With Spring in full bloom, it’s time for some refreshing… but not the kind you may be thinking of!
When we hear spring cleaning, we often think of deep cleaning our home. Decluttering those closets or drawers you’ve been tossing items in for so long, you can barely bring yourself to open them. Maybe sweeping the floors and vacuuming all the carpets. If you’re really committed, you may be flipping your mattress and airing out your comforter. Cleaning your physical space can be so good for your emotional well-being, but have you considered spring cleaning for your mind?
Yup! You read that right. You can apply all the same cleaning methods you use for spring cleaning your house to your mind. Use the next tips to get started.
Tip #1 Digital “Junk Drawer”
How: Clear out your email inbox, unsubscribe from marketing emails from companies that you no longer shop at and from apps you no longer use
Why: Think of digital clutter the same way you would think of physical clutter. Piles of “stuff” in your kitchen drawer or closet that no one goes in can weigh heavily on your mental wellness. The same can be said about our phones and computers. Susan Albers, PsyD, psychologist with the Cleveland Clinic, explains that “studies show that digital clutter is just as toxic to your mental health as physical clutter. It triggers high levels of stress and anxiety.”1 When you take a “digital audit”2 of your digital device, you’re able to tackle the stress that comes with clutter and free up space on your devices!
Tip #2 Break your stale habits and swap them out for fresh ones
How: Swap out your normal walking route with a new trail or path. Instead of checking your phone first thing in the morning, leave it on the nightstand and step outside for 5-10 minutes when you get out of bed. Instead of putting on another show to binge-watch, pull out a puzzle to complete.
Why: The simple act of switching up your typical routines can improve cognitive function greatly. When you alter the way that you have been performing a specific task or activity, your brain is forced to work harder to learn and implement the new way. This is known as “neuroplasticity” which, to put simply, describes “our brain’s ability to learn and adapt.”3
Tip #3: Clean out the “attic”
How: If you’ve been adding to your mental to-do list, write the tasks down on a piece of paper and decide what you can accomplish yourself, what you need help with, and what you can delegate fully to others
Why: The psychology behind putting off your to-do list and the impact it can have on your health can be explained by the phenomenon known as the “Zeigarnik Effect.”4 The Zeigarnik Effect explains the reason behind that guilty and overwhelming feeling that often lurks behind a growing to-do list with incomplete items. Not completing tasks or goals you told yourself you would can make you feel unproductive and can lead to negative self-talk, which can turn into anxiety, low self-esteem, and a myriad of other mental illnesses. To combat these feelings of unfulfillment, create a plan of attack to complete the items you’ve been putting off. If you’re no longer able to complete those tasks alone, ask for assistance from someone who can help.
Tip #4 Emotional cobwebs
How: If there has been something affecting you emotionally, release it by journaling, talking it out with a loved one, or a professional therapist
Why: Letting your emotions remain stagnant in your brain without a sense of release can just delay your body and mind from confronting those feelings. They rarely go away on their own. When we express our feelings through various outlets like journaling or verbal reflection, we allow ourselves to release those emotional burdens. A study published in 2022 analyzed how effective journaling was as a mental illness management tool. They ultimately discovered that journaling led to a “5%”5 greater decrease in symptoms like anxiety and depression than standard care alone.
Final Takeaways
By cleaning out your mind at the start of a new season, you can refresh your routines and improve your overall well-being. Implementing new habits to replace ones that haven’t been serving you well over the last year can have an impact on your health in immense ways even if they are small.
- https://newsroom.clevelandclinic.org/2024/01/24/clearing-out-digital-clutter ↩︎
- https://newsroom.clevelandclinic.org/2024/01/24/clearing-out-digital-clutter ↩︎
- https://health.clevelandclinic.org/neuroplasticity ↩︎
- https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/zeigarnik-effect ↩︎
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8935176/ ↩︎
Image used: https://pixabay.com/vectors/ai-generated-self-care-self-love-8880063/