How Organizing Your Space Can Transform Your Emotional Well-Being
Today we get to hear Carly's story about a mom, a family, that experienced the magic of reorganizing and tidying. It's not just about the space, but more importantly about your well-being and the joy that comes with a little order. Watch Carly and her family transform!
It all started on a Thursday morning with a $35 storage cube from Walmart and a few storage drawer inserts. And, a woman on a mission.
As a wife and a mom of two boys (three if you count my husband LOL), I can become easily overwhelmed and flustered when the house feels cluttered and messy.
My oldest son who is 11 is a particularly sharp thorn in my side when it comes to this area. While he is one of the most responsible 11 year olds I've ever met, the boy leaves a trail with him EVERYWHERE he goes and his room isn't just a trail - it's an entire CITY of mess! I digress...
I've always been one to naturally "take the emotional temperature" of whatever atmosphere I find myself in, but my senses have been heightened in our home the last few months and what was I picking up on?
• chaos •
• poor attitudes • • impatience • • heaviness • • darkness •
Newsflash: these are not good things! Every time I walked into my son's room, these feelings were magnified. I felt them. He felt them. His brother knew we felt them. My husband felt them. I thought it was just the beginning stages of puberty, and maybe it is, but I knew I had to do something about it. We were captives in our own home!
So I started with where I knew I could, somewhere not-so-overwhelming: my son's closet. After purchasing the storage cube and inserts, I immediately got to work. Typically I would keep the storage cube in the box in the back of my closet until the weekend, or maybe a few weeks when I thought I'd have some time to work on it or push it off on my husband, but not this time. Not this day.
I felt so accomplished from assembling a simple storage cube by myself! No hubby required (although, his work ensued later). I was beginning to feel lightness shining through while sitting on the only available floor space at the time in my son's room!
Now, let me rewind for a moment. Over 8 years ago, we had the genius idea to purchase bunk beds for our boys. I had vivid and extravagant dreams of the two of them sharing a bedroom, staying up late at night talking and laughing, spending limitless time together and being the best of friends. But not just ANY bunk bed - a giant, bulky, full-of-storage-opportunities-bed.
What's the problem, you ask? The shared room lasted all of five minutes. The boys had no interest in being best friends (at least not yet, but my fingers are still crossed and my prayer journal is still full). And, I was stuck with this giant bulky bed in a smaller room. It was so crowded. No floor space. It covered a lot of the window making it physically dark in my son's room.
Now you see why I was a woman on a mission! The next six hours, my husband and I worked tirelessly at overhauling both of our boy's rooms. We microwaved leftovers for dinner and then we all four went to work. We removed a bed, moved another bed, re-arranged night stands, made piles of keep/give/trash and more. The boys were surprisingly a huge help and were all for it!
I can't explain it and if I were reading this as an outsider I probably wouldn't believe it, but when I tell you that during the process of cleaning and reorganizing that a new atmosphere began to fall on our home, it's an understatement. The four of us were laughing, joking with one another, being silly, communicating, and working toward one common goal.
At the end of the six hours, we were all staring at two completely different rooms than were there before. My boys were OVER THE MOON about their new space. You could see the floor! You could move. You could breathe. My youngest (we weren't even planning on reorganizing his room) kept saying "This is my room! This is really my room! I love it". And my oldest son answered with "The vibe in my room is so sick." (I later found out that this is actually a good thing).
What was supposed to help me and how I was feeling ended up being something that totally transformed my entire family! My boys enjoy hanging out in their rooms now and were even excited to show their spaces off to their friends. I finally enjoy going into their rooms and tucking my babies in at night. Where there once was chaos and heaviness and impatience, there is now peace and lightness and loving memories.
I completely underestimated the effect that rearranging and reorganizing a space can have and I am so thankful I went to Walmart for a storage cube that Thursday morning.
Where do you need to go, when do you need to go, and what do you need to get there? I encourage you to find out and step out and go!
Thanks for letting me share, Carly Carter
According to a survey conducted by the National Association of Professional Organizers, 87% of respondents reported feeling a sense of relief after clearing out clutter and reorganizing their living space. Additionally, 91% of respondents felt more in control of their life after organizing their space.
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