How to Declutter your Home and Your Life

Have you ever felt stressed and overwhelmed from the clutter in your home?

I know exactly how you feel! Constant clutter can be a significant contributor stress. I’m no medical professional but have experienced being so overwhelmed from the clutter in my home and life that it made my autoimmune problems worse.

It was just constant and I always promised myself that I would get to it “tomorrow.” Have you ever told yourself that?

Well, tomorrow never comes!

If you’re serious about ways to declutter and simplify, you need to be very purposeful and systematic about getting organized at home.

Well today I’m going to show you 3 ways that you can declutter your home and reduce some of that stress!

Why is Clutter so Stressful?

Have you found yourself searching for things all the time? Going through piles of paper, looking for stuff in your home office, or searching every nook and cranny for a scissor?

It can be overwhelming and you lose a lot of time searching for stuff!

If you’re like me, you spend time just shuffling piles of paper around or shoving some of the clutter into the garage where you don’t have to see it all the time.

Am I right?

After a while, it seems impossible to figure out how to declutter, organize and simplify.

Clutter can take away from the important stuff in your life causing more stress. There have been times when I couldn’t concentrate on something because of the piles of crap that were accumulating in my home office.

Something had to change and here’s how I conquered my clutter!

Best Ways to Declutter Your Life and Reduce Stress

It wasn’t until I moved cross country that I realized what a big problem it was. I was not able to move everything so I had to sell, throw out or donate many items.

I had so much unnecessary stuff that it took me nearly a year prior to the move to go through and get rid of it.

I wasn’t a hoarder by any means, but I would just put stuff in the garage or in closets so I didn’t have to deal with it.

Since then I’ve learned how to control the clutter and I’m sharing my top three ways with you.

1. Get Rid of Paper Clutter

Paper clutter was the worst for me.

Getting your paperwork under control can be a stressful task but once it’s done, you can put a system in place that works! I had boxes and boxes of paper in the garage, in addition to the piles of it in the house.

It took me forever to go through it. I only had time to do a couple of hours a week for sorting which is why it took me so long.

I had bills and un-needed documents from the 1990’s! I would get on the floor and take it out one at a time. I had a shred box that the majority of it went into.

I was not able to use my shredder due to the overwhelming amount of paper.

I went to a huge truck shredder with 6 big boxes at a time! I did this several times over the course of a year.

Never again. Here’s what I did to conquer the paper clutter:

Keep my paper shredder handy. When new paper comes into the house (mail etc), I deal with it the moment I open it. It either goes into the shredder, trash, or document envelope (for important documents.)
Go paperless for bills and statements. I went to my online banking and other places where I receive bills (utilities etc) and signed up for paperless. That prevented most of the paper from coming to the house. Now I receive an email and can pay the bill online. I no longer have paper piles and know where all my important documents are. My banking and other statements are easily accessible online so I always know where they are.

You don’t have to settle for perpetual stress and disorganization.

2. Getting Rid of Clothing Clutter

Are your clothes closets overflowing with too many? Clothing clutter leads to stress because you have to deal with it every time you get dressed.

I must have given away or sold over 20 big bags of clothing. What was I saving it for?

I realized that I only wore a small amount of the clothing in my closet but the it was packed with stuff from 15 years ago!

I went through my clothes over the course of several months to determine what was reasonable for me to keep.

As I sorted through it all, I had my keep, giveaway and sell piles. It was difficult to part with some of the clothes but felt great after I did.

I now have a minimal amount of clothing and I wear it all. Everything is easy to find too!

How what I do now to keep my closet decluttered:

Only buy what I need. I no longer go shopping just to do it. I only buy exactly what I need. I’ve only purchased 2 tops in the last year. Why? I have enough in varied colors. I take good care of my clothes and buy quality made so they last longer.
Fold and put away clothes after washing. I used to leave clothing on top of the washer, in a pile on the bed and wherever else. Now I immediately fold and put my clothing away. This helps declutter the house and keeps everything organize. I no longer have to wonder where those socks are or my favorite running shorts!

3. Decluttering the Kitchen for Peace of Mind

Are you scared to open your kitchen cabinets? I was! I had this one cabinet filled with plastic containers and lids. Most of the time, when I opened it something fell out!

Turns out I didn’t use most of the stuff in that cabinet – what was I saving it for?

As I prepared to move, I realized that I had cabinets filled with pots, pans, glasses and appliances that mostly went unused.

I had a decision to make.

I got rid of everything except the dishes, silverware and my favorite Ninja blender! Here’s your tips to declutter in the kitchen.

Only keep stuff you use. After moving, I purchased a new set of healthy pots and pans. I love it! It is a small set and I use all of the pots and pans. This greatly contributed to reducing the kitchen clutter since I no longer have too many that go unused. Plus the old ones I had were probably poisoning me for years due to the materials they were made of.
How many glasses do you need? I purchased 2 small sets of glasses and now have about 8. That’s all I need! My clutter is reduced and the dishes to be washed are less.
Cut down on useless kitchen appliances. I find that the countertop appliances contributed to the kitchen clutter. I only have what I need and use all the time. I don’t miss any of it that I got rid of!

Conclusion

All in all, I felt so free after I got rid of stuff that was cluttering up my life. The stressful feelings are gone and I finally feel at peace.

These days, I have very little furniture at home – just the stuff I need. I love it!

I have less to clean and enjoying living a more minimalist lifestyle.

I hope you enjoyed these tips to declutter your home and your life! It feels GREAT!