December 1, 2004
 
 
The Depression Clutter Connection
Stepping Out of the Cycle

Clutter is often the remedy for fear, insecurity, loss, or depression. Clutter fills a "hole". Take a look at the things you buy, collect, acquire, save, store. Then take a look at your past. Upon closer inspection, you will undoubtedly find a "hole" that needs to be filled. Perhaps you are from the Depression Era and save because of the "fear" that there isn't enough. Maybe you've suffered significant personal losses in your life -- family members, home, employment, marriage -- and find the "loss" is less poignant with physical possessions to hold the memories or replace the loss. Unfortunately, we cannot fill the emptiness with material things.

And the Cycle begins. Buying, acquiring, keeping, and storing more than you love, need, or use creates a cluttered environment that weighs you down and aguments feelings of depression. Too often shopping is the remedy. Buying something...a book, a blouse, or a bedspread...makes you feel better for a little while. But bringing more into your home only takes up more space and more energy (and makes a dent in your budget), thus creating more depression, more spending to "feel" better, depressed again, and the cycle goes on.

Consider these alternatives to shopping and buying and step out of the cycle.

  1. Call a friend or loved one you haven't talked to for some time. Reconnect and share your "history."
  2. Choose a box of treasures and pick out a few special items to display and donate the remainder to a worthy charity.
  3. With the holidays approaching, find items among your things you can "gift" and include a poem, article or story about its heritage.
  4. Visit a museum or holiday exhibit.
  5. Purchase only "experiences" (concerts, plays, sports events) and "consumables" (gift certificates, tickets, food, candles) instead of "stuff".
  6. Join a Book Club at your local library. Read!
  7. Sign up for a class -- painting, yoga, cooking, foreign language.
  8. Find ALL your photos and put them in one place. Begin sorting them into albums or "scrapbooking". Gift a special framed photo to a loved one.
  9. Be out of your house by scheduling time at least once a week with friends and family. Don't be alone.
  10. Donate at least TEN things, bags, or boxes as soon as possible!

In Karen Kingston's book Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui she says, "The stagnant energy of clutter pulls you down and can make you feel depressed. Feelings of hopelessness are compounded by clutter." She suggests that if you don't have the energy for a clear-out, "at least get your clutter off the ground, which will lift your energy and your spirits too."

Food for Thought! She also says that "most types of depression are caused by your Higher Self stopping you from doing what you have been doing because it is time for you to do something else." What is it time for YOU to be doing??

Client Success! "I was a skeptic at first, but...my whole attitude has changed. I was definitely an empty box, plastic bags, etc., junkie, but now I just toss them out with no fear of worrying about I just might need them some day. Kathie, you've opened up a whole new world for me." Jane D. from Cortez, Colorado


Kathie Seedroff, Simplified Interiors

Recommended Reading
Clutter-Clearing the Holidays
Simplifying Your Christmas: 100 Ways to Reduce the Stress and Recapture the Joy of the Holidays by Elaine St. James. Simple Pleasures for the Holidays: A Treasury of Stories & Suggestions for Creating Meaningful Celebrations by Susannah Seton

Check out the book Skipping Christmas by John Grisham. The new movie "Christmas with the Kranks" is based on his novel.

Feng Shui for the Holidays
Making the Most of the Season
Whether you know it or not, Feng Shui is at work the minute you start pulling out the decorations, filling your house with red and green, and moving furniture to make room for a tree or mantel dressings. Feng Shui is the art of placement and adding different elements. By moving everything around, you shift the energy and then add all that RED fire energy. Without a clear intention, you've set in motion an environment that beckons activity, expansion, spark, which may create feeling overwhelmed and mayhem.

This year, BEFORE you pull out the decorations, ask yourself -- and your family -- the following questions.

  • What do I (we) like MOST about the holidays?
  • What do I (we) like LEAST about the holidays?
  • How do I (we) want to EXPERIENCE the holidays this year?
  • How do I (we) want to FEEL this holiday season?
Make certain your intentions are clear this year. If you want more activity--shift furniture, add lights to the front door, create space for all your company-- which will bring more active Ch'i. If you want less activity--remove a few chairs from around the table, subdue the lighting in the front of your home, put out fewer decorations--create a relaxing, quiet environment. Where intention goes, energy flows.

SIMPLIFIED INTERIORS
Watch for Name Change
When I first started by business in 1999, I was teaching health classes and simplifying techniques. AllWays SimplyWell seemed the perfect name to express my intentions of helping others be simply well, always and in all ways. Thanks to you, my business has steadily grown and taken on new focus. After much thought, I've decided to change my business name to Simplified Interiors to reflect my new intentions -- helping people simplify their interiors by clearing clutter from home, office, body, heart, mind, and spirit the feng shui way.

Watch for emails and tips coming from SIMPLIFIED INTERIORS in the upcoming months. While the name has changed, I remain dedicated to providing you with clutter clearing and feng shui services and tips to help you create the environment that supports your goals and desires.

Phone: 303.779.4717

"The home you live in accurately represents your current lifestyle. When you make changes...whether deliberately or unconsciously -- it feels different, you feel different, and you ARE different." -- Kathleen Tumpane