- A study found that nearly 10% of America’s population struggle with Depression. It is a significant mood disorder that affects an estimated 3.8% of the worldwide population.
- Approximately 280 million people in the world suffer from it. In addition, it is widely spreading among teens and young adults all over the world.
- Depression limits your ability to function efficiently in your daily life. Symptoms include loss of interest in daily activities, aggravated and persistent feelings of sadness and low self-esteem, and feelings of worthlessness and hopelessness.
- It can descend people into life-threatening circumstances and even death if not treated. Nearly 700,000 per annum lose their lives to suicide. It is the fourth most significant cause of the end of 15-29-year-olds.
Are you in a crisis?
Please call or text the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988
Or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 74171
Manage Mental Health while Decluttering
When it comes to motivation, all those so-called productive social media blogs, influencers, and youtube gurus will tell you to push yourself and get things done. Social media will push you to the extent of chronic stress, which is a significant factor in aggravating chronic Depression, Insecurity, and Anxiety. When decluttering, make sure you tackle it in the best of your spirits or at least when you’re mentally okay.
People do not make the best decisions when Depressed. Poor decision-making may lead to letting go of things you might need or feel emotionally attached to. When you get out of your blues, whether chronic or episodic, you might understand the sentimental or physical value of items you disposed of and might regret doing so. Take a deep breath, and listen to your body and your mind.
To get organized or to accomplish decluttering is not always relocating or disposing of certain items that you think are crowding your house. It is about redesigning and creating the life you have always wanted for yourself. Your struggles or your routine are comparable to none. Design yourself a flexible pattern that is much easier to keep up with, especially when your energy levels are taking a fall.
If your surroundings do not look like someone’s Instagram pictures, know it’s alright. Nothing that is being shown or told on social media is always accurate.
Create a Self-Care Routine
Accepting your struggles is the first step toward the bigger picture because Depression is real. Design yourself a self-care routine and assign yourself smaller tasks, to begin with.
Many think self-care only includes going to a spa or lighting a scented candle in the bathroom. Don’t get us wrong, because they feel pretty nice. But realistically speaking, you need to genuinely take care of yourself because one lifetime is all you have.
Sleeping, eating, and engaging in physical activity will give you a headstart. You will eventually find the motivation to clean up your house. Small changes in your patterns are the keys to organizing and order.
Handle Judgment During Decluttering
Cut off judgemental people, so you don’t have to get shamed about something you did not do to yourself and have no control over. If, by any chance, a bunch of judgemental people come by your place and pick their noses looking at the house or you, know that they have never put their feet in your shoe and are ignorant.
Depression-shaming vulnerable people should be stopped no matter what. To anyone reading this, imagine yourself going through these blues; imagine there is physical clutter all over the house. You have to cook, clean, and take care of the family’s basic needs when you can’t muster up the energy to do either.
In a situation like this, people tend to make the most critical choices that cannot be skipped, for example, feeding the family over cleaning up the bathroom. So stop shaming someone for options they could not make.
Start with Small Habits
Start by changing one small habit at a time. You can’t possibly get rid of a life-long worth of items that add up to cluttering in a day or a week. After returning from work, let’s say you toss your coat on the sofa instead of hanging it in the coat closet and your purse and miscellaneous items on the kitchen table.
Work on changing a negative pattern until you break the tiny vicious cycle you keep repeating daily and add to the clutter. Hang your coat and put your purse in the closet right after entering the house. Please resist the urge to toss things around. Take shoes off, put them in the closet, and wear slippers after coming home.
Instead of cluttering up the kitchen counters while cooking, place the dirty bowls and dishes into the dishwasher and basin, and turn on the dishwasher when you are done. Someday you will realize that your home does not clutter up as it used to if you make these small changes in your pile of usual to-dos.
Work on Small Areas
Many of us get overwhelmed by decluttering, and it’s hard to get started when you don’t have a direction. Mark your calendar for specific days and things you want to get done in one week.
Let’s say you will sort out your drawer on Monday, rest on Tuesday, and Wednesday, do the wardrobe. Assign one small task to be done daily, let alone the days you do not have energy for. This will contribute to tidying up, and you might get many things done in one week.
Things become manageable if you work on a smaller area and slowly build up the momentum instead of taking all the over your shoulders.
Preserve Sentimental Items
Things that once had emotional or sentimental value in your life should never go through the process of keeping or giving away when you are depressed. Make a separate box for that kind of stuff.
You don’t have to decide whether to keep it or give it away because that certain thing might not spark joy in your blues, resulting in you giving it away. But when you get out of your blues, you will reflect on that moment and regret disposing of it. And the blues might start kicking in again because of the regret. So please keep all of them.
