How Living With Clutter Can Affect Your Health – And Easy Ways to Clear the Mess Fast

Clutter doesn’t just make a home look messy – it can take a toll on your physical and mental health. From stress and anxiety to disrupted sleep and reduced focus, living in a disorganized space can create more strain than most people realize.

Luckily, there are some easy fixes you can implement that will have an almost immediate effect on your mood, at the very least.

Here, wellbeing and psychology experts reveal the ways clutter might be harming your health, and the health decluttering methods you can use to tackle the problem.

Why Clutter Can Impact Your Body and Mind

There are several psychological reasons clutter builds at home, and the more clutter there is, the more clutter tends to build. This clutter avalanche can turn into a vicious cycle that eventually harms your physical and mental health.

Several studies, including one 2010 social psychology study shows that those who perceived their home as cluttered experienced elevated cortisol (the stress hormone) throughout the day. This was particularly true for women.

It is just one of the many reasons your home could be increasing your stress levels. From decision fatigue to physical strain, the increased mental load should not be ignored.

Elika Dadsetan-Foley, a social worker, educator, and mental health practitioner, explains that these signs you need to delcutter can manifest differently for people, be it physically, mentally, or both.

Elika explains, 'Clutter often acts as a form of visual and cognitive overload. I’ve worked with clients who describe feeling constantly “on edge” or unable to relax at home, not because of acute crises, but because their nervous systems never fully downshift.

'A cluttered space continually signals unfinished tasks, which can increase anxiety, reduce focus, and contribute to sleep disruption. For people already experiencing depression or burnout, clutter can become demotivating and reinforce feelings of failure or paralysis.

'For clients with chronic illness, neurodivergence, or fatigue-related conditions, clutter can increase physical strain,' she continues. 'Navigating crowded or disorganized spaces requires more energy, increases sensory overstimulation, and can exacerbate pain or exhaustion. I’ve seen how this can quietly compound health challenges over time.'

Using adaptive pacing while cleaning or decluttering with health challenges, and reducing nervous system triggers when streamlining, can help you start moving the dial carefully.

The Quick and Easy Fixes

It is all well and good to dream of the beauty of a tidy home, but when you're noticing the physical impacts of mess on your system, the dream can feel far off. To declutter when feeling overwhelmed, you need to start small.

Elika recommends the following to organize your home with health and well-being:

• Reduce visual noise: Do not aim for perfection. I often encourage clients to focus on one visible surface, such as a bedside table or kitchen counter, rather than tackling an entire room. Using these low-lift tasks to help you relax when your home is a mess, and clearing a single visual anchor can immediately lower stress and improve sleep or focus.
• Create low-demand zones: Designating one area of the home that is intentionally clutter-light and task-free (even a chair, corner, or nightstand) gives the nervous system a place to rest. This is especially helpful for people managing chronic illness or emotional fatigue.
• Match organization to capacity: One of the most common issues I see is clients trying to maintain organizing systems that don’t match their energy levels or cognitive load. Open bins, fewer steps, and visible storage often work better than complex systems, especially during periods of stress or illness.

The real goal when trying to get on top of clutter creep and restore some sense of control is to stay motivated. That is where the smaller tasks come in clutch, says Ashley Win, organizer and founder of Outstanding Organizers.

'When a home feels overwhelming, people often shut down and avoid tasks altogether, leading to a cycle where more housework is left undone. The most effective way to break that cycle is to lower the bar. Instead of trying to “get organized,” I encourage clients to reset one surface or one category at a time. Small wins rebuild momentum.'

After a few small wins, you might just find yourself more motivated, helping you spring into something such as the Domino decluttering method, Sunday Butterfly method, or Desire Path method.

Our Decluttering Library is packed with different methods we've tested for streamlining, and organized based on your time, energy, problem area, motivation, or lack thereof.

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Meet the Experts

Elika Dadsetan-Foley

Elika Dadsetan-Foley, EdD, MSW, MA, JD is a social worker, educator, and mental health practitioner with over 15 years of experience working at the intersection of mental health, trauma, migration, and wellbeing. She holds a Doctorate in Education and a Master of Social Work, and has worked globally with individuals, families, and organizations to support regulation, resilience, and healing across life transitions.

Ashley Wynn

Ashley is the founder of Outstanding Organizers, an Atlanta-based organizing and decluttering company. With over five years of experience, she helps busy families and professionals reduce overwhelm by creating simple, sustainable systems for their homes and workplaces. She also leads workshops that speak on decluttering, time management, and mental clarity, helping people reclaim their time, space, and peace of mind.

Don't forget to unwind properly after a tough tidying session with the STOP method, else you might end up with decluttering resentment.