How Clutter is Impacting your Health – and How to Start the Process of Decluttering

Hi and welcome to how humans heal. I'm Dr. Donnie Wilson and in today's episode, I'm going to be talking with Heather Artema. She is the founder of the School of Living Lighter. She is a board certified decluttering coach who helps people to understand what's underneath, the reason for clutter using holistic approach to helping people declutter their lives, their homes, anything else. And I'm so glad to have you here with me, Heather. I'm. I know for myself because I've been going through such a decluttering process the past couple years that I'm. I know how valuable this is and so I'm really excited to talk with you because it's, it's one of these things that I think we can deal with in our homes and our spaces and we. It's just kind of like sitting there. In fact, I was just talking to a patient the past couple days and it was when her daughter went to college. This is, you know, right now, this time of year is when, you know the kids are going to college and the empty nest situation starts to happen. And then you start looking around your home and you're like, what is all this stuff doing here? My desk is a mess, my drawers are overfilled. How did this even happen? I don't even know where to begin. And so, you know, what I first said to her is I think it's just to some degree, it's part of the human experience because we're so busy keeping up with life and then we maybe have these moments where we have enough time to sit still long enough to be like, what's all this stuff doing here? And so is that when you come help tell me, tell us more.

Well, thank you.

I think you're like a superhero to help people with their clutter. That's what I think.

Well, it's my passion and so I feel so fortunate that I get to do this. And it can make such a massive difference in our day to day life. When we address our clutter, the clutter feels heavy. It feels so heavy. And it's not just a feeling. Like there's physiology to clutter. If we perceive it, it's basically saying that our cortisol is going through the roof. Now if we don't perceive it, nothing is happening. Right. It's fine. And I think in many families there are those who really notice the clutter and then there are those who don't. My kids don't notice the clutter. I notice it and I feel it. And so Our stuff it all, you know, it's more energy than matter and it really can make an impact on how we show up the decisions that we make, the way we live our lives. And so it's such a wonderful.

A wonderful aspect to get curious about because it really can improve your experience on your life experience.

Wow. It really is. And what would you say, like, if someone's thinking, do I have clutter? Where should I be? Where can I be looking for the clutter? You know, what is that? What does that, you know, even start to pick up on it?

Right, right. So if somebody's feeling heavy in their house, you have clutter. And so that's one of the easiest ways to know. So if you're in your home and you feel calm and you feel serene and you feel light, then you probably don't have clutter. But when you're sitting around and you're like, geez, I just feel so heavy, what is going on? That is a really big sign that you probably have a lot of things that are distracting you from your true potential. So clutter is not just, it's not just a thing. It's not just a tangible thing. The way I like to define clutter is that it is any thought, feeling or action that gets between where we are and where we want to be.

And we all, every human has some kind of clutter. And so at school of living lighter, we say, there's mind clutter, there's body clutter, there's home clutter. The home clutter, that's what we all know about, right? It's that uncomfortable amount of stuff, the body clutter, that can look like toxic mold, it can look like gasoline derivatives in your water if you're drinking tap water. It can look like.

The chemicals coming from like the Glade plug ins, that can all look like body clutter coming in and impacting you. And so.

Excuse me, for me, you just heard me cough. We had toxic mold and it made me super, super sick. And you couldn't see was hidden away up in the attic and underneath our house. We had no idea. None of our belongings looked like they were contaminated. And it made me so sick. And so I'm healing now. I'm grateful. I'm getting better and better every day, but I'm still coughing and wheezing a little bit. And it's all because we had that form of clutter. Another form of body clutter actually can look like food. If we're eating foods that leave us with symptoms. And it's going to probably Be different for everybody. But if we've got those symptoms, then those items that we're eating or we're consuming are probably clutter in our body as well. And then we've got the mind clutter. And the mind clutter are the thoughts that were too much or we're not enough, or.

We'Re not worth getting help on our healing journey, or it'll take forever to declutter. So why even. Why even start? And so that mind clutter, really, what it can do is it can fill us with resentment or frustration and just leave us swirling and not really making any changes. And so this is why you can see, like, the topic of clutter is kind of vast. But it's really fun because when we get curious about our clutter, we open the door to so much potential, to so much more lightness. And I feel like a lot of humans are walking around feeling so heavy, like these invisible, like, backpacks of worry and stress, and a lot of that really is optional. And so when we get curious about the clutter, we figure those things out, and we live a lot lighter.

