30 Day Anxiety Challenge, Day 9: Take 20 Minutes to De-Clutter One Room
Today is Day 9! You are causing right along on your way to completing the 30 Day Anxiety Challenge! I am confident that the Day 8 Challenge was beneficial to you as you learned about how nature can help with anxiety and panic. Don’t forget to mark off your success from Day 8 on your Anxiety Challenge Tracker.
Now, let’s get started with Day 9 of learning how to manage our anxiety and panic!
DAY 9 CHALLENGE: Take 20 Minutes To Declutter One Room
How To Meet Todays Goal:
Get a timer or use the timer on your phone and set it for 20 minutes. You will choose one area in your home to de clutter as much as you can in that 20 minutes. For every single item that is cluttering the space, Decide whether to trash it, put it away or donate it.
How It Helps Anxiety:
When a room, office or home is filled with clutter, it is literally bombarding your mind with triggers that stress you out. You walk into a space and there are tens or even hundreds of things subconsciously sending signals to your brain. The biggest one is the fact that you know that the space is cluttered, which itself is stressful. Then there are all the reminders of things you never started and the things you stopped doing.
You walk into the space and subconsciously, that pile of bills on the desk reminds you that you owe money. That tax form sits next to the bills, subconsciously telling you that you still haven’t made that appointment with the accountant. In the corner sits that broken picture frame that reminds you that you never fixed it or purchased a new one. All of these things add up to a constant reminder of stress every time you even walk by that room. Combined with all of the other things that cause us stress, you can feel that blood pressure rising and anxiety lies just around the corner.
Decluttering actually helps to relieve anxiety and panic. By taking the 20 minutes to declutter as much as you can, you are chipping away further on potential anxiety and panic.
Wrap-Up:
We know that disorganization and clutter can lead to anxiety. By giving yourself 20 minutes to organize and declutter as much as you can in that time frame, you are alleviating a great number of subconscious stressors in your life.
Join us in the private Facebook group for support of others doing the 30 Day Anxiety Challenge.
Additional Resources:
Article: Why Mess Causes Stress (Psychology Today)
Article: The Link Between Disorganization, Depression and Anxiety (Psych Central)
Explore Further:
BOOK: – The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing – Marie Kondō
Disclaimer: KyleMcMahon.me / Kyle2U.com does not endorse or provide any medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition and cannot be substituted for the advice of physicians, licensed professionals, or therapists who are familiar with your specific situation. Consult a licensed medical professional or call 911 if you are in need of immediate assistance.
