How Going To Bed With A Messy House Can Absolutely Ruin Your Sleep

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Are you starting to feel the effects of living in an untidy house?  The truth is, going to bed with a messy house can completely ruin a good night’s sleep.

So how do you know if your clutter is affecting your sleep? . . .

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It is quite simple really.  If you have trouble shutting your brain down at night, it is a sign that you are stressed.   And clutter can play a huge part in making you feel more stressed than you need or want to.

If you have read any of my posts before, you know about my back problems.  For years I had back pain that didn’t allow me to keep my house clean, uncluttered, and organized the way I wanted it to be.  

I would miss appointments, not be able to find anything in my house, and I would lay awake at night worrying about tomorrow.

I was always stressed.

So when I realized that clutter may actually be affecting my sleep, I started getting rid of that clutter as soon as I could.

Related Post: How To Clean A Crazy Messy House When You Are Overwhelmed

So Is It Okay To Have A Messy House When You Go To Bed?

I want to tell you it is okay to have a messy house when you go to bed.  But when I say yes to a mess, it is ONLY EVER a mess that is very small, very contained, or only there because it cannot be taken care of right away.  

Otherwise, there is no reason for a messy house when you go to bed.  Every night, if you make sure to clean up and put your house the way you want it before you go to sleep, you will feel great in the morning.  

Creating this habit will help you sleep at night because you will not be going to bed with a messy house.

The Importance Of Sleep

Let’s start with the importance of sleep.  We all know how important sleep is.  We have been hearing it from studies for years that you need to get between 7 and 8 hours of SOLID sleep a night.

I love when studies say this, because if you are a mom, you know that good quality sleep after you have kids is just not that easy to get.

Starting from day one after having kids, you are pretty much awake every 2 hours for like…the rest of your life.  Or maybe it just feels that way.

Because believe it or not, eventually, your kids are going to start sleeping better and you will want to start sleeping better too.

Now, I am going to let you in on a little secret.  It is not that easy to start sleeping well again even once your kids are sleeping well.  Why?  

Because of stress.

Yup, once you have kids, you are no longer able to live in that blissful place you did before kids. 

Where the only person you had to worry about was yourself… and if you felt like sleeping in the middle of the day, you could!

So if you can come up with ways to cut down on some of your daily stress, I strongly encourage it.  And clutter can cause a huge amount of stress.

• Constantly thinking about how messy your house looks.
• Not wanting people to come over from embarrassment.
• Tripping over items that are laying around on the floors.
• Losing items you need everyday and spending time looking for them.
• Not having flat surfaces to use for eating meals, cooking, or crafts.
• Not being able to turn off your brain because of the anxiety being caused by the clutter.

Many of us have learned over the years that stress and anxiety can cause us to lay awake at night thinking, dreaming, tossing and turning instead of getting that luxurious deep sleep that we need.

We worry because we are moms.  And we are stressed because we are moms.  But we do not have to have clutter because we are moms.  

Mind Clutter Is One Form Of Clutter Effecting Your Sleep

Stress, worry, and anxiety is carried with us as we try to sleep at night.  

And not being able to turn off your brain at night to sleep is a definite way to tell if you have severe mind clutter.

Questions just continue to run through your mind like:

Will I remember my appointment?

When will we get things cleaned up in our house?  

How can we stop being late whenever we have to leave? 

How can I remember all of the things on our schedule?

How can I keep the toy room clean so I am not tripping over things?

This is called mind clutter.  The constant thinking when we cannot turn our brains off.

Mind clutter is caused by not having a solution to your problems.  It is from not knowing what to expect the next day.  

If you are not sure if you will remember your appointments for the next day, then you lay awake afraid you won’t remember.

If you are not sure if you will be able to find the things you need, then you lay awake worrying about where you put your things so you can find them in the morning.

If you don’t know how to get your house cleaned up, then you lay awake thinking about how to clean your house.

All of these worries and anxieties create mind clutter that keep us from sleeping.

The question on my mind was always… 

“If I closed my eyes and let my mind relax, would I remember all the things I had to do the next day?”

If you have a lot of mind clutter, then you can try things like:

• Meditation
• Yoga
• Reading before bed
• Progressive relaxation
• Relaxation breathing
• Organization
• Routines
• Habits
• Decluttering

All of which will help you clear your mind of clutter.

Physical Clutter Is The Other Kind If Clutter That Affects Your Sleep

Did you know that physical clutter sends signals to your brain that you have unfinished tasks?  

Well then, of course you are not sleeping!  Because your brain thinks you still have things to do!

Physical clutter causes unrest, over stimulation, and stress, which is one major reason why our bodies may not be able to relax at night to sleep.

