For many people decluttering is an overwhelming challenge especially for those such as Selina with the emotional and personal hurdles that come into play. Selina, a busy mom, has a hard time letting go of things and keeping her home organized. She attributes this barrier to the pressures of parenthood and the economic instability she experienced as a child. These three factors overlap and work together, greatly compounding the emotional experience of letting go.
As mental health experts such as Dr. Melissa Norberg and Dr. Grisham emphasize, clutter is more than a nuisance — it’s a symptom. These can range from hoarding to obsessive-compulsive disorders. Selina’s journey through this rich emotional landscape is one of fierce determination. She’s come up with practical strategies to keep her decluttered, knowing that the process is going to take a while.
Factors Influencing Decluttering Struggles
Through Selina’s story, we learn how personal life experiences can make decluttering more challenging. The increased clutter that comes with the addition of children to a household can pile up quickly, creating a crisis-inducing space. Her experiences growing up with economic precarity instilled in her an intense value of their material ties. She views these things as critical anchors of normalcy in her world.
Join us as Dr. Norberg dives deep into hoarding disorder, unearthing some truly captivating discoveries. She learns emotional attachment to things plays a huge role in why people struggle to part. “You’re going through your stuff, and then you’re like, ‘Oh, I remember when I bought this, or I remember when I used to wear this,’” she explains. These memories can produce fear to let things go, because an object can represent their most important relationships or a crucial step in their life journey.
To offset these issues, Selina recently introduced an intentional plan to declutter. She understands that it’s important to prioritize as much time as possible for deep work. This strategy allows her to channel her focus where it’s most needed. This purposeful planning not only combats the sense of being drowned in disorder, but can add efficiency after a stressful day.
Practical Strategies for Decluttering
Selina’s journey is filled with inspiring examples, and practical strategies that will make the decluttering process less painful. One effective approach is to have a friend come over and give dispassionate advice on what should stay and what should go. This outside view can help relieve the emotional burden of making a bad decision and bring a clearer lens to the situation.
Selina stresses the importance of only holding on to what can fit in the space you have to devote to them. I have an organizing system in place immediately after the entry door when I walk in the house. I realized that to some extent, I would just unload everything right on the threshold when I came through the door. In doing so, rather than resorting to supplemental storage options, she keeps her things in check.
Dr. Norberg provides some insight into the important role personal values play in decluttering. She recommends focusing on what’s really important to a person can help make more informed and thoughtful decisions with their belongings. When an issue becomes important enough for you to devote time and resources towards, hang it up on your office wall to see every day, she counsels. She concludes with the power of maintaining physical signs of all good memories.
The Emotional Aspect of Clutter
The psychological impact of clutter goes beyond surface annoyance and can impact a person’s self-esteem and mental health. As Dr. Grisham explains, cultural imperatives tell us that being a minimalist means you’re a better person and more hygienic. This stigma only adds pressure to the people who are trying to live a more intentional, less cluttered life.
People tend to believe that the more of a minimalist you are or the more clean and organized you keep your home, the better person you are. That misconception is not accurate. She emphasizes the role social media and pop culture play in creating an unattainable standard of perfection. Finally, she inspires us to cast aside the boundaries imposed by others’ low expectations.
She understands that her connection to these particular objects speaks to her hopefulness and her potential. As she confesses, “I really just can’t let it go. That would be me surrendering to no longer being able to realize my dream of becoming a circus artist one day. This epiphany underscores the ways our hopes and dreams, our very sense of self can get intertwined with our stuff.
Given these nuances, Dr. Norberg argues for a nonjudgmental approach that focuses on addressing cluttered objects. And then those things you can meet with acceptance, accommodation and kind of problem solving” she describes.
