I Hired a Home Organiser to Help Me Regain Control of My Life, and My Mood Instantly Improved

When the COVID-19 stay at home orders first began in early 2020, my home also became an office, a school, a gym, and a movie theatre overnight. And my family and I went from spending just a few waking hours a day at home to spending every waking hour at home.

Along with the transition of space definitions, more responsibilities were immediately piled onto my plate. Educating and entertaining a 5-year-old, home-cooking every meal, and finding creative ways to juggle it all became part of my resume overnight. On paper, I was doing it all. My daughter was learning, my business was thriving, and my husband was happy. But something always has to give, and what gave in this situation was my own happiness. I was starting to feel anxious and showing signs of depression.

I learned quickly that I was not alone in feeling this way. In fact, according to an analysis published in the Journal of Affected Disorder that evaluated 66 studies, researchers found that over 30 percent of people have experienced depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Link Between Environment and Mental Health

Since I was wearing so many hats already, cleaning and organising my home went to the wayside. Figuring that it was no big deal to have piles of items on the kitchen counter and on the dining room table when we weren't accepting guests due to safety precautions, my home got pretty out of control. And it was something I could live with . . . until I couldn't. As my disorganisation grew, I found that my anxiety grew as well. The clutter was not conducive to a peaceful environment, and it became stressful seeing stuff everywhere.

Turns out, there is an actual link between environment, clutter, and mental health. Too much clutter can create chaotic and disorganised living spaces and can have a negative impact on a person's well-being, according to an article published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology. And having a cluttered and unfinished home has literally been linked to more stress – highlighted by trends in cortisol levels in the body that were measured in a cluttered environment vs. an organised environment.

How I Changed My Environment to Support My Mental Health

After learning how having an orderly home isn't just a vanity goal, I was ready to take control of my clutter. But as much as I wanted to Marie Kondo my home, my free time was already so limited. And things had gotten so bad that I didn't even know where to begin. So, I called in a professional.

Out of desperation, I reached out to a local professional organiser. When I saw that their name was Once Upon a Clutter, I immediately felt a sense of calm thinking of a cleaning fairy godmother entering my home and making it feel clean and welcoming.

And Keri Scott, the magical organiser, turned out to be so much more than an organiser. She analysed my day-to-day routine, my priorities, and my challenges. Yes, she helped me de-clutter and put things away, but she also helped me organise the flow of my day to make things run more efficiently, and thus, help me maintain the organisation.

Scott shared that by helping me get control of my home, I will also get more control of my life. She added that having an organised and de-cluttered home can instantly change the energy of a room. Having a clean and tidy environment can add a sense of calm, peace, and control that messes can't hold a candle to.

She and I de-cluttered, purged, and organised my entire home. We re-worked some spaces that need to function differently now that my entire family was home more often. And we found a "home" for miscellaneous items that were simply scattered about.

No, my food is not colour-coded and my child's Legos are not sorted by size, but things are put away and I only have essentials in eye-sight. Everything else is in its place.

How Hiring a Home Organiser Changed My Mood

Hiring a home organiser was certainly an investment – both financially and time-wise. But the outcome of the experience was worth so much more than the dollars and minutes I spent changing my environment.

Instead of staring at piles of stuffed animals and towels, I see clean countertops and an organised pantry. And instead of entering a room and immediately feeling my shoulders tense, I feel a sense of calm.

I now enjoy the space in my home. It's a peaceful haven that allows me to create, have fun, and live. Hiring a home organiser was one of the best things I could have done for myself during the COVID pandemic. My house is so much more than a home now, and since I am spending 24/7 staring at the same walls, having an environment that is not overstimulating and is orderly is just what I needed to help me feel so much better.