Is Your Clutter Crowding out True Love?

Improve the Quality of Your Love Life

Is your clutter getting in the way of relationship success? Do you ever have those little (or maybe not so little) arguments with your loved one about the mess and clutter in the house? Is all the stuff getting in the way of deeper intimacy with the one you love?

You may not even be aware of the effect that a cluttered and disorganized space has on you and your relationship. You may be pleasantly surprised to find that when you choose to let go of stuff you don’t want or need anymore, you create space for more quality into your life.

 Bye-bye Clutter, Hello Romance

A home that is disorganized with things strewn about can be a real source of conflict between couples. It’s stressful enough just trying to balance the needs, wants, and expectations of each person in the relationship. Arguing about clutter doesn’t have to happen.

Deciding to make a change in this area could be just what’s needed to spice up your relationship. When you start to streamline and simplify your life by surrounding yourself with only items that you love, use, and need, you will start to find more time in your life. Instead of spending three hours cleaning out the closet, you’ll be able to spend that time cuddling on the couch watching a movie together. You may even free up some financial resources because you’ll no longer be running out to buy duplicates of stuff you can’t find. Not only can this help reduce spats about money, but you might even be able to swing a dinner out more often together.

6 Tips to Get the Ball Rolling

• Open the lines of communication and find out from each other what is bothering each of you the most
• Try to keep an open mind and listen carefully to the other person and seek to understand their point of view
• Give up the blame game, and be honest with yourself, accept what is true for you
• Look for common ground between the two of you
• Realize you can’t change someone else and focus on what you can do to improve the situation
• Be realistic in your expectations, both for yourself and for the other person involved

It Takes Time to Change Habits and Thought Patterns

Changing a habit or thought pattern is hard. Start small, I mean tiny. Come up with rewards for those tiny wins.

Did you both agree that the clothes would put in the hamper each night and you’ve kept it up for three days? Did you donate those five shirts you said you were going to?

It’s time to celebrate! How about an at home movie date or nice shoulder massage as a reward?

Give encouragement, and be accepting of praise as well. Tell yourself positive affirmations, even if you mess up or backslide. It happens to us all and there’s no reason for self-admonishment.

Try this: If you catch yourself thinking self-defeating thoughts, say seven positive things to yourself to disrupt the pattern.

There really must be something to that “birds and bees” talk, right? Watch this video of a Bowerbird organizing to impress a mate:

Create a Bedroom Sanctuary

Clutter in a bedroom can kill the romance. Even if the rest of the house is still a cluttered mess, banish clutter from this space.

Remove anything that belongs in another part of the home. Examples might be:

• drinking glasses and dishes
• books you are not currently reading
• tools
• papers
• trash

Create clear space on the tops of dressers and nightstands. Your eyes need a place to rest when looking around the room, which will help you feel more calm and relaxed. A state more conducive to love!

Thoughtfully place a few beautiful items that make you smile and feel happy when you look at them. Having just a few items out will allow you to appreciate them more.

Make Room in Drawers and Closets

Shoving visible clutter inside of a drawer to hide it remains clutter, except now it’s just hidden from view. You might not see it, but you’ll know it’s there.

Be picky about what you allow in your space, even if it’s hidden inside of drawers and cabinets. Inside of your bedside table, you could store things like a gratitude journal and a nice quality pen or a book of poems or affirmations you read nightly.

Keep things corralled using attractive trays, boxes, and containers. Using nice containers to hold your things that are out of sight can also boost your motivation to keep it neat.

If there are piles of clothes on the floor, chair, or bed and no room in the closet, review what you have and what you can let go of. Put the discards in a large garden or contractor bag and take it to the thrift store or schedule a pick-up.

One easy way to decide what goes? Ask yourself if you’d buy that sweater again today if you were out shopping. If the answer is no, you know what to do!

– Wishing you joy, happiness, and love!

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Do you have an inspiring story of how de-cluttering improved your relationship? Share it below: