Wednesday 14 October 2009

5 Reasons Why Cleaning Makes You Feel Better

I still remember the upsetting phone conversation where I was told my grandmother's death was imminent. That was nine years ago when I was living in Italy. I'd had the conversation at a phone box on the street and came back to the flat barely able to fight back the tears. One of my flatmates, Steve, gave me a hug and said some nice words but then his next suggestion took me aback. He told me I should do some cleaning. A moment later, both of us had cleaning supplies out and were cleaning parts of the flat that had never been cleaned before. Strange as it may sound, it was the best possible way to spend my time and really helped me focus on something, so as not to sit and dwell on the sad news I'd just received.

I've used cleaning since then as a kind of therapeutic outlet and wanted to share with you some reasons why I think doing some cleaning really can make you feel better. Here are 5 for you:
  1. It clears your mind and keeps your head empty of thoughts because you are concentrating on the task in hand
  2. You move parts of your body so it's a mild form of exercise and (in my humble opinion) shares similar benefits of releasing endorphins, thus improving your mood
  3. It gives you almost instant visual gratification to see the area you've been working on become clean and spotless
  4. As a mother, you feel happier knowing you've helped towards providing a cleaner, safer environment for your child
  5. 'Tidy house, tidy mind'. Having a less cluttered, disorganised home makes you feel more organised and focused
Next time you feel upset or frustrated about something, try doing a bit of cleaning. It doesn't have to be a lot, just 10 minutes of thorough cleaning will make you feel better.
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photo credit

2 comments:

  1. I think you're absolutely right. When we lost our dog in August I cleaned the house from top to bottom. I wasn't trying to remove all trace of him (he died at home) but I just wanted to focus on something mundane and menial to take my mind off my grief.

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  2. Wow I've never really thought of it like that before but yes I can see that cleaning isn't just for cleaning, and thinking about it in this way I can understand why some people clean so much!!!!

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