When one is exposed to trauma, people build guards around themselves and everything around them. If they start losing the stuff or declutter, they feel a void inside of them, so it's tougher for them than other people. Clutter acts as an unconscious barrier.
People who have suffered an emotional trauma or a brain injury often find housecleaning an insurmountable task. Attention deficit disorder, depression, chronic pain and grief can prevent people from getting organized or lead to a buildup of clutter.
Clutter can affect our anxiety levels, sleep, and ability to focus. It can also make us less productive, triggering coping and avoidance strategies that make us more likely to snack on junk and watch TV shows (including ones about other people decluttering their lives).
While some chalk it up to laziness, there's actually underlying psychology of clutter and disorganization that keeps people from tidying up. Potential reasons people hold onto clutter include: They feel overwhelmed: It's often a huge job to get rid of things, which can be both physically and mentally exhausting.
You might be able to link the start of your hoarding to a traumatic period in your life. This could include: Being abused, bullied or harassed, including experiencing racism. Breaking up with a partner.
Accumulating “stuff” fills the emotional hole left by the trauma and allows individuals to avoid dealing with the pain. Later removal of these items can trigger high levels of anxiety, especially if someone else gets rid of these items without the hoarder's permission.
Hoarding is a disorder that may be present on its own or as a symptom of another disorder. Those most often associated with hoarding are obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and depression.
Clutter in the living room might suggest blockages in your social life, as well as your relationship with yourself, while a cluttered bedroom might relate to issues surrounding your sexual self, fears of intimacy or gender roles.
Psychologically, a messy room can represent:
A disorganized mind. Feeling overwhelmed. Difficulty letting go (common for hoarding behaviors) Trouble focusing on a task.
Clutter can be a physical manifestation of mental health issues, Walsh tells WebMD. Those overwhelmed with "memory" clutter may have an undue preoccupation with things in the past and become depressed. Those who can't toss out items because they worry they will need them may be too anxious, he says.
It can be a result of never having developed helpful habits and routines needed to stay organized in the first place. Perhaps you were raised in a very cluttered home. Because of this, you were never taught or modeled the habits needed to keep your things organized and uncluttered.
Sometimes, living with anxiety, depression, or stress brings on clutter. If you're overwhelmed by sadness or other negative emotions, you might not have the energy to clean and organize. Or, you might use shopping or accumulating things to manage your feelings.
If you don't clean your house, it might mean you are busy and have little time to clean and organize. It might be a sign that you have too much stuff. Or it might be the result of having young kids in the house who are usually not motivated to clean up after themselves.
In most cases, this clutter is directly linked to traumatic events. Clutter could stem from the fear of letting go. This would be especially the case if a person grew up during or shortly after a time of war when people did not have much and had to use everything they had until it fell apart.
Fawning is a trauma response that uses people-pleasing behavior to appease or supplicate an aggressor, avoid conflict, and ensure safety. This trauma response is exceedingly common, especially in complex trauma survivors, and often gets overlooked.
Psychology says that messiness can indeed be a sign that a person is having trouble. Just like someone who is suffering from OCD and has to control everything, being a messy person might show that they are dealing with depression or some other mental illness.
People with ADHD who have a hard time keeping things tidy usually aren't being lazy or thoughtless. They have trouble with a group of skills needed to tackle cleanup tasks and stay organized. These skills are known as executive function.
This is a messy and disorganized room or home as a result of experiencing depression. It is an outward display of a depressed mental state.
I define Toxic Clutter as items in your home that you are not using and that make you feel really bad about yourself. Don't let Toxic Clutter rob you of the space in your home AND your self esteem and self worth.
If your space is cluttered, your mind will be too | Mental clutter, Declutter, Declutter your life.
“Clutter is not just the stuff on your floor – it's anything that stands between you and the life you want to be living.”
Mental health conditions most often associated with hoarding disorder include: Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD). Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Clutter: Possessions are disorganized and may accumulate around living areas. Collecting: Possessions are part of a larger set of items. Display does not impede active living areas in home. Hoarding: Possessions become unorganized piles preventing rooms from being used for their intended purpose.