I can remember before I was clutter free and organized.  

I was late everywhere, I forgot appointments all the time, I could never find my keys or phone, I would worry at night about what I would forget the next day.  

Why?  Because I couldn’t find anything.  I would spend 20 minutes trying to find my keys and phone.  

If I was trying to get the kids out the door, I wouldn’t be able to find their coats or their other shoe.  

So I was running up and down the stairs 15 times searching for things, and not doing my bad back any favors.

And because I could not find anything in the clutter, and because I felt embarrassed and guilty by the mess in our house, I could not relax.

It wasn’t until I finally learned to declutter and organized that I finally found that I was more relaxed, I could remember appointments, and I could sleep better at night.

The Connection Between Clutter And Sleep

Above I talk about needing to relax and turn our brains off to sleep.  Then, I talk about how clutter naturally keeps our brains on and overstimulated, whether it is mind clutter or physical clutter.

Overall, if you have clutter, you will not be able to sleep as easily as someone without clutter.

Going To Bed With A Messy House

There are many ways to sleep better at night, but getting rid of clutter is a major solution. Going to bed with a messy house can truly reek havoc on your ability to sleep.

Here is how you can stop going to bed with a messy house:

1//  Pick up clutter every night.

2//  Get the whole family to help put clutter away.

3//  Don’t put items down, put them away.

4//  Start a night time routine that includes cleaning up.

5//  Get organized so you can put items away even faster by knowing exactly where they go.

Want more detail about these steps?  Read How To Start Decluttering When You Feel Overwhelmed

How To Declutter Your House In One Day

Decluttering takes time if you are wanting to keep and donate some items.  But if you do not, and you want to declutter your house in one day.  Then I suggest going extreme.

Find some friends or family to help you, get some large trash bags, and just start going through everything and throwing it away.  

You will probably even be done in less than a day if you have a lot of help.

How A Messy Room Can Affect Your Sleep

A messy bedroom can definitely cause more stress.  Again, if there is mess and clutter all over, then your brain thinks there is still work to do.  

So try spending a few minutes each night picking up items of clothing and hanging them up.  Put away shoes in your closet.  If there are things that do not belong in a bedroom, then move them out of the bedroom.

Other items that can cause clutter in your room is electronic clutter.  Things like TV’s, phones, and tablets.  Not only are you continuously tempted to keep checking your Instagram or Facebook account, but things like phones can buzz and ding at night disturbing your sleep.

Also, blue light that is emitted from electronic devices can stop the production of melatonin and cause you to have a hard time falling asleep.

Instead of watching TV at night in your bedroom, try reading a good book.  Studies have shown that reading is one of the best ways to relax your mind for a better night’s sleep.

How To Declutter Your Bedroom Fast

Again, decluttering takes time if you want to do it right.  

So I do not recommend doing some of these things if you are truly wanting to declutter.  But if you need to declutter fast because you are trying to sell your house or having people over, then these tricks will work.

• Get family and friends to help
• I like these garbage bags because they are tough and durable enough to just throw all you clutter in and toss it.
• Push everything under the bed
• Move everything into the closet
• Move all the items into a different room

Related Post:  How To Start Organizing A Messy House In 5 Easy Steps

How To Simplify Your Bedroom

One great way to keep clutter out of your bedroom is to simplify it. 

Make sure that you have furniture that will hold your items out of site such as a wardrobe, chest of drawers, or nightstand.  

Do not use your bedroom for any kind of storage.  By that I mean don’t store cookie sheets and bath towels and other random items in your bedroom.  Make sure your room is just for sleeping and relaxing.

Simplify your room by only keeping the essentials in your bedroom.  Some warm comfortable sheets, pillows and blankets, your bed, and a few pieces of furniture to hold your clothing and other items is all you need.

I also like to keep a good book on my nightstand.

And instead of keeping your phone or tablet by your bed to tell the time, place a generic alarm clock with a red number instead of blue.  

A simple lamp or two will help to keep lighting low and help you relax in the evenings.

That is all you should need in your bedroom to make sure you keep it simple and relaxing while keeping the clutter out.

Overall, I hope you can see how clutter can affect your sleep whether it is mind clutter or physical clutter.  

Keeping the clutter in your home and bedroom to a minimum will also help you keep your mind clutter to a minimum.

If you are getting started decluttering, and you need more help, here is a step by step guide on how to decide if you should throw something out of not.

I am so happy that you are making decisions to make your life better. Getting rid of clutter, getting organized, and establishing good routines and habits are a great way to take care of yourself and your family’s well being.

Want a better routine? Create one that works for you by grabbing your Routine Creation Worksheets below!

Thank you for reading this post!

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