Decide What to Let Go
The items you don’t have any emotional attachment to should be decluttered into the categories like keeping, donating and selling, etc. The best way to decide what to keep and let go is to overview what you have not touched or used in the last six months.
Let go of all the stuff you planned on utilizing but never did, let alone the valuables and important things, for instance, that facial cleanser you bought from Sephora and never used! Items to be donated should be appropriately packed according to relevant categories. Similarly, sell other things through thrift stores like The goodwill and Salvation Army.
Eliminate Procrastination
Mark Twain said:
“If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest first.”
It is a productivity technique often helpful for avid procrastinators like us. A frog symbolizes a chore or job that needs to be done. So it would help if you started as early as possible to get the job done. And if your day involves doing multiple tasks and chores, do the hardest first, early in the morning. The term ‘Biggest frog’ symbolizes the most challenging task that needs to be done.
Mel Robbins The 5 Second Rule is as follows: If you have the instinct to act on a goal, you must physically move within 5 seconds, or your brain will kill it.
The moment you feel the willfulness or desire to act on a goal or a commitment, use the Rule, or you will keep postponing it forever. So you want to declutter your drawer? 5,4,3,2,1…Go!
Get Rid of Clutter By Hiring House Help
If it is not in your budget to hire someone to clean for you daily, hire a house helper. Appoint them for one day of the week when they can clean up and declutter for you. Let them know what to do every week. You should most probably hire someone for cleaning and laundry.
It will help you stay on track and work on decluttering when your house is cleaned weekly. Be ruthless and clean your house on days when you have the energy for it; otherwise, leave it for the house helper.
Try out CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)
CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) is a form of psychotherapy often found helpful for people suffering from Melancholia. CBT is a talking session with your therapist to determine your toxic thinking and acting behaviours and how they hurt your emotional and mental well-being.
It helps patients with anxiety to channel their feelings, emotions, and thoughts into a more positive way to tackle negative feelings. Depression is a mental illness that can be treated under the care of a specialist. There are many virtual options for psychotherapy and CBT if you are sceptical about it. Talk to your therapist about your procrastination and cleaning patterns, so they can help you cope with it better.
Many therapists mail you weekly reports about sessions you have with them. A study published in the journal Behavioural therapy concluded that several students with severe symptoms of Melancholia were found to do better after eight weeks of CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.)
Questions to ask Yourself when Decluttering
- Is this item worth owning/having? Will I need it tomorrow or some other day?
- Did this item ever make me happy? Does it still spark joy? Is it crucial for my happiness?
- If I ever shift the house, would the cost of keeping the item justify the cost of moving the thing along?
- Am I having any difficulty letting the item go? Is it because of any attachment or feeling it instils?
- Is the item worth the energy spent on managing, dusting, keeping, or moving it? or should the power be used elsewhere?
- Does this item serve a purpose in my life, and where does it help me?
- Where did the item come from? Why did I keep it? Why do I still have it?
- When was the last time I used this item?
- Am I willing to give up my space to store this item?
- Would I repurchase the item if I let it go? Will I need it if I dispose of it now?
Does Decluttering Help to Reduce Depression?
Getting things in order will help you regain control over life, which, in turn, helps combat symptoms of Melancholia Signs are easier to manage when your life is not spiralling out of control.
1. It Gives Financial Independence
The sense of control over life is heightened when you spend less than you earn and save up. Decluttering will help you overlook the stuff you need and have and not spend mindlessly on things you already have at home. Spending less will ultimately decrease the use of credit cards and accumulating debts.
2. It Boosts Dopamine Levels
If you dust and brush something off your to-do checklist, you will eventually feel motivated to do more every day, as smaller tasks are easy wins and improve your brain functioning with dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter in your brain, also called a happy hormone. It is a “reward centre,” which helps improve memory, movement, motivation, mood, attention, and depression symptoms.
3. It Decreases Cortisol (a stress hormone)
Cortisol levels are found to reduce if the body is engaged in some physical activity and improves sleep. If your sleep schedule is improved, it helps lower the symptoms. Decluttering and cleaning up your house involves light physical activity, if not rigorous.
4. It Increases Focus
The untidy environment or household will distract you from focusing on more important things such as work, friends, and family. Whereas decluttering will shove away the crowd of unnecessary and distracting stuff so you can shift your focus back on things that deserve your attention more and help you stay focused.
5. It Increases Confidence
A feeling of unease will be heightened if your living space is untidy and disorganized. You are likely to forgo any social occasions in a chaotic atmosphere. When you begin the process of organizing your residence progressively, it will give you the assurance to cordially welcome guests into your home. The signs of depression can be lessened through greater socializing, meaningful interactions and contact.
These are some advantages that come when it’s finished eventually. If you have more recommendations, let us know in the comments section below.