Oh, wow. This is, like, really a whole new definition of clutter. I'm thinking that everyone listening is going to be like, wait a minute, I was just thinking of, like, a pile on my desk. But it really can be things we don't see. Like, our thoughts can be a clutter in our mind and our experience, even if we can't. If they're not sitting on our desk, but they end up cluttering our thought process.

Exactly.

Or it could be mold toxins. You can't see, but they're in the air soaking into your system and affecting you. And so. And I liked how you defined it as something that prevents us from getting where we want to go. Because I think that a lot of times, like, like, let's go into that a little bit more. Like, like, you know, like you said, feeling heavy. But maybe it's. If you're like, hey, I really wanted to be able to. Let's say you wanted to be able to remodel your house, but you can't get yourself into the project because you've. You, like, how am I going to do that with all the stuff in my house? Or how am I going to. Even if you're like, hey, I want to start this business, but how can I start this business if my mind keeps telling me that I'm not worth it and I'm not going to be able to do it?

Exactly. Exactly. And actually, we have so many people Come to our community who have these dreams of a second chapter or a third chapter.

This one woman came into the community and she had been an allopathic MD her whole life, had taken about 10 years off to care for some family members who, who were doing well. And she said, okay, Heather, once I deal with all my clutter, then I want to become a functional medicine doctor. And she had so much mind clutter about that next stage. Like, it's going to be so hard. It's going to be different. I'm going to go from, you know, insurance based to cash based. And she had a lot of fear about that. And she came to me, she's in my membership, and she came to me a month later and she said, I don't know why I'm addressing, not addressing my physical clutter. And we realized that the actual physical clutter was a buffer between her and that next chapter. And once she realized that these were some fears that she was had that she was having, but that she could handle anything she faced, clearly she was able to begin to declutter. And so, so often we'll say, well, why am I not decluttering? What is it? Why do I feel so frozen? Or why do I keep putting it off? And sometimes it's because that next chapter, we really want it, but because it scares us, we say, I'll do it once I'm done decluttering. And then the clutter becomes the excuse. And so when we figure that out, it's permission to, okay, now I can start letting go. And it becomes so much easier. There's another aspect, though.

Excuse me, again.

Often when we feel frozen and stuck with, you know, we're looking around the house and we have all these things and that's really what it is. We just have a house with stuff and it feels like it's too much.

We can feel frozen. And we really, if you think of our nervous system, we're not regulated right. So we'll feel overwhelmed. We'll say, it's impossible. How do I do this? And I never recommend decluttering from that dysregulated state because we're not going to have very much success. And so that's why you want to take a holistic approach to letting go of your items, because you want it to be sustainable. And also it will be so much more enjoyable. Decluttering. You might giggle at this a little, but decluttering can be fun, it can be meaningful. In fact, there are people in my community that share that. It feels like it's A sacred experience for them, that it's the best decision of their adult life, that they decided to lean into the discomfort of change, of lasting change, and really decide what was important to them and what wasn't, what was meaningful to their life and who they were becoming and what was really, truly a distraction.

Wow.

It really. It really can be so powerful. Believe me, I get it. Because this past, I mean, really, I think I started a couple years ago, and I don't know how if this makes sense to you, what you think, but I started just by going. I'm just going to go little by little. I'm gonna just make time each week. And I. And I have a woman who helps me in the house anyway, so I would have her come with me because it really helped me to have someone with me to look through and look at each item and say, do I really need this? Where does it really supposed to go? Or can I let it go? We literally went room by room. It took us months, but it was so worth it because by the time we were finished, it was like. Even if that was just the first layer, it was like, okay, I took care of the first layer of clutter, and then that was able. That made it possible for me to even be open to the idea of hiring a contractor to work on.

Fixing my house. Because before that, I was too overwhelmed to even consider that idea. Right? So I love how you're saying, like, it helps you open up to the next step. And then I was able to go, okay, now I feel like I make that. Because then, of course, when we went into the. The project to rebuild the house, it was a whole nother level of decluttering because now everything had to be taken out of the house and very quickly because of the situation I was in. And so it was like, thank goodness I had already gone through the first level of decluttering that I was even able to handle that big load of decluttering. And then what's been interesting is now that the house has been rebuilt, now I'm in the decluttering of putting things back, right? Like, I'm. Only when you have this brand new space, you're like, I don't. I don't want to fill it with clutter. So I'm like, so intentional of. I only want to put this or I only want to put. And if it doesn't, if it's feeling too heavy or too squished, then something has to go because I don't want to end up back in that place of having just Too much space, stuff in a small space. So I don't know what. What did your feedback. Did I do some things well? Did I could have done some things better?

