Therapist KC Davis discusses the link between messiness and mental health, sharing practical tips on tackling clutter from her book. The podcast explores the concept of executive functioning and its impact on task performance. It also discusses the effects of tidying up on mental health and provides practical solutions for maintaining a clean and organized home. The episode concludes with reflections on self-care and a preview of the next episode on forgiveness.
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Quick takeaways
Releasing shame associated with messiness is crucial for productivity and reducing anxiety.
Understanding the impact of executive functioning challenges and finding strategies that work with individual brain functions can improve task completion.
Deep dives
Overcoming Challenges During the Pandemic
The podcast episode features Casey Davis, a licensed therapist and mom, sharing her personal story of how her plans for support after giving birth during the pandemic fell through, leading to a decline in her mental health. She turned to TikTok to document her chaos and offer tips for reducing overwhelm. The response was overwhelming, as many people related to her struggles. Casey emphasizes the importance of releasing shame associated with messiness and disorganization, as it can hinder productivity and contribute to anxiety. By breaking tasks into small, manageable steps and finding strategies that work with individual brain functioning, she suggests that even messy people can learn to organize and clean effectively.
The Impact of Shame and Pressure
Casey highlights how society and outdated beliefs contribute to the moral judgment of messy individuals. Calling someone lazy for struggling with cleaning or organizing overlooks the potential barriers they face and undermines their self-esteem. She explains that feeling shame about messiness wastes mental energy and makes it harder to complete tasks. Living in a cluttered environment can also trigger anxiety and stress, as the brain struggles to prioritize amidst the chaos. Casey warns that perfectionism can lead to anxiety as well, perpetuating a cycle of dissatisfaction. The first step towards a cleaner environment is releasing the shame associated with messiness.
Understanding Executive Functioning
The podcast delves into the role of executive functioning in completing care tasks effectively. Casey explains that tasks like dishes, laundry, and cleaning require executive functioning skills, such as time management, task initiation, and focus. Disruptions to these functions, whether due to depression, anxiety, ADHD, or external factors like sleep deprivation and chronic stress, can hinder productivity. When overwhelmed, the brain may freeze, feel overwhelmed, or become easily distracted. Casey emphasizes that understanding these challenges can help individuals approach tasks in more manageable ways and find strategies that work with their unique brain functions.
Practical Solutions for Tackling Messiness
Casey offers practical solutions for tackling messiness and reducing overwhelm. She introduces the 'five things method,' which involves breaking tasks into five specific categories: trash, dishes, laundry, items with a designated place, and items without a designated place. By focusing on one category at a time, individuals can activate repetitive actions and minimize the mental load associated with decision-making and organization. Additionally, Casey suggests transitioning from a comparison-based division of labor to a concept of fair rest, where both partners prioritize each other's well-being and ensure they have time to recharge and relax.
If you’re feeling anxious or overwhelmed, taking out the trash or doing laundry is normally the last thing on your mind. Therapist KC Davis says that’s by design. Sometimes, brains are too focused on survival mode to complete even the simplest of tasks. So how can we beat this mental block? On today’s episode, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN’S Chief Medical Correspondent, sits down with Davis to discuss the link between messiness and mental health. Plus, Davis shares her approach to tackling clutter from her book, “How To Keep House While Drowning.”