anymore? You might be experiencing "Coupon Burnout".

Until just recently, I haven't been to Walgreens or Rite-Aid in about 3 months - crazy right??  I'd gotten a little burned out with shopping, coupons, Register Rewards, blogging about all the detailed deals.....the whole thing.....often called "Coupon Burnout".  You may have noticed a lack of "wrap-ups" and store deals being posted....and more freebies, online deals, and how-to's.  I didn't originally intend to take so much time off, but now that I think about it, it's been quite a while.

We had a lot going on with major home renovations, trying to keep up the blog, and just being a mom and wife, so once I used up all my UP Rewards at Rite-Aid and Register Rewards at Walgreens, I took some time off to regain some sanity....and hopefully a little passion for getting deals again.  Not that I'd completely lost it, but "playing the drugstore game" can take quite a bit of mental energy and time - both of which were dwindling.

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We had a great stockpile built up, so I could take a break without worrying about running out of anything (though we came close with tp, lol).  I still bought the Sunday paper, usually, but was very relaxed on getting the coupons clipped and sorted.  We just went "shopping" in our basement "rebate room" for toiletries, diapers, wipes, and gifts.....and in our pantry for most of our groceries and paper goods.  Of course we did still have to go to the grocery store for produce, milk, bread and things, but usually only every other week and even then the lists were pretty short while we relied on the stockpile.

A great benefit of stockpiling is just having what you need on hand so that you have the ability to buy deals as they come around and not have to pay full price for things.  It frees you to shop on your own time table instead of running out to buy full-price ingredients for every meal or full-price shampoo or razors .  In this case, I was able to use our stockpile to take "time-off" of  "couponing" and take care of my family, home, and well-being without having any reason to worry.

 {Our "Rebate Room" - diapers, wipes, lotions, soaps, feminine care, medicine, vitamins, dental, hair care, makeup, razors, gift stash....etc.}

 {Pantry Stockpile Shelf #1: cereals (normally fill the top shelf), snacks, beans, salsa, soup, juice, crackers, peanut butter and jelly...etc. Out of the picture are Kleenex's and TP above the fridge}

{Pantry Stockpile Shelf #2: dishsoap, handsoap, paper towel, pasta, ziploc bags, dishwasher detergent, cakes/frostings, baby food/cereal and formula}

Sometimes I would be browsing the deals blogs or hear about a great deal from my sister or friend, and kind of panic get concerned that I was missing it......but then I would remind myself that deals run in cycles, and they'll always come around again.....there's always another deal around the corner.  And I would rest, knowing that we had everything we needed on hand and it was no big thing to miss a few deals.

Of course another great benefit of a stockpile is being prepared and having peace of mind in case of an emergency, natural disaster or job loss.....and, while I initially took a break for my own sanity, during my "hiatus", my husband was unexpectedly let go from his job and transitioned into starting his own business and working from home.  This would have been very difficult and extra stressful if I was worrying about what we'd have for dinner, or how to afford soap and diapers.  Because we shop ahead of time and typically save 80-90% on our household needs, that was a great burden lifted off our shoulders.

It's been a very busy season for us and "burnout" is never fun, but I'm glad I was able to recognize it and had the ability to stop for awhile and rest.  I think it's about over and I'm feeling rejuvenated and ready to get back into it!  It's good timing too, because there are some items that are getting low and things need to be replenished.  =)

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Coupon Burnout happens to all of us - whether you're a newbie just starting out and learning the ropes, or a veteran couponer who feels like they have it all together.......there usually comes a time where you just get overwhelmed, it seems like too much effort and you may want to give up completely.
Stay tuned for the next in this series for some practical tips and advice about dealing with feeling burned out.  Please comment if you have any suggestions for avoiding burnout!


*I'm also thinking about writing a future post about how to maintain a stock-pile, maybe include some "rules" you'll want to follow to make the most of it, and how to store things when you don't have a "rebate room".  Let me know if you're interested in something like that, and what questions you might have about stockpiling.