I think you did things so well, and I really honor you and the fact that you're being so intentional now and not just filling the space back up really fast, but thinking, how do I want to feel in my home and my space? And we spend so much time in our homes, so a large percentage of our lives that it's just you. You're experiencing it now that your home can serve you, it can help you feel better. It can help you become the person you want to be. And so I love. Again, I love how intentional you're being. You hire somebody to come in and help you and hold your hand. And I think that's so great when you have somebody that can do that, it can make the process feel less isolating, and it can also make the process fun. What I like to recommend, and.

You could still do this if you wanted to, is if we want to make the experience a little bit more meaningful, we can say, okay, why was I buying these things in the first place? What holes was I trying to fill? So, for example, when I was in my 20s, I worked in corporate America, and I traveled a lot for work, and I traveled a lot for pleasure as well. And I had this story, anytime I traveled somewhere, I had this story that I had to buy something as a memory. And I would spend more time thinking about, what am I going to buy? What am I going to buy? Than actually being present on the vacation or the work trip. And I got curious about that. And I'm like, well, I realized that. I thought that all these different items I was bringing into my home from all over the world, I thought those items were what made me interesting and valuable. And when I got curious about it, that is what hit me. And it's like, oh, no, my worth doesn't come from all of these things outside of me. My worth comes from within and simply because I'm a human being. And so I actually figured this out by writing myself a letter from clutter. And that's one of the tools that we use. And so it goes like this.

You would insert your name for mine, but it goes, dear Heather, I am clutter. And this is what I want you to know. And you just let your heart pour out onto the paper, and then you sign it, sincerely, Clutter. Love Clutter. And what I have noticed, like, not only in my letter, but. But I have been. I've had the privilege of many people reading their letters to me. And there's always.

A new awareness for why the clutter was there. Something happened in childhood. Clutter is a symptom. And so it's. It always maps back to.

Childhood experiences or perceived experiences. And so there's greater awareness. There is always compassion and kindness and permission to start letting go in a new way, in a fresh way.

Without guilt, without resentment, without any kind of heaviness. And so this letter, it sounds so simple, but it is really an extremely powerful tool for anyone who is thinking about letting go or decluttering and creating a more healthy, healthy space to live in.

Awesome. I love that. And I love that idea of a letter because it, it kind of. Because sometimes it's just if you're too much in your head, you can't get down to that. But when you're like you. You allow yourself to kind of have fun with it, like you said, and like, write yourself a letter as if it's a message from the clutter. What is the message it's giving you? And we talk about this. So I talk about it so much in medicine that the health issue or the infection is just the messenger. It has a message for us. And if we just focus on the, you know, whatever the health issue is, we're just. We're just focused on the wrong thing. We need to be able to actually take that health issue and say, hey, what is it trying to tell me? And so you're saying the same. We can do the same thing with Glutter. We can say, what is the message is going to try to tell me and. Because I know, like, I was going to ask you along the lines of, like, you know, why is it that we keep things that we. We don't really need, but we just keep it anyway? Like, because that's been one of my struggles when I've been going through this process. Like, I sit there and I go, and even if I'm aware of the message from the clutter, sometimes I'm. I. It's still sitting there. And I'm like, why can I not choose to let this go? Yeah, you're seeing it maybe back even from something that happened early in life.

There's a couple of different reasons for that. So the first reason, I think is because all humans.

Basically, subconsciously, we have three desires. We want to maximize pleasure, minimize pain, and conserve energy. And it takes energy to declutter. It takes energy to let go, to make a change. And so those desires, that's really our Primitive brain, right. And.

It'S so understandable. And so when we have a decluttering project or opportunity in front of us, we can say, okay, I really want this, but why am I not moving forward? What is happening? And I really believe. Well, there's two reasons there. Number one, we are not taught how to lean into the discomfort of change. And so when we start making changes, immediately, our primitive brain will say, oh, no, something's wrong, something's wrong. You're not doing it right. You didn't make a big enough difference. You might as well stop, give up. And so I saw this exercise once, and it was done by Jack Canfield, and I thought it was so powerful. And what he had us do, and if you want go ahead and do this with me, is you take your hands and you clasp them together and you put one thumb on top of the other. Then you unclasp, and then you put the opposite thumb on top.

Oh, yeah.

So it feels. How does it feel to you?

It feels different. Yeah.

Different, weird, a little awkward.

Yeah.

95 of people, they'll say it feels different. Some people are ambidextrous. And so they'll say, oh, it just feels the same. For most of us, it feels a little awkward.

