Tidy Home, Tidy Mind (How is a healthy home connected to mental health?)

That coffee stain on your carpet, those dirty dishes in your sink, and the soap scum in your bathtub - can all have a negative impact on your mental health.

Psychology of house cleaning is a topic that some people are totally unaware of.

Can a clean household really boost your mental well-being?

Psychologist Dr.Sherry Bourg Carter says that clutter makes it harder for us to relax (mentally and physically) and it constantly keeps signalling our brain that our tasks will never be completed. 

According to another study, people who lived in cluttered spaces were more likely to suffer from depression and fatigue than the ones who lived in clean and restful spaces.

Now, forget about the research for a second and ask yourself:

“Do I want to live in a dirty, unorganised, cluttered environment? Or - Do I want to live in a clean, organised, good-smelling environment?”

You already know the answer.

Let’s dig deep into the root of the problem. How do you end up with an unorganised, unclean, and cluttered space at the first place?

Top 3 Reasons Why Your House is Unclean (And The Solutions)

1.  YOU ARE TOO BUSY TO CLEAN

“Should I clean my house?” -“Probably” - “But I’m too tired.”

After working all day, running personal errands, cooking, and feeding the kids - only an Olympic runner would have the energy and motivation to clean up the house.

We get it. It’s really tiring and boring. But if you don’t clean up the small mess routinely for short-term gratification; you’re heading for total chaos in the future.

That one coffee stain turns into three coffee stains within a few days. The rubbish that’s getting packed down in the bin is about to tear up the rubbish-bag from the bottom. And all those unclean dishes with leftover food are going to smell like rotten tomatoes soon.

Solution:

Again “research” suggests that the amount of time people spend on social media is expected to increase. So, if you decrease those 2 hours you spend on social media to 1.5 hours, you will have 30 minutes free everyday.

Make sure you devote at least 20-30 minutes everyday in keeping your home organised.

Having a schedule for cleaning and sticking to it can help you keep your home clean. To learn more on a regular cleaning schedule, read our blog on how often you should clean your carpet.

2.  THERE’S SO MUCH MESS

As mentioned above, when you procrastinate your house-cleaning, you’re heading for total chaos. Things get piled up and it comes to a point where you don’t know where to start.

And what do we do when we have procrastinated our cleaning/organising tasks? We procrastinate some more - maybe next weekend? 

It’s not just the overloaded rubbish-bin, this also includes those clothes in your wardrobe that you bought out of impulse. You probably felt great when you put them on first, but now you don’t like them anymore.

Solution:

Let it go, let it go, can’t hold it back anymore. You probably know this song if you have kids. Well, it’s time for you to let that mess go. Try to let go of the clothes you don’t wear anymore, let go of the books that you are not going to read, and let go of those unused accessories - they are just creating clutter and affecting your mental health.

Cleaning up the clutter and keeping things organised in the house is our own responsibility - you have to do-it-yourself. Read more about the perks of DIY-cleaning in Rug Doctor’s Why DIY Carpet Cleaning blog.

3.  YOU DON’T HAVE HOUSE RULES (OR YOU DON’T TO STICK THEM)

Well, it’s your home, not a military barrack. But we all can take some healthy home-environment tips from the military. Have a look at The Military Mom’s 7 Steps to Declutter Your House to learn how to do it - the military way!

If you don’t have some basic cleaning rules in your house, you will keep seeing clutter every time.

Solution:

Some example for house rules could be as follows:

1. Vacuum the rugs and carpets every Saturday
2. Never leave the dishes dirty - clean up as soon as you’re done eating
3. Make your bed - first thing in the morning

There are so many reasons for keeping your house clean, but mental health is undoubtedly the number one.

We hope this motivates you to keep your home clean.

DID YOU KNOW?

Rug Doctor has two different stain removal products that are specially formulated for different stains. Because not all stains require the same treatment for removal. Each product is PH balanced to treat each type of stain individually.

For instance, you need the Rug Doctor Stain Remover product to get rid of tea and coffee stains, but you can clean blood or grease stains using the Rug Doctor Spot Remover.

Similarly, there are different cleaning methods for every type of stain - be it your pet’s pee or that bowl of ice cream you accidentally dropped on the couch.

Download Rug Doctor’s Ultimate Stain Removal Guide where we cover the cleaning method for almost every type of stain and also what product to use on which stain.

It’s highly recommended that you print it out and keep it handy, because you never know when you will spill your next drink or when your pet might decide to make an unpleasant mess on your floor.