Clutter – Why it is bad for your health.

So what is clutter? Here’s the dictionary definition of clutter: clutter is a collection of things lying around in an untidy and disorderly manner Taking that one step further, clutter is a collection of things that we do not want, that no longer serve us. Things that we have lying around and in an untidy manner, taking up useful space.

And why is this a big deal?

Why is clutter so bad?

There are so many studies and research that show that clutter affects our physical

and mental well-being negatively. The truth is the brain likes order.

How many times have you walked into a well organized environment

and you just feel relaxed. As opposed to walking into a cluttered room.

You feel a sense of stress almost immediately. You feel the anxiety because the brain likes order.

So when we bombard the brain with visuals of disorderliness, and untidiness, it just drains useful cognitive resources, that could be put to better use.

Other studies show that clutter affects kids adversely. It affects their focus and attention. I highly suggest that you keep the spaces clear and free of clutter.

How can one manage glitter? How do we eliminate clutter? Here are a few suggestions:

1. Cleaning the cluttered area one room at a time.

2. Another way of manage clutter is “to donate the items”

3. Selling items you no longer need:

4. Hire a Professional Organizer

1. Cleaning the cluttered area one room at a time.

I love that idiomatic saying of “how do you eat an elephant?” One bite at a time.

The same applies to clutter as well. Typically, if you have several rooms in your space – heavily cluttered,

it might be overwhelming trying to tackle that big project all at once. So what else I suggest is addressing the issue one room at a time.  Better still, if you have a friend or husband or spouse or kids that can help you, you will get the work done faster. So yes! Solicit their help. The clutter is not serving you in any way.

I also love the Marie Kondo principle of “ If It doesn’t spark Joy or even no longer Sparks Joy, get rid of it.” You might have a pair of shoes that’s just been sitting in your closet for sometime. Maybe two years ago you loved it, but now you don’t. You haven’t worn the shoes for over two years because it no longer sparks Joy. Then get rid of it. Why? It’s just there taking up space useful space. It’s no longer serving you.

Here is a real life example:

So in our basement, we had stuff all over the place. We tried to arrange it, as the kids the basement was meant for the kids. It was their play area, but they just never used it or spent much time there because we had boxes and stuff all over that space.

What our basement looked like before:

Basement Before: Cluttered and very messy.

Now that we’ve gotten rid of all of the clutter, and now that everything has its place, they hang out there all the time now.

What our basement looks like now:

After: Decluttered and renovated basement

Why? because it’s organized. Their young brains are no longer bombarded by visuals of disorderliness.

Of course! We tell them to clean up whenever they’re done playing down there. The best part… clean up is a BREEZE! And takes only a few minutes because there is no clutter.

2. Another way of manage clutter is “to donate the items”

If you have items that you no longer need, items you no longer use, give them to charity.

I use a Freecycle a lot. It’s a network of “gifting” groups to divert reusable goods from landfills.

How Freecycle works: you register -If you don’t have an account. Then you are able to post items that you no longer need. Of course the items should have lots of life left. You’ll be so surprised at the number of takers that will repond to your post. … one person’s garbage is another man’s treasure. I do not believe in waste. Instead of tossing useful stuff, put it on Freecycle.

Facebook Marketplace is another great site for getting rid of items you no longer need. You can give the unwanted items away for free on there or even sell them.

3. Selling items you no longer need:

If you have things that you know you can get some money from, you can sell them.

You can put them on eBay. You can also put them on Facebook Marketplace. Craigslist is a great place to sell larger furniture pieces.

I have a rule though with selling unused items: If after two – three months, the items are still on there without any takers, then donate them. Otherwise what will happen is you the items will sit there for months. Months will then turn into years.

4. Hire a Professional Organizer

You can also hire a professional de-clutterer also known as organizers to help you –

If you feel de-cluttering your space is just too big a project for you too handle.

In conclusion, clutter doesn’t serve anyone in any way. It compromises the quality of a person’s life.

Our goal should be to live a decluttered and organized life. Take the first step towards getting rid of the clutter in your life and you would see how the quality of your life improve dramatically.

Be warned! Once you get rid of all of the clutter in your life,  you do have to be purposeful because nature abhors a vacuum. What does this mean? Nature doesn’t like an empty space.

So you have to be really intentional even after you’ve decluttered your space(s). Assign a purpose to that space, otherwise, the empty room will be filled with stuff again.

So how do you get intentional about an empty space? Give the room a specific purpose

The empty newly de-cluttered room can be your prayer room or corner, or your meditation room.

This can help to keep the room clutter free and stay decluttered.

Ramp up the quality of your life by getting rid of all of the non-serving clutter surrounding you.