VeryWellMind: Spring Cleaning: How Decluttering Your Home Might Help You Declutter Your Mind

"This process—widely known as spring cleaning—is not only good for our space but also for our mental health. “Our mental health is influenced by multiple factors, and our physical environment is one of these areas that directly impact our emotional well-being,” says Kristin M. Papa, LCSW, a psychotherapist and certified wellness coach. “Our external environment at times can be a reflection of our inner self, and thus spring cleaning or a ‘reset’ of our living space can also help us have a fresh outlook in other areas of our life.”

Spring cleaning is already a widespread practice. In a recent survey from the American Cleaning Institute, 78% of respondents reported that they or someone in their household does a spring cleaning at least once a year.

How Decluttering Your Physical Space May Help Your Mental Health

“There is a symbolic level to spring cleaning as most take this opportunity to do a deep clean and get rid of things that no longer serve them, which also helps lighten and brighten their psyche as they spring into the spring season,” says Dr. Holly Schiff, a licensed clinical psychologist at Jewish Family Services of Greenwich.

The act of spring cleaning may also directly lower your anxiety—only in part because clothes are no longer covering your favorite reading chair. “Oftentimes, hoarding behavior—or even much milder, just keeping things like clothes that don’t fit us—is a direct link with anxiety,” says CodyAnn McGovern, a psychiatric physician assistant and former social worker.

It can also bring a sense of control into your life. According to McGovern, reorganizing and choosing what goes and what stays where in your house gives you a sense of agency in your life. Whereas being out of control can bring anxiety, these actions can tame it.

This feeling of organization and control over your life can be especially critical after experiencing years of a pandemic in which so much felt up to chance, notes Schiff. She adds that the act of cleaning itself can provide a repetitive rhythm that mimics mindfulness practices and calms you down."

Read the full article here!

Reflection:

Have you done your spring cleaning yet?

#SpringCleaning #Decluttering #MentalHealth