Clutter and depression go together like peas and carrots in a veggie soup the devil cooked.
We talk at length on this blog about how decluttering can improve your mental health, like these 6 actually transformative ways minimalism helps depression, but how do you even begin that process when just getting out of bed in the morning feels like a losing battle?
Well, I’ve been there. Here are five things I did to climb out of the hole.
1. Prioritizing my physical health
Depression makes everything unreasonably difficult. It also makes us feel like we’re not worth the effort. That one-two punch is enough to keep so many people in an endless loop of feeling bad and feeling worse.
One way to kick this cycle is to prioritize our physical health. It’s something we can CHOOSE to do–unlike “fixing” our mental health–like, what does that even mean?
Taking care of ourselves physically is MUCH simpler. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. I started so, so, so small here, with a very simple morning routine: I went for a walk.
At first, it was just around the block. If I couldn’t make it around the block, I walked to the corner and back. If I couldn’t do that either, I just sat on my porch. Eventually, I was able to push myself to walk a little further every week. Some days were better, some were worse.
Here’s why this was such a good habit for me to build:
Routine. Any morning routine, even if it’s as simple as mine was, allows you to start your day with momentum. You don’t have to stop and consider what you have to do first. You can just roll into it as your body and mind wake up.
Sunshine. Sun exposure is essential for health and well being. The majority of Americans have a vitamin D deficiency–a vitamin that contributes not only to bone and skin health, but to cognitive function and mood stability. Sun exposure in early morning also helps to steady your circadian rhythm, allowing for more restful sleep and effective recovery.
Fresh air and time in nature. Spending time in nature has been proven again and again to improve your mental, physical, and emotional health.
Nutrition and hydration. I brought a vitamin protein shake on my walk with me, and I didn’t go back inside until I’d finished drinking it. If you’ve been in a deep depression before, you know how hard it can be to get in calories. For a while, this was my only meal of the day… But it was more than I was able to manage previously. And often, when I started the day off like this, I was able to have the energy to keep eating and keep moving. All I promised myself was to finish my protein shake, so it felt manageable. But as a bonus, it often gave me the energy to keep making healthy choices throughout the day.
Movement. And the obvious one–motion is lotion. Getting a little movement in my stagnant day helped immensely.
Here’s the thing though…at first, I HATED!!!! taking these walks. They were torture. Some days, it took everything in me to get it done. Looking back on that, it feels unreal that something so simple was such a hard thing for me. Depression is incredibly, outlandishly tough. But we’re tougher.
If you’re stuck in bed, here’s what I want you to do every morning this week: Sit on your porch and drink a bottle of water. That’s enough.
2. Getting out of the mess
Getting out of the house when you’re depressed can feel impossible, but when your home is cluttered and dirty, you’re likely not healing. Clutter makes depression worse.
You might need some time out of it, like I did.
This can mean spending the afternoon lying in the yard instead of on the couch. It can mean renting a hotel for the weekend. It can mean visiting a supportive family member or friend for a few days–or longer.
If you can’t heal in your current environment, and you can’t change that environment quite yet, maybe you can move yourself out of it for a while.
3. “Cheating”
When we’re in an emergency state–such as when we desperately need time, space, and breathing room to heal–but our house is claustrophobic and oppressive, we can take a few shortcuts.
Emergency decluttering strategies to try:
Shove everything into one room. If possible, make contained areas of clutter. If you have too much clutter for that, make a contained DECLUTTERED area–ideally wherever you spend the most time. So shove everything into the spare room. Don’t sort it, don’t organize it. Just get it out of sight.
Declutter from bed. You don’t even have to get up, friend. Declutter your side table or another surface you can reach from bed. Or bring a stack of papers or a box to the couch with you. Sort while you watch your favorite show.
Declutter as you move through your day. Decluttering doesn’t have to be a whole event. When you open your kitchen drawer for a spoon to stir your coffee, grab that handful of McDonald’s straws that have been rotting in the back for six years and throw them out. Then close the drawer and stir your coffee.
Use this checklist. I made a simple checklist you can use to get your depression room functional and healthy. Take it at your own pace–don’t worry about doing it all in one day. It’s mobile-friendly, so you don’t have to print it out. Just tap the checkboxes to mark them off when you’ve completed the task.
4. Going as slowly as humanly possible
The effort it takes between a day where you don’t declutter versus a day where you declutter ONE item…is not a very big difference in energy expenditure.
So declutter one item today.
You don’t have to do it all at once. You don’t even have to do a noticeable amount of it at once. We can slowly dig ourselves out of this, one little step at a time.
I love Dana K White’s method. While she doesn’t recommend it for folks struggling with their mental health, I find it’s SO helpful for those cases. Her method is as follows:
- Pick up one item and ask yourself where you’d look for it if you needed it.
- If you think of a place immediately, go put it there. You’re done decluttering, good work.
- If you can’t think of a place for it, consider decluttering it.
- Repeat, if you want.
Instead of sorting things into piles, pulling a bunch of stuff out, etc., you’re just focusing on one item at a time and finding a home for it. If you want to do another item after, you can. If not, just go about your day!
This method is totally approachable, and it ensures that your house is ACTUALLY getting a little bit better every time. You’re not making a huge mess or over-committing yourself. You’re just getting things in order, one little piece at a time. Guaranteed progress.
5. Making cleaning and decluttering an act of self-care
Sometimes a simple mindset shift can change everything. When you clean (or declutter), what’s your internal monologue sound like? Is it kinda like:
My house is such a disaster.
I don’t have the energy for this.
I’m not even making any progress.
I’ll never be able to keep my home clean.
What if we stopped talking to ourselves like a disappointed parent and started talking to ourselves like a loving parent?
I deserve to have my living space clean.
I’m so glad I have a home to maintain.
I don’t have to do it all right now.
Think of your future self with fondness. You’re doing this for them.
Decluttering With Depression
I’ve been so low energy that I couldn’t get out of my bed for days at a time. I’ve struggled with depression, anxiety, physical disabilities, chronic fatigue, and more. When you’re trying to heal, the whole house screaming at you and fighting you every step of the way isn’t going to help. I want to make things easier for you.
When it comes to tackling the overwhelming task of decluttering while mentally and physically struggling, I’m unfortunately an expert. My wisdom is hard-earned, so I want to put it to good use. That’s why I compiled my experience and knowledge into a digestible format that puts healing first. Try it out.