We've been doing it the same way every time.

Exactly. And so change is going to feel like putting the wrong thumb on top. It's going to feel a little awkward in the beginning. It's going to feel a little uncomfortable. But if we keep leaning into that discomfort, we'll get to the other side of that change. And in this case, that's creating a home that's supportive. So that's one reason. The other reason is I feel.

Most.

Of us are walking around with dysregulated nervous systems. I mentioned that a little bit earlier.

If we're feeling dysregulated, we are not going to address that pile of papers on the desk. We are not going to go through the masses and masses of clothing. It's too much for our nervous systems. When we learn to regulate our nervous systems, and there are many different ways to do that.

And I think it also depends on if you are, you know, if you're in fight or flight, that's different than freeze or fun. And so when we. We take in these different exercises.

That'S when we can regulate our nervous systems. That's when we can create a strong foundation and then think about the decluttering from a. Just a much clearer perspective, a clearer space, and then make progress that way.

Now, because you Mentioned. And I know you offer online programs to help people with decluttering and that some of this is what you teach in your program. Do you also cover that, like, how to help regulate the nervous system through different activities?

I do, because it's such a key aspect of change. And so here's the thing. There are a lot of people out there talking about. About letting go and about decluttering, but it's so much more than deciding if the item goes into the trash or the donation center or to a friend. It's so much more. And so you want to bring in that holistic element so that this actually gets to be a good experience. So if you're going to go from A to B, right, If you're going to declutter, most of us think it's going to have to be pretty miserable. And it actually really can be a special, beautiful, sacred experience, and one where we're getting to know ourselves better, where we're learning, we're growing, we're stretching, and we really like the outcome on the other side. And so I think you really want to get to the root cause of your clutter. You can write yourself that letter if you don't do that. What I see happening is, is that people don't have the intentionality that you're having. Like, you're being so careful about what comes back in and so intentional. Most people will just bring it all in and then keep on buying and then wonder, like, oh, I decluttered, but it's all back. It's like weight loss. I lost the weight, but it came back. Why did it come back? And the storage industry, they want us to think that the answer is just in storing more. Just buy more crates, buy more boxes, buy more tubs, buy more folders, buy.

More file cases, or even storage units.

Storage units. Do you know that there are more storage units than Starbucks, McDonald's, Burger King's, Wendy's combined here in the United States?

Really?

More storage units. And we're spending a lot of money. We're keeping these storage units for at least 20 months. And we are spending on, like, a lot of money is going towards storing things that we rarely, if ever, use. And so it's. It sounds so silly and illogical. And so why is that? Because of the mind clutter. I might need it someday. What if I don't have the resources to buy it again? What if I regret getting rid of something? What if, what if, what if, what if? Right?

Yes.

Yes. And so when we address the what ifs, when we Address the mind clutter. When we learn to think intentionally or on purpose, that is when we feel so much lighter and can start deciding like, okay, do I want to continue paying for a storage unit for stuff I don't really want?

Or do I start to go through my things in a way that honors my nervous system and honors the fact that I'm not a robot.

I've done a lot of detoxes over the years and many of them made me feel a lot worse. Not only that, but I've had a lot of patients come in and tell me how after doing a detox they.

Have a stomachache and headache and they.

Can'T sleep and they're feeling anxious and I'm like, I can't just recommend that my patients do a program that's going to make them feel worse. So I finally decided to design my own detox program. It's a 14 day detox program that's not like other detox programs out there in several ways. One is that I'm focused on helping you to get the toxins out in a safe and effective way using nutrients, antioxidants and supporting our natural detoxification pathways in the body. Also, I'm helping you to decrease your exposure to toxins by learning the ways that you've been exposed to toxins and how to change your day to day lifestyle to decrease your toxins over time. And I'm helping helping you to look not just at chemical environmental toxins but also emotional and energetic toxicity. And yes, it's possible to accomplish all of this in 14 days. I have so many patients who have done the 14 day detox and report back to me how much better they feel. And I think it's also because I help you to know what to eat. You are getting adequate food that tastes good plus protein shakes that I developed that are good for your body, that your body knows how to use these nutrients and take them in and use them to help you safely detoxify without feeling worse. Also, I help you to balance your blood sugar levels, get better sleep and introduce things like meditation, biofuel feedback and other types of stress recovery into your.

Day to day routine.

So I just am so excited about it. I want to make sure you know about this 14 day detox. I'm going to put the link, you can find it at drdani.com forward/detox-program but I'll also put the link below so you can find the 14 day detox program at the Kidani.com I look forward to guiding you through this detox so that you can actually feel better on your way to better health.

