Do you feel like you live in chaos? Do you feel like you are out of control and so is your home? Maybe you have so much going on that you don’t have the energy to pick up your house and put things away. Perhaps you are depressed or exhausted and just don’t have the time to declutter. Don’t worry, the first step to change is realizing that there is a problem or that the status quo is no longer working for you.
I also want to acknowledge that there are people who are comfortable with the clutter or they like the clutter. If it doesn’t bother you or the people you live with, then it isn’t a problem.
Perhaps if your mind has less clutter, you will have the emotional energy to work on decluttering your home. Here are some things that clutter the mind and how to tackle them.
How to declutter your mind
You focus on worst-case scenarios
This can take up a lot of your emotional energy. You ruminate on the situation and think the worst possible outcome will be true. Realistically how many times does this happen? I’m not going to deny that it is a possibility, but most of the times the things we worry about never even happen. As a result you have wasted hours in your head for nothing.
A way to work on this is to ask your self, what are some other possible outcomes? Is it possible that it will turn out better that you even thought possible?
You can also ask yourself if you have control over the situation. If you cannot control it, tell yourself to let it go.
It may also help to write down what you can control (i.e how to respond) about the situation and what you cannot control.
Spend less time on social media to declutter your mind
It is so easy to get caught up in social media. This just adds to our own pressures. We see people having so much fun, on trips, at parties, or with family. It can look as if everyone’s life is perfect and we are the only ones struggling. Maybe you compare yourself to these people and assume they are better looking than you, more fun, wealthier, etc.
If this is the case it may help to limit your social media. Set an amount of time you allow yourself to look at it per day. Or tell yourself that you won’t go on social media until you have done what you need for the day.
A second way to battle this is to allow your self a certain amount of time on social media as a reward for doing something, or set a timer and use it as a break. When the timer goes off, you shut down social media.
Finally you could also shut down social media all together.
Mindfulness meditation
This is a wonderful way to declutter our minds. A simple way to do this is to focus on your breathing. Set a timer for 8 minutes. Breathe deeply in and out. Focus on the rise and fall of the breath. Let your thoughts come and go. Do not judge them, just notice them.
Journaling to declutter your mind
Write down whatever is on your mind. This is a great way to get your thoughts out of your mind. There is something about using the physical act of writing to help you get from your emotional brain to your logical brain.
Remember this does not have to include complete sentences. No one will see this other than you. There can be spelling errors. This is just writing down the thoughts that are going through your head.
Guided Imagery
This is another great way to declutter your mind. There are many different forms of guided imagery. One of my favorite ones is for your special place. I’ll share the basics of it with you and you can click here to listen to one on line.
First start with focusing on your breathing in and out, in and out. Then imagine a special place. This can be a place you have been before or some place you’d like to be. You are warm and safe in this place. What do you see, smell, hear, taste or feel? Spend time on each of the 5 senses to really soak in your surroundings. Doing so will help you to imagine that you are actually in that spot. This can feel like a mental vacation and most people find it relaxing.
Focus on what you have vs. don’t have
I always tell people whatever you look for you will find. For example, if you think about your faults or the faults of others you will find them. When you focus on the things people have that you don’t, you will feel bad.
On the flip side, if you focus on the good of other people, you will find it. You will feel warmer towards that person and it can improve your relationship.
If you focus on the things you do have and appreciate you will feel better than if you focus on what is missing.
These are just a few tools to declutter your mind. There are so many others. If this is something you struggle with, give me a call at 713-304-6554 and we can work on getting you to a better place emotionally.
Next week I will focus on decluttering your home as a way to reduce chaos and further declutter your mind.
Take care,
Debbie
