The Benefits of Decluttering on Mental Health

Have you ever looked around your home and felt frustrated by the clutter? “Clutter” can mean many different things to different people. It can be anything from stacks of paper and clothes piling up to one wet towel on the floor and a few dishes in the sink—and all of it can negatively impact your mental well-being.

But guess what? You’re not alone in feeling stressed and overwhelmed with the clutter in your space. This has become a significant issue in our society, and it’s taking a toll on our emotional and mental health.

In my opinion, every month should be Mental Health Awareness Month, so now is as good a time as any to discuss clutter’s impact on our mental health and how organizations can help!

The Impact of Clutter

It’s not just your friendly neighborhood organizer (Hi!🙋‍♀️) who says clutter impacts your mental health—research shows it, too. Studies have found that when someone perceives their home as cluttered, their levels of the stress hormone cortisol increase.

The key word, however, is ‘perceive’. Clutter weighs on people differently. To some, a stack of paper on the kitchen counter is organized. To others, it’s a taunting pile of agitation.

Understanding how you relate to clutter is the first step in identifying its impact on your mental health.

My 5-Step Solution to Clutter

Once you better understand clutter’s impact on your well-being, it’s time to decide what to do about it. This varies for everyone, but there are a few universal steps I’d suggest you take:

1. Find Your Biggest Stressor

Pinpoint the spaces in your home that cause the most stress and identify which one will impact your daily life most significantly, like the entryway you go in and out of each day or the dining room table that’s always covered.

2. Start Small

Though you might find your overflowing garage or basement is the most stressful space, those are huge projects to start with. Instead of tackling this first, choose a smaller space that will give you a “win” and allow you to see results immediately. A few examples would be a junk drawer, your bedroom nightstand, or a single shelf.

3. Set a Timer

You’d be amazed by how much better you can feel after 15 minutes of decluttering. Once the buzzer goes off and you find you have more stamina, feel free to keep going. But remember – anything is better than nothing!

4. Sort Your Items

Starting in your chosen room (or drawer or shelf), go through each item and decide what to keep, throw away, donate, or recycle. You’ll be surprised by how much you can do-away with even in a small area, and you’ll feel lighter instantly!

5. System Set-up

Organizing doesn’t have to be complex. Simple habits like hanging your keys in the same spot every day can be an effective system. Putting your shoes in the same spot when you get home is also a system. After sorting through your items, put them back in a way that suits your habits and makes for easy access.

As with anything that feels overwhelming, it can help tremendously to have someone at your side. I would love to support you through your organizing journey!

Support and Resources

New York Times article: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/03/well/mind/clutter-stress-procrastination-psychology.html

Cortisol Study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20053034/

Dr. Joseph Ferrari Podcast

DePaul article: https://resources.depaul.edu/newsline/sections/campus-and-community/Pages/joseph_ferrari_clutter.aspx

Psychwire article: https://psychwire.com/free-resources/q-and-a/18s63md/how-clutter-affects-the-mind

How clutter is killing your mental health

Very Well Mind article: https://www.verywellmind.com/decluttering-our-house-to-cleanse-our-minds-5101511#citation-8

“Women with higher stressful home scores had increased depressed mood over the course of the day, whereas women with higher restorative home scores had decreased depressed mood over the day.” From the abstract for

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0146167209352864

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272494416300159?via%3Dihub

Chicken or the egg? “High stress prevents us from organizing our homes, but the clutter itself can also lead to stress.” — NATALIE CHRISTINE DATTILO, PHDhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272494416300159?via%3Dihub

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