Oh, I love that. That we're not machines, we're humans and, and deciding. Yeah, what do I really want? How do you, how is it like, so I understand, like you were saying, hey, we need to first regulate our nervous system so that we're making decisions from a, a non stressed state, from a calm state. Because we want to. You know, this is what I write about and talk about in the master treasury site or health book is we want to create a calm state so that then we're choosing into that going forward. Any choice we're making is continuing that calm state so we can be choosing from there versus choosing from a stress state. We make a very different decision. So I love that you're saying, hey, let's, let's calm and do some stress recovery first and then start making decisions about the stuff in our lives, in our bodies.

And I totally see that too. When I'm working with patients, I'm like, we've got to calm your system first. It's very tempting, right? It's very. Even for patients. It's very tempting to say, but I'm tired, so I want something to stimulate me. And I'm like, but we first have to calm you because if we just stimulate, stimulate you, we're going to work against ourselves. We're not getting anywhere. So it's like, no, we have to calm things first. That's step one. Then we can decide about what else we can change. Detox, get rid of, keep rebalance. We can do all of that in the next phase. And then we can, then we have a much better chance of being able to maintain at a healthier state.

Exactly. Exactly.

Completely.

Well, and what, you know, if we can start from that calm foundation, then we can think about things more logically. So, for example, often what I see is that people will say, okay, I'm going to declutter all my clothes. And there's a wonderful woman out there, Marie Kondo.

Yeah.

Who is famous. She wrote the videos, her book, her Netflix. And I love that. I love what she shares. Like, does this, does this bring joy or does it spark joy?

Yes.

Where I think things aren't honoring the nervous system is that she'll say, you should declutter category by category. So people will take all their clothes that they have, take them out of the closet, put them on the bed, and they'll look at a mountain of clothing on the bed and guess what happens?

They don't sleep in Their bed for, like, three months.

Oh, my goodness.

It's so overwhelming. They're sleeping on a couch. They're sleeping on the corner of the bed. They don't have full access to their bed. Sometimes longer than three months. I've heard so many different stories, and it makes sense. If the nervous system isn't regulated, how are you going to adjust the mountain of clothing? And it's not just the tangible clothes. It's all of the thoughts of, oh, I spent so much money on that. It was so expensive, and I'm so ashamed that I never even wore it. How can I give it away?

I'm gonna need it next week, you know, or somebody. I had this experience in that dress, and I. If I throw away the dress, it feels like I'm gonna lose that memory or something.

Exactly. Thinking that the memories are stored in the items, that. That's what I mean. That's what we're told. When I was young and we were traveling as a family, you know, my mom would say, you have to buy your memory. You have to buy your memory. Which is probably why in my 20s, I was going, and, like, I have to buy something when I'm on the trips, you know, And. And so we're told our memories are in the things, but really, those things, they might trigger memories, but they're not our memories. Our memories are inside of us, every single cell that we have. And so there are lots of different ways to.

Help.

Help people let go. And really, what it comes down to is storytelling. So you can walk into a neighbor's house and say, oh, my goodness, I would get rid of that and that and that and that, because we don't have the stories that they have with their items. And so what's powerful is that the meaning we create.

It'S flexible. It can evolve. And just because we've had something for a long time, and maybe it served us in the past, but it no longer serves us today, we can say, okay, is this serving me today? Is it time for a new story? It might be time for a new story. Who do I want to be? Who do I want to become? Is this item going to serve me? And you move forward from that perspective. So these stories.

The stories are always optional, especially when they're not serving us. Yes, I have to keep it because Fill in the blank. Or often what I see is, you know, my spouse died or my parents died, my grandparents, and I'm the collector or I'm the receiver of everything. And they would be so mad if I got rid of everything. And so those are the stories, really, that.

Really keep us stuck.

They keep us stuck, and they're not even true. So when we start digging into things like, really, do you think that your spouse who passed away would be mad? Usually the answer is actually no. And my spouse wouldn't want me to spend so much time even focusing on their clutter as I'm doing, so they'd want me to be out there living my life. And. And so often when it's items from somebody that we've loved and they've passed away. You know, for example, I had somebody say the other day in my membership that her mother had come from nothing and had worked so hard, and she had gotten a college degree, and she felt so awful and icky throwing away the framed college degree her mom had worked so hard, so hard to get. And she came to this beautiful realization that the college degree represented a complete experience for her mom that was there was no more work for. That she needed to do on her mom's behalf in terms of keeping. Keeping the degree and that she was. Through this exploration, she was able to let it go, throw it away, because it felt like clutter to her. It was not something that you wanted to frame and put on her wall, you know? And so we go back to the question, do I feel light or heavy? When we look at the items, if the items feel light, they're right. They're not clutter. If they feel heavy, though, that means in their current format, they are clutter. And so if we don't have the energy to kind of change the structure or the form, and then it's permission to let them go.

