Clear the clutter

Does clutter drive you nuts? Do you struggle to clear out clutter? You’re not alone you said “yes”!

There’s physical clutter, which is what we most often think of when it comes to clutter. But we can also carry around mental and emotional clutter. Keep reading to get unstuck from clutter!

Highlights of the article

How physical clutter affects your well-being

Tips to clear physical clutter

Tips to clear mental clutter

The impact of physical clutter

Clutter isn’t just an eyesore; it can have a significant impact on your movement and brain health. Your home should be your sanctuary, a safe place where you can take time to unwind. But when you feel that your home is cluttered, it can lead to an overall negative effect on your well-being.

What is considered “clutter” is relative. What you may feel is clutter might provoke a “homey” feeling in someone else. A minimalist home may be the goal of one person but may seem cold and uninviting to another.

There’s no right or wrong, it really depends on what you feel is untidy or cluttered.

One study found a relationship between how women felt about their home and cortisol levels. Cortisol is a hormone that regulates different processes in your body, including metabolism and immune response. It also plays an important role in helping your body respond to stress.

The women that described their home in more stressful terms – e.g., messy, cluttered, unorganized, chaotic – experienced a negative effect on their cortisol levels. Women that used more restorative terms – e.g., relaxing, calming, peaceful, comforting – experienced healthier levels of cortisol.

Another study found a relationship between cluttered homes and procrastination. I’m sure you’ve guessed the nature of the relationship – procrastinators reported more clutter. The authors point out that it’s unclear which comes first, clutter or procrastination. What was clear is that the association affected the participants in a negative way.

Physical clutter not only leads to ineffective use of your living space but can also impact you mentally.

Tips to clear the clutter

I’m NOT an expert when it comes to clearing physical clutter. Anyone that has seen my basement knows it’s a work in progress! I’ll offer little suggestions below but I’d rather first refer you to resources that have helped me.

A Bowl Full of Lemons offers lots of resources to clean and organize. A couple that I have found useful…

The free home organization challenge – over 14 weeks you’ll organize and remove unwanted items. My family is in the midst of doing this right now.

30-day bag purge challenge – during this challenge you purge 30 bags of items in 30 days!

Becoming Minimalists has many resources for reducing clutter. Becoming a minimalist doesn’t have to be your goal to gain benefits from the many articles. Check out their popular articles.

Habits that help me

Anytime I purchase a new item of clothing I donate/throw out 3 old items

We’re working on putting items away immediately when you’re done. This one is a work in progress!

As I’m cooking/baking in the kitchen I clean and put away dishes (thank you, Dad, for teaching me this one).

Daily 5 minute picking up around the house.

Do you have any tips that work for you? Or any websites you find helpful? Please share below in the comments!

What about mental clutter?

Mental and emotional clutter can unnecessarily take up space. It can leave us feeling stuck and not moving forward. How do you know if your mind is cluttered? Ask yourself…

Is it hard to focus on one thing?

Do you feel like your mind is constantly spinning?

Are you easily distracted?

Does your mind feel cloudy?

At the end of the day do you often feel like you accomplished nothing?

If you can relate to any of those questions then you’ll likely benefit from mental decluttering. Below are some suggestions for you to try out and get that clutter moving on out!

Tips for mental clutter

#1 Track your thoughts

Pay attention to what thoughts are entering that beautiful mind of yours. This includes negative self-talk, resentments, or any other negative thought patterns.

When you notice a negative pattern cut it off. Don’t follow it down the rabbit hole. You could say “STOP!” I’m also a huge fan of the 5-Second Rule. Either way stops that thought in its tracks.

#2 Examine your habits

Look at habits like you would a physical item. Does it serve you? Is it time to let it go?

Changing habits isn’t easy. Lots of books out there cover building good habits. I’m a fan of James Clear and his book Atomic Habits.

#3 Connect with nature

This study found that walking in nature lowers activity in the prefrontal cortex. This area of the brain is active when we’re in negative thought patterns. Take even 5 minutes to get outside, smell the fresh air, hear the birds, and see how you feel.

#4 Stop multitasking (seriously)

I know, I know. We live in a society that values the ability to work on multiple tasks at once. It seems like a good idea, but is it?

We think we’re completing many things at once, but what happens is we’re shifting our focus from task to task. It’s hard to stay present in the moment when we’re constantly distracting ourselves. Multitasking can actually result in lower productivity.
Try focusing on one task at hand before moving on to the next. What you accomplish may surprise you.

#5 Take a break from tech

We all know how consuming technology is! Schedule time in your day when your computer is off and your phone is on silent (or off). Technology is distracting and can be overstimulating. Removing technology for even an hour can help clear the clutter in your mind.

#6 Pay attention to your breath

Take a moment to close your eyes and listen to your breath.

As you inhale say to yourself “in”, and when you exhale say “out” to yourself. Try this for 1-2 minutes. Focusing on the breath calms the mind while sharpening your focus.

#7 Move your body

Of course, I’m partial to moving with a yoga practice. Yoga calms the mind, increases mental clarity, and can sharpen focus.

Decluttering our physical space can help us feel calmer. The same goes for mental clutter. Clearing our clutter can help us feel calmer and increase our ability to focus.

What tips do you use to help with clutter (physical or mental)? I would love for you to share in the comments below!

Do you want to declutter but struggle with motivation? Check out this article!

Sources:

Catherine A. Roster, Joseph R. Ferrari, M. Peter Jurkat. 2016. The dark side of home: Assessing possession ‘clutter’ on subjective well-being. Journal of Environmental Psychology. Volume 46, pg 32-41. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272494416300159?via%3Dihub

Ferrari, J.R., Roster, C.A., Crum, K.P. et al. 2018. Procrastinators and Clutter: An Ecological View of Living with Excessive “Stuff”. Curr Psychol 37, 441–444. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-017-9682-9

Saxbe, Darby E., and Rena Repetti. 2010. No Place Like Home: Home Tours Correlate With Daily Patterns of Mood and Cortisol. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, vol. 36, no. 1, pg. 71–81. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0146167209352864.