I’ve been standing in my house lately, looking around, with this tightness in my chest that I can’t quite shake. It’s not that my home is messy in the “can’t-see-the-floor” kind of way (except maybe the the bedrooms 😂). It’s just full.
Full of clothes the kids have outgrown, kitchen gadgets I thought I’d use, bins of holiday decor, and sentimental things I can’t seem to part with.
And every time I try to start cleaning or decluttering, I end up bouncing from one thing to the next. It’s so hard to actually finish, I just seem to keep moving the same pile around until the day’s gone and the house looks exactly the same.
It’s exhausting.
The Panicky Feeling No One Talks About
I think we all talk about clutter like it’s a “stuff” problem. It’s the too many things, not enough space. But for me, it’s not just that.
It’s the emotional clutter too.
Every time I pick something up like an old baby blanket, a craft project I swore I’d finish, a box of random cords, and it’s like my brain short-circuits.
I start thinking: I might need this later. It cost money. Someone gave me this. I should be better at keeping up. The list could go on.
Suddenly, it’s not just a messy room, it’s guilt, overwhelm, nostalgia, and panic all tangled together.
When You’re Stuck in the “Too Much” Phase, Like Me
There’s a strange kind of stuckness that comes when you realize you’re surrounded by too much.
You want to simplify. You know you’ll feel better when things are lighter, but the process feels so big that you don’t even know where to start.
So instead, you do what I do:
You start in one room, move to another, then another, until you’re standing in the kitchen wondering how you got there with three half-finished piles and that tight, panicky feeling creeping back in.
You make a mental note to start fresh tomorrow.
Then tomorrow comes, and the cycle repeats.
You’re Not the Only One
I used to think I was just lazy or unmotivated, and everyone else knew some magical secret to keeping their homes calm and clutter-free.
But the more I talk to friends and readers, the more I realize: we’re all overwhelmed.
We’re tired.
We’ve accumulated years of stuff, physical things, emotional attachments, expectations.
And when life gets busy (as it always does), the clutter just quietly multiplies in the background.
So if you’ve been staring at your own house feeling that anxious flutter in your chest, you’re not alone. You’re not broken. You’re just human.
A Gentle Way to Begin
Here’s what I’m trying lately. This is not a “clean the whole house in a day” plan, just small, gentle steps that feel doable for me.
I’m picking one tiny space. A drawer, a corner, a cabinet— not a room. Set a timer for 10 minutes. When it goes off, I stop, even if I’m not finished. I notice the relief, not the mess. One less cluttered corner is still progress. I’m giving myself grace. After all, Rome wasn’t built in a day, right?
This season isn’t about perfect homes or Pinterest-worthy minimalism.
It’s about creating a little more peace in the space we already have— one small breath, one small drawer, one small victory at a time.
And maybe, little by little, we can all find our way back to the kind of home that feels calm again. Not perfect, but peaceful.
Elaney