Wow, I love that you use this. This question of does it feel light or heavy? That sounds like that's really your question. When you're helping people decide on an item or. Or even a thought. Is this thought feel good to me and light, or does this thought feel heavy and stressful and draining? Okay, let me see if I can let. Because we can let our thought. If it's a thought that's just been repeating, we can. We, the ones running the show here, can choose to not have that thought and have a different thought.

Isn't that fun that we get to, like, we don't have to believe every thought we think. I love that. And so you're right. We can. Is the thought serving us, does it feel light or heavy? Or even.

If you look at your calendar and let's just say you keep saying yes to everybody and your calendar is so full and you're realizing I'm going to have nothing left for myself. No energy. Does it feel light or heavy to accept, you know, and offer to attend an event? We are allowed to say no. I even have a client. She had remodeled her kitchen, and she loved the kitchen, but she's like, why do I feel heavy every single time I walk into the kitchen? What? I just remodeled the kitchen and I feel so heavy. And when she felt heavy, like she wasn't taking good care of herself, right? And so she said she used that question for the different aspects of the kitchen, and she realized that the color of the cabinets was really bothering her. Had those painted, and it was just 3. What is 180 degree difference? Or, you know, she just. She would walk into the kitchen after they were painted. Loved it, right? Like, just. It made all the difference in the world. And so, yeah, we get to say, like, do I. Does this thing feel lighter, heavy? Or do I feel lighter, heavy around this thing? And then we can make changes sometimes. Often actually really simple little changes or pivots, and our life becomes so much lighter. And that's what I call the lighter path that we can all take. The lighter path, I think that we. We walk around, we feel so heavy. We've got these invisible backpacks of mental clutter. And the lighter path really is the intentional decision. Anytime we come to a decision point, do I go light or do I go heavy? Do I make a big deal out of this? Do I create some drama? Do I create some guilt, you know, some. Some resentment, whatever it is, or do I take the lighter path, which is not taking myself so seriously, having fun, deciding that decluttering or whatever it is that we're decluttering, that it gets to be an adventure. It's going to create harmony in our life. It's a gift. It's a privilege. I always say clutter is neutral. It really is. It's morally neutral, but its impact is not. It impacts our psychology, impacts our physiology.

I was going to ask you this, Heather. Like, how could the clutter actually impact. Spread someone's health? Like, what do you end up seeing that it. Like, how does it. Like. Because sometimes, you know, that can help us get clarity about why we need to find.

Oh, there's some really interesting research. It was ethnographic research that was taken. It took place in California. And so basically what the researchers did was they went into people's homes, interviewed them, observed them, gave people cameras so that they could continue, you know, recording. Recording themselves and talking about how they felt, and they would Take saliva samples. So they would measure cortisol. And what they realized in this research is that.

That there was definitely a real physiological impact. So when people are saying, my house is full of unfinished projects, there's so much to do, cortisol would go through the roof. And these people also were more depressed, fatigued, had more anxiety. So there really was an impact. And then in another study, and this one is my favorite, they took a group of respondents, split them into two, and gave them some paperwork to fill out. Now, they didn't care what the people were writing on the paperwork. That was just a guise. And so one group worked in a messy office, the other worked in a clean office. Upon leaving, they were offered an apple or a candy bar. And can you guess what happened?

If you worked in the clean office, you were twice as likely to choose the apple over the candy bar.

Wow.

Isn't that fascinating?

Impacting our decisions with our food, with our diet?

Absolutely. Here's the thing. If I walk into my house and it is a mess, I am going straight for the plantain chips. I know what I want. If I walk into my house, though, and if it's clean, things are put away and it's calm, I'm going to go get the leash for my dog Lulu and go take her on a walk. And so clutter 100% impacts how we feel, what we do or don't do. It impacts the results that we have. And so if we want different results.

It starts with thinking, well, what is it that we do want? Getting clear on that, regulating our nervous system, making sure we have a strong foundation to move from, to embrace that discomfort of change and then showing up for ourselves.

I also see how, like I've written this in one of my books is about helping people with insomnia. And in that research, it also comes back to clutter. That when we have clutter in our bedroom or under the bed, that it can really affect our sleep too.

