How Clutter Affects You

Most people have no idea how much their clutter affects them. You may actually fondly believe yours to be an asset, or at least a potential asset, after it has been sorted through and organized. It is only when you start clearing it out that you will realize how much better you feel without it. Here are some effects to watch for:

Having Clutter Can Make You Feel Tired and Lethargic
Most people who have clutter say they can’t find the energy to begin to clear it. They constantly feel tired. But the stagnant energy that stacks up around clutter actually causes tiredness and lethargy. Clearing it frees up the energy in your home and releases new vitality in your body.

Having Clutter can Keep You in the Past
When all your available space is filled with clutter, there is no room for anything new to come into your life. Your thoughts tend to dwell in the past, and you feel bogged down with problems that have dogged you for some time. Clearing your clutter allows you to begin to deal with your problems and move forward. You have to release the past to create a better tomorrow.

Having Clutter Can Affect Your Body Weight
A curious fact I have noticed over the years is that people who have lots of clutter in their homes are often overweight. I believe this is because both body fat and clutter are forms of self-protection. By building layers of fat or clutter around yourself, you hope to cushion yourself against the shocks of life, and particularly against emotions you have difficulty handling. It gives you the illusion of being able to control things and prevent them from affecting you too deeply. But this is an illusion.

Having Clutter Can Confuse You
When you live surrounded by clutter, it is impossible to have clarity about what you are doing in your life. When you clear it, you get fewer colds, you can think more clearly, and life decisions become easier. Being clear of clutter is one of the greatest aids I know to discovering and manifesting the life you want.

Having Clutter Can Affect the Way People Treat You
People treat you the way you treat yourself. So if you value yourself and look after yourself, people will treat you well. If you allow the junk to mount up around you, you may attract people who mistreat you in some way because subconsciously you will feel that it is what you deserve.

Having Clutter Can Make You Feel Ashamed
Perhaps you have reached the stage where your home is so cluttered and such a mess that you are ashamed to invite people over and positively panic if anyone turns up unannounced. You can live in lonely isolation with your junk, but wouldn’t you prefer to have a good clear-out, repair your self-esteem, and regenerate your social life with confidence?

Read more: Spirit, Feng Shui & Organizing, Self-Help

Adapted from Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui, by Karen Kingston. Copyright (c)1999 by Karen Kingston. Reprinted by permission of Broadway Books.
Adapted from Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui, by Karen Kingston.

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

LILING O.

9:14AM PDT on Apr 11, 2013

Guess no one likes clutter at all! It is really a mess and it can be very annoying!

The best way is to get oneself motivated and get started tidying and arranging things up,before it accumulates lots

April 11
send a green star

Val M.

1:47AM PST on Mar 7, 2013

Thanks.

March 7
send a green star

Tammie C.

8:04AM PST on Feb 13, 2013

already forwarded it a friend of mine...I hope she reads and understands it. she suffers from obesity, depression, lethargy. and 'lives' in the past.
it actually does become clearer after you de-clutter. Ive done half the house, including my closet. I feel less stressed when i get home at the end of the day.

February 13
send a green star

susan b.

9:39PM PST on Feb 8, 2013

Clutter makes me feel good, but it has to be organized clutter. I like a lot of things around me, otherwise the house looks so boring.. It's hard to dust, but I love looking at a beautiful room filled w/ my memoirs and thing I love to look at. I've got to be careful when it comes to my clothes tho..too easy to over buy and collect :(.

February 8
send a green star

Duane B.

7:45AM PST on Jan 2, 2013

Thank you for sharing.

January 2
send a green star

Bethany M.

7:30AM PST on Dec 12, 2012

Thank you.

December 12
send a green star

Penny A.

1:13PM PST on Dec 5, 2012

I cant live with clutter.I have an empty box for goodwill & one for recycling in my closet to get rid of things I dont use.

December 5
send a green star

Susan S.

9:25AM PDT on Oct 23, 2012

So true.

October 23
send a green star

Danuta W.

12:47AM PDT on Oct 20, 2012

Thanks for the information

October 20
send a green star

Tia P.

5:55AM PDT on Jun 15, 2012

Clutter is waste. Truly less is better. Take only what you need and what truly brings you happiness. the little things. Cleanliness and order is a joy for many!!! Great article!!!