From CLUTTER to CLARITY

THOMAS STANLEY is a psychology master's student based in Bristol, UK. He shares his awakening to the value of decluttering and Shintoism, and what they teach us about taking better care of our planet Earth.

- THOMAS STANLE

Two weeks ago, I had an experience which inspired me to think about my relationship with the things I own. In preparation for moving house, I condensed my clothes down to what I would need for the next five days, hung them in my wardrobe, put everything else in a cardboard box, and paused. Not only did the wardrobe look different, but I felt dramatically different looking at it. A feeling of ease enveloped me, a sense of freedom.

After living with 28 years of stuff, my awareness was brought to the weight of it all. Why had I been living with this stuff if it had been subtly weighing me down?

Inspired by having fewer coat hangers to pick up, I explored the psychological impact of material belongings on our mental wellness.

Environment decides our moods, our emotions, our thoughts, our actions. -Kamlesh Patel¹

It's true. Our environment affects us in many ways. More time spent in nature can improve our health and well-being, there is generally a higher risk of mental illness in cities than in rural areas,³ and architectural design can impact productivity in the workplace. It can even affect our DNA.5 We commonly think of spaces when we think of environment, belongings are also a part of it. From the clothes we wear to that box of glass jars under the bed that were going to become terrariums (just me?), the things we own are environmental factors that affect our minds.

Clutter can also be an environmental factor. By clutter, I mean things in our environment that make it untidy. One study found that more clutter was associated with more depression throughout the day, fatigue in the evening, and less satisfaction in relationships. Our possessions, including the ones we are attached to but don't regularly use, contribute to the clutter. This implies that owning more clutterprone items can worsen our mental health. So can letting go of such items make us feel better? It seems so!