Yes, it absolutely does. We. It's. So it's not. Clutter is not just something we see. We really do perceive it. And so if somebody is working on their sleep, you absolutely want to make, I mean, best case best or best practices are to really address that clutter, make sure there aren't things under the bed, make sure you don't have a lot of electronic electronics plugged in and that there's blue light as well. WI fi is also something to look at, you really want to make and create a safe and healthy bedroom. Another thing, photographs, right? Pictures, peanut pictures, whatever it is of people, of ancestors in the feng shui world, they would say you don't want a lot of eyes peering at you in your bedroom. And so maybe you don't keep those types of pictures there and you get better sleep and then the mind clutter. The mind clutter is what keeps us up or wakes us up in the middle of the night. And so I always like to recommend you get those thoughts out of your head so that the brain has permission to really just to relax and go to sleep, write them down. Whatever it is that is worrying you, get it on paper and that is permission to let go, to get a good night's sleep and then to look at things in the morning. And usually when we do that, you know, we don't solve things in the middle of the night, really.

Usually. And so after a good night's sleep, we can look at whatever problem or issue that we were, we were wondering about and we can look at it with fresh eyes and with a lot of new ideas.

Yeah, it's so true. It's so true. Thank you so much for. Because you've really shared with us some of the stories and insights from your clients and their, what they've realized through this process. And you've explained the living lighter approach and how you look at things differently. Because you mentioned feng shui, it made me curious. What is the. Do you use feng shui in your approach or is that sort of like, well, here's where.

Yeah, I'm not, I'm not a certified feng shui expert. And in the feng shui world they would say like, if somebody's saying like, where do I start with all my clutter? Where do I start? In the feng shui world they would say we start at the front door because that's where the energy comes in and that's where the energy leaves. And I like that idea, but that's not going to be right for everybody. So just like our physiology is unique and different or our chemistry and so forth, so is our psychology. And so starting at the front door for somebody that might feel really heavy, that might feel overwhelming, and instead they want to start in the bathroom. And so I think we can take a lot of wisdom from these different, these different studies and tools and specialties. But at the end of the day, we're going to achieve the most success and sustainable success when we ask ourselves.

Where does it feel lightest to me to start? I like to say low hanging fruit, you know, get some wins, be successful.

And start, get your momentum going.

Exactly that's called the progress principle, and there's actually research behind it. So you get some wins.

You go into areas that you are that are the most lived in so that you can notice those wins.

And again, do it in a way where you're honoring your nervous system, you're honoring your humanness, and. And then you can do it with compassion and you can actually have fun. You can have fun on this journey as well.

I love it. I love it. So maybe share with us a little bit more like, well, I'm going to be sharing for sure in the notes how to find you and how to find your program. So anyone who wants to connect more with Heather, but maybe you could describe, like, when is a good time for someone to think about, you know, one of your programs? Like, is it like, okay, I know I need to declutter? I mean, that seems like an obvious one, but is it like, okay, I'm. I'm want. I'm feeling stuck and heavy, or I know I need to start decluttering because I have a big project coming up in my house and I need to. What are some of the times where people are like, okay, I know I need to do start this program now?

I would say, yeah, great question. I would say, if you are feeling heavy in your home, that is a sign that enough time has gone by now, huh? Yes. I will say I have had. So I have the pleasure of working with a lot of people around the globe. And I have one woman said, Heather, I thought about my clutter for 30 years. 30 years. And I'm so glad that I finally decided to deal with it once and for all with you. And so if you're feeling heavy in your home, think about the greater impact that that is having on you. Or if you're thinking, oh, my gosh, I have a storage unit, or maybe you have three storage units and I don't want them anymore. Instead of that weighing, continuing to weigh on you, adjust your clutter. And I would also say.

Address it with someone who, who, who feels light and right to you. So my energy, like, it's not for everybody, but it is. It really is for the people who like me. And so there are a lot of different guides out there. And so I would go into always, like, just remembering that clutter. Again, we don't have to declutter. We get to do this. This is actually a privilege.

It's.

We get to think about it in that way. And so if you're going to do it, do it with somebody who is uplifting, who Helps you see the larger picture, helps you get to the root of your clutter, and can help you have a more meaningful experience because then the clutter won't come back. And so again, clutter, it's morally neutral. It's just stuff. It's just stuff. But really, when we have it, we have so much mind clutter and our mind clutter, we are so mean to ourselves about the clutter. And so I would say if somebody's feeling overwhelmed by the clutter, if they're embarrassed that they're still trying to declutter after years or decades.

Even if they have a move coming up, whatever it.

Is, or if they're feeling heavy issues too. Because if it's like, you're like, why is this health issue not getting better? I'm thinking like, like, because I had migraines when I had a lot of clutter, or I would think of like, joint pain, physical pain, or even like, you know, an infection that won't go away. I help a lot of women with high risk HPV virus, and sometimes we're like, why won't this virus just go away? And I think sometimes we have to look in our environment. And I teach women this. Look around and be like, what needs to change? What needs to be help? Right? That could even be what holding back. And then the stress suppresses your immune system. And so it's like, hey, if you're, if anything, just in your health feels like, hey, I need this health issue to get better because I don't want to have to have another surgery or another prescription. I want to change this. Then it seems to me that'd be another really good time to be like, okay, absolutely, absolutely. You're saying, like, it's not just about getting rid of the clutter once, but it's how do we get rid of the clutter and make it so it doesn't. Just some other thing doesn't replace it, you know, because now you're just in the same place, it's with a different stuff.

Exactly. Just a different form of clutter. And so that way, if you get to the root of your clutter, if you give yourself that gift.

You know yourself better, you won't try to. You'll know what the holes are and you'll adjust those in a healthy way. And then you won't go looking for happiness, really, because that's what it is. At the end of the day, if I buy this thing, it will make me happy, we think, right? It will make my life better in whatever way. And so when we understand the actual root of our clutter, we can look at items and things and instead of having fomo, like Fear of missing out. So I better buy everything. We can embrace something called Jomo, which I call the Joy of missing Out. And it just, it really does make things lighter. So for example, I was at an open air market over the weekend and I wanted to buy a face cream and there was somebody that was selling some wonderful face creams and I said, okay, this is great, I'll take this. And she's like, it's on sale because I'm going to retire this particular face cream. And immediately my head went to, oh, you should buy all the others because they are on sale. There were two more. You should just buy those. They're small. Buy them, you'll have them. And I realized exactly, oh, that's fomo, that's fear of missing out. And I said to my girlfriend, I said, I want to tell you about the internal dialogue that I'm having right now. And she laughed with me about the fomo. And I said, I'm going to anchor into Jomo the Joy of missing out. And so what that ended up looking like I didn't buy all of the face creams just because I would have used to have done that. And so the joy of that was okay, now I won't have to figure out where to store them. Now I won't have to worry about them going bad or expiring. Now I open up the possibility to finding another amazing brand that I love when I'm in the market for a new one. And there's more money in my, in my, my account and so many things.

To be happy about.

So many reasons that so many joy, like just different reasons for joy. And so that can be a really helpful tool for people when we're learning to let go or trying to not, you know, changing our purchase behavior a little bit. Like Joy of missing Out. It can be really, really powerful.

Oh my gosh, you've given us so many already tips and things that people can implement just from listening today. I can only imagine like if, if someone's like, oh my gosh, I need more of Heather in my life to be, to encouraging me and helping me reframe. Because sometimes it is just a reframe, a shift in the mindset or perspective so that you can like look at it in a different way and be able to lighten up a little bit. And then letting go feels not only easier, but like you said, more fun. So I'm going To make sure that everybody knows how to get in touch with you on social media and your website. Is there anything you would want to share for those who are like, I need more of Heather in my life?

Yeah. I think my website is probably the best place to go to. There's a lot of resources there. Occasionally I'll teach classes, different master classes on going even deeper than what we went to today.

Social media, for me, for a while, it was clutter. Right? I didn't. I just. It just felt happy to me.

Sometimes social media is like another piece of clutter.

Exactly. Although I am reframing the way I think about social media, and it's starting to become a little more fun. So I'm gonna. I'm doing more. And so, yeah, I can. I can be found on social media. That's the thing.

Right? There's a way to do it. It's a. It's the way we look at it and the way it feels that changes the whole thing.

Yeah.

Oh, my gosh. Okay. So School of Living lighter. And this is. This is what you do, what you're up to, and. And if. And that's where people can find you. Thank you again so much for coming and sharing your brilliance with us today.

Thank you so much for having me. I've really enjoyed this conversation.

Me too. And thanks, everyone, for joining us here at how humans Heal. If you're not already subscribed, I welcome you to subscribe so you don't miss the next episode. I'll see you guys all very soon.

Thanks for listening to How Humans Heal. If you liked this episode, leave comment. A a rating and a review. And for more resources, visit drdani.com.