Dirty clothes and empty food containers scattered on the floor, a sink overflowing with dirty dishes, piles of junk covering every flat surface, a bathroom in need of a good scrubbing; can all these things actually have an impact on your mood?
For nine years a team of anthropologists, social scientists, and archaeologists from UCLA’s Center on Everyday Lives and Families underwent a research project comparing the emotional relationship between people and their stuff. Come to find out, clutter has a profound effect on our mood and self-esteem.
The study found higher blood levels of cortisol (stress hormone) and more incidents of depression in women who lived in cluttered or messy homes. They also found a link in attitude with a tidy house to feelings of success as an individual. (Men weren’t bothered quite so much by the mess which then leads to stress in the relationship.)
I think it’s safe to say that clutter and mess also interfere with our ability to focus.
I can see a vast difference in my ability to concentrate when I’m working in a room that is cleaner than when I’m sitting in the middle of a chaotic mess. Most of us already deal with brain fog so living in a cluttered house will only exacerbate the problem.
I don’t know about you, but I want my home to feel restful and restorative.
I have enough to deal with when it comes to my health issues. I certainly don’t need to add to my problems by having a bunch of junk lying around.
It defeats the practice of a self-care routine if we have to spend 25 minutes cleaning the area or looking for whatever it is we were going to use pamper ourselves.
We live in a consumer/clutter culture.
We’re bombarded with the mentality that we work to buy stuff. Then we buy more stuff to keep that stuff in. We want to display all the stuff so people know how much stuff we’ve been able to buy. It’s a consumer nightmare!
On his blog Becoming Minimalist, Joshua Becker says…
The never-ending need to care for the things we own is draining our time and energy. Whether we are maintaining property, fixing vehicles, replacing goods, or cleaning things made of plastic, metal, or glass, our life is being emotionally and physically drained by the care of things that we don’t need—and in most cases, don’t enjoy either. We are far better off owning less.
Life with a chronic illness drains our physical energy, our mental capacity, and demands quite a bit of our time. Do we really want to use our limited resources on cleaning and maintaining stuff that we don’t love or use?
So what should we do?
One idea is to embark on a project to clear our homes of clutter and unnecessary items. Focus on one rule – do we love it, do we use it, or does it add value to our lives – if not, get rid of it!
Letting our health take precedence and deciding that we’re not going to put our bodies in jeopardy makes sense. There may be days or even weeks where we’re not able to work on eliminating our “stuff”.
But don’t quit! We need to let our desire for a more peaceful home and the need for a sanctuary where we can relax increase as our symptoms increase. It’s time to take steps to create that haven of rest!
Clothing is a great place to start. I think we could dress a small country with what has taken up residence in our house, what about you?
When our kids were teens we made a rule that clothes would only be found in a drawer, closet, or hamper. No piles scattered randomly throughout the house. We all walked through the house and put the scattered piles in their designated places. Without even telling them, our kids came out of their rooms with a bag each of clothes to donate and a handful of items to toss. They decided they didn’t love them or use them so out they went!
I’m excited to think about a clutter-free house but I’m also conscious of the fact that this is a long-term process. You know the saying, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” Neither will a home become clutter-free.
Keep track of your progress.
When we have fewer good days than bad it’s hard to see progress in cleaning and decluttering.
Don’t enter into the process by planning to do an entire room in a day. Your body may have other plans. If you only have the energy to clean out one drawer that’s still progress!
The thing that helped me the most was my decision to keep a small notebook to track my efforts. I designated one page to each room in my house. When I cleaned a particular area I wrote it down on my list. No matter how big or small the area was I made a note of it. For example, on the page for my bedroom, one line says “my nightstand.” Another says “top of dresser.” That way I know where I left off and what areas still need to be cleaned.
As often as I can, I grab that notebook and walk through the house. I look at each area that I have written down as clutter-free and check to be sure it hasn’t become a dumping ground again. This part was key! You don’t want to lose all the progress you’ve made!
A decluttering process can be a great part of your self-care routine.
The long-term effects of this process will continue to benefit your well-being for years to come! You’re worth the effort!
How do you tackle the clutter in your house? If you feel like you’re drowning in a sea of things why not join me! Each tiny step forward is still progress!
