Lifestyle/Life Lesson

Decluttering Tips For Everyone

A handy guide to eradicating those items you think you need but really don’t.

When did you last have a good clearout? Getting rid of things in our home is always overwhelming, because of the emotional attachment involved. Think about it, the soft toys we cuddle as toddlers, to gifts from loved ones who have passed away. We believe these should find a place in our home, but do they really?

In the UK, the average household keeps about £514 of unwanted items in the house. That amounts to £32.7 billion as a nation. That is huge. It is time to declutter, leaving you more space to enjoy as well is good for your mental health.

Decluttering Is Good For Your Health

Getting rid of unwanted items has been proven to be good for our health. Imagine if a member of the house suffers from asthma or allergy, it is easier to clean up areas you might not be able to get to before if you have a clearout. The clean-up will definitely reduce the build-up of dust and rodent infestation, mildew and or mould. These can irritate the lungs or trigger an attack.

Bag it or bin it. As a nation, we spend 110 days of our lives looking for lost objects in the house.🙄

Having a good spring clean is like an exercise really, vacuuming, dusting and mobbing the floor can burn about 80 calories, and will help you sleep well. Research indicates that there is a link between quality sleep and the level of clutter in the home. And we must remember that lack of quality sleep is linked to high levels of cardiovascular illness, notably high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke and heart diseases.

‘’Fifty-six per cent of UK homes have rooms that are unusable because of clutter’’ Response Source😗

There is this saying that a tidy house equals a tidy mind. People who clutter their living spaces rarely have a restful and restorative mind, and vice versa. Research indicates that people with cluttered houses have higher levels of cortisol, the stress hormone.

“Physical clutter can be a way to hide what you don’t want to face — unfulfilled dreams, broken promises, or painful experiences from the past. Be gentle with yourself when you de-clutter. As you handle each item, quietly say a prayer, let it go, and then move on. Trust that if you need the item, it will come back to you in another form at the proper time.” Eleanor Brownn, The Other Serenity Prayer: Meditations on Self-Kindness😘

This means, their messy abode is making them anxious, and being surrounded by clutter can make it difficult to process information on time. This can lead to frustration, and tasks are put off, leading to procrastination.

Five Stress-Free Ways To Declutter

Focus on one small area at a time — Do not overwhelm yourself with wanting to do too much at once. You must do a thorough clearout, by sorting out, discarding what is not necessary, and only keeping what is essential. This is not passing documents or items to another area of the house, only to sort them out later. An example is transferring clutter from one area to another, say from a bedroom to the garage.

Be rigorous — with your sorting. You must be firm, knowing what is really essential. Remember that clutters pile up because of what we think we need but really don’t. When did you last wear that elegant black dress you wore on a date with your ex? You do not want to throw it away, (or give it to a charity) because you want to keep the memory alive. Do you really have to?

‘’Sixty-eight per cent of UK motorists cannot fit their cars into their garages because of the junk in the garage.’’😍

This is the time to put emotions aside and do a thorough clearout. Wellbeing experts tell us to get rid of items we have not used for six months. They say we will probably not use them again. Ask yourself, why you are still keeping such items in your house.

Work as a team — especially if you do not live alone. Getting rid of items from other members of your family can cause a lot of dissension. So get them involved, and let each member sort out his/her own junk. This will bring peace in the end. I agree that it can be difficult for children who want to keep their logo toys and games. It is best to keep these away in a locked cupboard until they are mature enough to really know that don’t need them. Children can suffer emotionally if their favourite toys are discarded.

Ensure you know where each item you want to keep is stored for easy retrieval.

Fifty per cent of our struggle with organising our wardrobes due to sentimental attachment to items.🤣

Guard your wallet — It is easy to have a clearout and start piling up again. Remember that if an item is reduced to a pound from one hundred pounds, and you don’t need it, that one pound is a waste. Do not attempt to fill up the space you have created with reduced items that are not valuable to you in the long run. That bad habit has defeated the purpose of a clearout in the first instance.

Do a yard sale — You can raise a sizeable cash by organising a yard sale for your junk. Some households have up to twenty wristwatches, which can easily be flunked. Get professional valuation for those items you think might be worth it, so that you don’t shortchange yourself. Give to charity stores or people you think need them. Just give them away or bin them.

A related post by the same author:

The Takeaways

• “Enjoy the peace of Nature and declutter your inner world.” Amit Ray, Mindfulness Living in the Moment — Living in the Breath
• “The first step in crafting the life you want is to get rid of everything you don’t.” Joshua Becke
• “If we want more healing and peace in the world, let us each start with our homes, our relationships, our mindsets, and ourselves.” Lisa J. Shultz, Lighter Living: Declutter. Organize. Simplify.
• “The mindless accumulation of vast mountains of stuff is unforgivably dumb. Mindful curation of meaningful possessions can be a great source of joy.” Richard Meadows
• “We don’t realize how excess stuff draws on our energy until it’s removed.” Mary Vraa, PopUpPurge(TM) Release Midlife Clutter & Reclaim Inner Clarity

DISCLAIMER

Although great research has gone into this post to give the true and genuine substance to it, nevertheless it does not still represent professional advice in any way. Please consult your professional expert about any concerns that you have. It is therefore given for readers’ interest and entertainment only. Thank you.😑

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