Junk piling up? It’s time for an Emotional Spring Cleaning!

What does springtime bring to mind for you? For me it is thoughts of longer days, more sunlight, warmer weather, opening up the windows, seeing the grass start to emerge from beneath the snow – we’ve had a lot of that this year! Maybe seeing robins bouncing around on the ground searching for worms, flying up into the trees. Songbirds sing, the first crocuses pop up, followed by the tulips and hyacinths and other spring flowers. And perhaps, we feel a great urge to declutter and embark in the age-old tradition of spring cleaning! I propose that this year, especially, it is important that we do an emotional spring cleaning.

This has been quite a year. I won’t review it all for you. You were there. You know. What a year. Just bizarre. Like none other that we’ve ever known. When the stresses of living and dealing with such happenings pile up like coats and shoes in the closet, when our worries roam like dust bunnies under the couch and our fears and frustrations have left a gross film on the tubs and toilets of our life, we could all use a good, deep, thorough emotional cleansing!

Just like cleaning the house, it might be helpful to sort through our emotional health, and put our emotional “junk” into one of three piles: things to get rid of, things to keep, and things that might improve our life if we had them.

So first, what do you need to get rid of? What’s dragging you down emotionally? Is there anything keeping you up at night, or things that you would like to change? Maybe you’ve noticed you have developed some unhealthy habits as ways of coping with the extra stress and emotional demands of life as of late. Now is the time to clean it all out! These are some of the most common emotional drains that do not support our emotional wellness – things to get rid of:

• Negative friends or toxic relationships
• Suppressed feelings like worry, anger, sadness
• Unhealthy habits like over-eating, smoking, increased alcohol use, or use of controlled substances
• Overall sense of pessimism, fear, guilt, shame
• Grudges and resentment
• Over-scheduling or stretching ourselves too thin
• Constant comparison to others perceived to be more “successful”
• Self-doubt, criticism, and put-downs
• Unrealistic expectations of self and others

Now that we have a big old pile of stuff we’d like to get rid of, get rid of it! That’s it – cleanse, let it go. You can do this in any way you like. Write those thoughts, feelings, and beliefs down on paper and burn it! Just sit and look at the list you created and create an action that would allow you to let these things go. Don’t think too much about it – like that blouse, or those shoes, that lamp, those hurt feelings, those grudges and comparisons – do they bring you joy? No? Then out they go!! Get rid of it!!

Whew!! That felt great!!

Next, we can also take inventory of the good habits we want to keep. It’s good practice to acknowledge those good habits and positive factors that support your mental well-being. Be purposeful in how you continue to think and behave in ways that promote emotional health and well-being. These may be different for everyone, but some ideas that promote positive mental health could include:

• Foster and tend to positive relationships with supportive friends and family
• Get moving!  Movement, stretching, and exercise are great ways to get the blood flowing which includes up to our brain where all these emotional chemicals can get stuck if we are too stagnate – shake ‘em up and move that body and brain!
• Get adequate restful sleep
• Express feelings through writing, drawing, painting, music and other creative endeavors
• Try new things or pick up old favorite hobbies like playing guitar or putting models together
• Learn all that you can!
• Practice relaxation. It seems strange, but in today’s busy world we actually have to practice relaxing – and practice makes perfect – keep practicing!
• Have purpose and meaning. Be passionate about what you do as best you can, and if you’re not passionate about what you’re doing, do something else!
• Practice self-compassion. Come on – give yourself a break! And everyone else too! Let’s all give ourselves a break and a little pat on the back and a whole lot of grace. You’ve made it through what might have been a really rough time for you, keep going, you’re doing great!
• Adopt an attitude of gratitude. Keep a daily gratitude journal and always try to find something to be truly thankful for and let those people that you are thankful for know it! Share it!
• Spend quality time with partner or family.

Lastly in our spring-cleaning process, we may have noticed some things missing that might make our life a whole lot easier, more organized, better managed, and maybe even more connected to joy, happiness, and meaningfulness.  Notice what’s missing from your life that would potentially increase your emotional health. As you read over the list above, notice which ones catch your attention. Commit to adding one, two, or three of these habits into your repertoire. Practice whatever you choose daily and really make a commitment to your own mental health – you’re worth it!  

This time of spring cleaning can be anything we want it to be.  It can be just another season in a life of drudgery and struggle, or it can be the start of something new. Like the first buds of spring opening in the sunshine to reveal their amazing beauty, when you clean out those feelings of stress, worry, anxiety, and sadness, you might find it a bit easier to let the light in, feel those happy feelings, and think that there is a lot of beauty in this world, and you are a major part of that beauty. Let your beauty shine and make time to notice your feelings, understand them, accept them, give yourself space and time to mourn and grieve for the losses we have experienced, and then rejoice, for hope springs eternal in the hearts and souls of those who seek it.