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V
verywellmind.com
article
https://www.verywellmind.com/how-mental-health-and-cleaning-are-connected-509…
Research has shown that living in a cluttered environment increases stress. In the study, young women cared for an infant in either a normal or cluttered environment. While chaos didn't seem to affect mood or responsiveness, physical stress levels were still higher for women in the cluttered homes. Such findings suggest that parents should consider how cleanliness and clutter in the home may impact their stress levels. [...] Additionally, the Anxiety and Depression Association of America indicates that the physical activity of cleaning coupled with the end result of a cleaner home helps reduce stress, feelings of anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Cleaning can also reduce fatigue and improve concentration.
### Cleanliness and Focus [...] Clutter and mess can create more stress and anxiety, but by cleaning, organizing, and reducing the clutter, people are able to take control of their environment and create a more relaxing environment that helps them focus better on the more pressing issues in their lives.
## Benefits of Cleanliness and Decluttering
R
reddit.com
article
https://www.reddit.com/r/Anxiety/comments/15se8s0/does_anyone_else_clean_when…
I clean when my anxiety is bad, I'll deep clean my room and everything else. It just makes me feel better afterwards.
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elevaterecoveryhomes.com
article
https://elevaterecoveryhomes.com/cleaning-as-self-care
When life feels uncertain, cleaning is a tangible action you can manage – it can restore a sense of agency when everything else feels chaotic.
## The Mental Health Benefits of Cleaning
### Reduces Stress and Anxiety
Cluttered spaces can contribute to feelings of overwhelm and anxiety—when your environment is disorganized, your mind tends to feel the same way, and by systematically cleaning and organizing, you can create a sense of order and control, reducing stress levels. [...] The motions are repetitive and often quiet, which can make them feel almost meditative – plus, cleaning can feel like a pause from overstimulation and a way of getting grounded. The physical activity and sense of accomplishment also help lower anxiety levels.
Denver Sober Living · Walk-ins Welcomed
## Structure isn't a restriction. It's what keeps early recovery from falling apart. [...] Ways to make cleaning better:
Play music or podcasts
Light a candle
Open windows for fresh air
Use products with scents you like
Give yourself rewards after
### Involve Others If You Live With People
Don’t carry the burden alone.
Share responsibilities:
Create a chore chart
Rotate tasks weekly
Clean together on weekends
Each person maintains their own space
## When Cleaning Becomes Too Hard
### Mental Health Conditions That Affect Cleaning
N
nuvancehealth.org
news
https://www.nuvancehealth.org/health-tips-and-news/how-clutter-affects-your-b…
If a messy room has ever made you feel anxious or stressed out, you’re not alone — and there’s a biological reason for it. Clutter can trigger a stress response in the body. For example, a study found women who described their homes as “cluttered” had significantly higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol throughout the day. Your brain releases cortisol when you’re under pressure; consistently elevated levels suggest the untidy environment genuinely taxed these women’s brains and bodies. [...] Clutter can also affect your social life and relationships. A messy house may feel unwelcoming — you might dread having friends or family over because you’re ashamed of the clutter. As a result, some people start avoiding social visits altogether to hide their mess. Over time, this can lead to isolation and loneliness.
Video: The surprising effects of loneliness on your brain
## Common causes of clutter [...] We’ve all been there — life gets busy, and before you know it, piles of papers, laundry and countless “I'll put it away later” items start taking over your space. It’s easy to accumulate clutter, both physical — objects around the house — and mental — a jumble of thoughts in your head. The neuroscience of clutter shows it’s more than just a visual problem — clutter can genuinely affect your brain health.
## Common causes of clutter and how it affects your brain
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rightasrain.uwmedicine.org
article
https://rightasrain.uwmedicine.org/life/leisure/cleaning-and-mental-health
However, if you have messy little gremlins ... er, children, at home, or there just aren’t enough hours in the day to stay on top of your housekeeping, your place of peace and calm can sometimes just cause you more stress. That’s right, the state of your house can actually affect your sense of well-being — here’s how you can create a clean and tidy space that’ll help soothe your soul without too much effort.
## So why is clutter so bad? [...] "Our brains don’t really differentiate large existential crisis anxiety from the unfolded laundry on your couch anxiety,” says Browning. “It becomes just kind of these large ambient experiences of anxiety.” [...] This means that to reduce anxiety and improve your well-being, it’s important to figure out the stressors in your life and environment that you do have control over and how you can work on them so that your overall anxiety can go down. Which is where Browning thinks that something like tidying your house can come into play.
O
oxfordcbt.co.uk
article
https://www.oxfordcbt.co.uk/stress-management-cleaning
It is important to look at your environment and think about if you are allowing yourself the best chance to concentrate and focus. If your workspace is filled with items that are not related to the task you are focusing on, you may find it difficult to concentrate. Dirty plates from breakfast, an overflowing bin, piles of laundry or the children’s toys everywhere. These can all raise your stress levels! They all act as visual clues for reminders of things that you are still yet to complete. [...] Clutter and mess can be linked to negative emotions like confusion and tension. Whereas a clean and tidy home leads to positive emotions such as a sense of calm and well-being. By sorting and organising the clutter and mess around you, you can reduce any stress or anxiety you may be feeling and this will help you feel like you are taking control of your life. The physical activity of cleaning combined with the result of a cleaner home helps reduce stress, feelings of anxiety, and depressive [...] Procrastination Self-Assessment
Eating Disorder Self-Assessment
Anxiety Self-Assessment
Depression Self-Assessment
Autism Self-Assessment
ADHD Self-Assessment
### Autism in Toddlers
Online sessions are a flexible alternative to in person sessions and have been proven to be equally as effective.
Anger management
Anxiety
Autism
CBT for ADHD
Depression
Eating Disorders
Low self-esteem
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Panic attacks
Phobias
Physical Health
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pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
official
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11925691
Visually simulated experience of cleaning behavior reduced residual anxiety from a stress-inducing physical scene. The manipulation involved mere visual simulation, with effect sizes (_d_ s = 0.205 and 0.141) in the expected small range by traditional standards (J. Cohen, 1988) and comparable with those in contemporary preregistered between-subjects research (Schäfer & Schwarz, 2019). The effect was observed and replicated on a pictorial measure of anxiety derived from basic emotional [...] of the manipulation check items (how clean the visualized experience felt and how much it involved touching oneself), only clean feelings significantly predicted lower anxiety (β = −0.1215, _SE_ = 0.0353, _t_(295) = −3.437, _p_ = .0007) and lower tension (β = −0.1693, _SE_ = 0.0344, _t_(299) = −4.924, _p_ = 1.41e−06), whereas touch involvement did not significantly predict anxiety (β = 0.0550, _SE_ = 0.0375, _t_(295) = 1.469, _p_ = .1429) and predicted higher tension (β = 0.0759, _SE_ = 0.0369, [...] All statistical tests in the present research were two-tailed. Material, data, and code are available at
## and 1b (Preregistered Replication): Visually Simulated Cleaning Alleviates Residual Anxiety From a Stress-Inducing Physical Scene
### Method
T
taylorcounselinggroup.com
article
https://taylorcounselinggroup.com/blog/mental-health-and-cleaning
Cleaning up may help mitigate a wide range of health concerns, including heart disease, high blood pressure, anxiety, depression and sleep