Decluttering for Mental Health: 5 Tips

Heather Rafanello, MSW, LCSW

@GrowingMindsetTherapy 

*Important NOTE: When we say ‘get rid of’ we always recommend having a trash pile, a donate pile, and maybe even a sell pile (this can be on Facebook, or a neighborhood garage sale). One person’s trash might be another’s treasure!*

Decluttering your space can have a positive impact on your mental health in a variety of ways, including: improving your ability to focus, increasing your feelings of confidence and self-esteem, improving relationships, and improving your overall lifestyle and well-being.

Preparing to Declutter

Before we get into the tips, it’s important to note that decluttering can be emotional, exhausting, and overwhelming for a variety of reasons. In this article, you will find a lot of tips for how to declutter, and what areas of your life are important to declutter, so it’s important to note that this WILL in fact take time. Our team of mental health therapists always recommends creating a plan. Get intentional about why decluttering is important for you and your mental health. Keeping this goal in mind can help us to stay motivated, and work through emotional hurdles that might get in the way.

There’s no particular order that we recommend following, but we do encourage you to think about what approach is most appealing to you. Would you prefer to tackle the biggest challenge first? Is it easiest for you to start small and work your way up? We don’t see a right or wrong answer, rather do what will be most beneficial for you.

Declutter your Physical Space

• Get rid of things that no longer serve a purpose in your life, or that no longer bring you joy

• Once you’ve eliminated excess clutter, think about the purpose of this space. We recommend creating a plan before starting to organize because it can easily become overwhelming. This step helps us know if/when we’re getting distracted so that we can stay on course. 

• Organize accordingly

• Pro-tip: consider the “1 in 1 out rule” which means for every 1 item that you bring into your home, you have to get rid of 1

Decluttering the Mind

• Mental clutter is (in our biased opinion) one of the worst kinds of clutter, yet one that so often goes unnoticed. 

• What thought patterns weigh you down? Is there any pressure, disbelief, negative self-talk, stressors that you can work on letting go of?

• Practice mindfulness, or as we call it: paying attention on purpose.

• Prioritize forms of self-care that help increase your present focused awareness, such as journaling, meditation, spending time outside, etc.

Declutter your Relationships

• Everyone is talking about boundaries and boundary setting these days so this tip might be old news. Take inventory over the relationships in your life. Relationships are emotional investments, so be sure that you’re investing time and energy into relationships that give you a good ROI (return on investment). 

• The opposite is also true here, in that you’ll want to spend less time, or limit time with people who are energy takers, or energy drainers.

• Be sure that you’re aware of your social battery because this looks different for everyone. Ensure that you are dedicating time for true self-care, and recharging.

Digital Decluttering

• The dreaded inbox: grab a coffee, or glass of water and sit down at your computer, tablet, or phone. We all have different preferences, so whether you want to use this time to organize your inbox using labels and folders, or simply purge and delete old emails, decluttering your inbox is an important task. Pro-tip: Consider using this time to unsubscribe from emails that are no longer relevant to you to help prevent future clutter.

  • If on your computer, close out all other tabs

  • If on your device, consider putting it on Do Not Disturb to avoid distracting notifications

• Files, photos, etc.

  • Similar to the above steps, filter through files and photos on your devices and consider an organizational strategy that will work for you. Whether you’re re-organizing, or deleting, this can really help us stay on track and feel more organized when starting a new year.

Financial Decluttering

• As each of the above steps has encouraged: we invite you to start this step by taking inventory of your spending habits. Tracking your spending is an easy place to start, and this will give you valuable insights into your spending patterns, and help you better understand where your money is going.  

• Cancel any unused subscriptions, look for services that are upcharging or adding convenience fees

• Small changes can have a big impact:

  • Consider cooking at home instead of ordering out

  • Make your coffee at home instead of buying one

  • Walk, carpool, or take public transportation when possible instead of a ride share service

• Some find the 50/30/20 budgeting rule to be helpful. This means of your total income, 50% should be spent on ‘needs’ or essentials such as food, shelter, etc. 30% of your income can be spent on wants, meaning activities, clothing, social time, etc. The final 20% can be put into savings or investments. We’re not financial planners, so please understand that this is simply a tool to add to your toolbox. Use it if it helps, toss it if it doesn’t!

Feeling exhausted already? Us too! Decluttering can have many positive impacts, but it also does require time, effort, and energy. We invite you to notice what stood out to you while reading this article, and if nothing else, simply consider what we’ve shared. Then you can create a plan. Starting anywhere is still starting, and for that we’re proud of you!

DISCLAIMER: This article is not intended to treat, or diagnose and medical conditions, nor is it a replacement for mental health or medical treatment. If you or someone you know is in need of clinical support, our team is able to provide therapy services to those in NJ and FL. Contact us to learn more. If you or someone you know is in need of immediate support please contact emergency services. U.S. Mental health crisis line: dial 988 ; medical emergency dial 911

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Resources: 

• Mental Health Benefits of Decluttering: Medically Reviewed by Dan Brennan, MD on October 25, 2021 Written by WebMD Editorial Contributors

• Instagram @LiveYourImpossible post Dec. 10, 2023: How to go minimalist in 2024. Declutter 5 life areas: