The Cut

Transitioning from living in clutter to a clean environment, the link between physical space and mental clarity, and tips on how to keep the change.

The spaces we keep mirror the state of our minds. Decluttering improves self-worth, creates healthy habits and boosts productivity; and a clean space improves sleep, mood and relaxation.

The things we fear getting rid of the most end up negatively impacting our lives. Decluttering and donating can improve not only your life but also the lives of those in need.

In an article by Diane Roberts for Psychology Today, she states that staying organized can be hard for people with ADHD (like me), a brain injury, or executive function deficit. But it is essential for time management.

Disorganization fuels stress, distraction and fatigue. The clutter in our rooms and homes impacts cognition, mood, stress and mental health by causing chaos, visual distractions and causes negative emotions because the brain doesn't know how to prioritize among distractions, so it limits the ability to process information, leading to lowered productivity and increased irritability, anxiety, depression and cortisol levels (a stress hormone).

The brain sees each item as a chore or a choice that has to be made, which causes a cognitive overload called decision fatigue. The emotional attachment to things makes it harder.

Clutter, as it states in an article by the Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, can trigger the Zeigarnik Effect, which is the mind's tendency to become preoccupied with incomplete tasks and create mental background noise that prevents relaxation.

Steps to decluttering

Step 1: Start with small, manageable goals and do one at a time.

Step 2: Ask for help from family, friends, or hire someone to help you make decisions.

Step 3: Take pictures if you have trouble parting with things.

Step 4: Decide what to do with unwanted items.

Tips to keep your space clean

• Set a timer for 15 minutes to stop the task from feeling like a chore.

• Put things away or where they will be used next, not in a temporary pile.

• Label containers or use consistent, designated spots for things you use daily.

Ladies First, starring Rosamund Pike and Sacha Baron Cohen, is a new movie released just this year in May 2026. In the film, Rosamund Pike as Alex Fox and Sacha Baron Cohen as Damien Sachs, play competing advertising executives who end up swapping societal power dynamics when Damien knocks his head and wakes up in an alternate matriarchal world.

This new Netflix comedy is currently trending everywhere. I First saw it mentioned in a video where this woman, Taylor Black who I follow on TikTok, said she watched it with her husband. The gender-swapped concept was intriguing to me, as is any content where a man is somewhat taught what being a woman in a patriarchy feels like.

Here's the basic setup: Damien (a total misogynist) hits his head on wakes up in a matriarchal parallel world where women hold all the power and men are underestimated.

Rosamund Pike seamlessly pulls of the transition from an "unimportant" employee to a powerful, dominant executive. She embodied that creepy masculine tendency to stare and be intimidating that scares women every day. I saw her do it in an interview after the movie to a male interviewer, and he squirmed! I mean actually SQUIRMED under her gaze! He openly said, "That's terrifying", like women dont experience it almost every day, in places we're supposed to be safe. Applause to her for pulling that off. Imagine the power women could have if we could all make men uncomfortable like that.

Sacha Baron Cohen played his role so well I felt real anger towards him, and real joy when the women laughed at him and interrupted him and told him not to "get emotional." The utter satisfaction i felt was honestly a bit evil of me.

The visual gender flips were also really interesting, like at the restaurant Burger Queen, where women eat burgers and men are the ones eating salad; and Queen's Criss station. The fashion was also different in a way I wouldn't mind people wearing in this society. Everyone in the corporate world wore suits, but they had this feminine flair, even the men's outfits. There were some funny but inappropriate transitions too that made me laugh out loud, but I'll keep that a surprise.

And we can obviously not forget the romance, a classic enemies-to-livers, but with the comedic flair of the swapped gender roles and high stakes of needing to go back to the "right" world. I was hooked the entire time.

The movie is trying to make a big point about gender dynamics and privilege in society. The only problem I had with it was the description of it being a "matriarchal" parallel world. Im glad the movie was the way it was, giving Damien what he deserved, but let's be honest here, in a real matriarchal society we would never treat men as badly as they treat us every day.

Do they deserve it? Yes. Am I saying it's all men? No. But fo i think women would rule justly and equally? Of course.

A detailed update on "ex-hoarder to clean girl", what's done is what's not, and the emotional attachment to things and the relief of letting go

My desk is covered in clutter, my floor is dusty, my walls are stained and my bed is unmade. I'm stuck in an in-between that feels heavy. I've come so far, yet it's hard to push on and go over the finish line. All that said, I've hit the halfway point.

There is now a huge contract between the physical feeling of the newly cleared space versus the lingering weight of the unfinished half.

I've cleared all the unused childhood items and linen from the main cupboards, thrown out trash that I hoarded for years, and organized my shelves. It feels open, freeing and peaceful.

There's space to put my coffee while I'm reading instead of placing it in the danger zone on the floor, and I can sleep, stretched out, in peace. The monster in the corner? That's my desk. The place I'm supposed to keep clear to work, write and study. Now I sit on my bed, my butt and back aching, or on the couch (with the same problem), or at the kitchen table, where everyone in the house always is.

Checklist:

• Clear the desk.

• Clear the drawers.

• Organise my books.

• Get rid of the boxes and clutter.

• Hang up the mirror.

Why do we keep things we don't use? Is it fear or forgetting the past? Sentimental value or nostalgia? Is it anxiety about the future? The “maybe I'll need it later”? All of these things have an emotional weight.

However, physical clutter often mirrors mental clutter. We have to acknowledge the letting go isn't about throwing away; it feels like letting go of an old version of yourself that you aren't entirely sure how to yet.

The thing is, there's a literal physical relief that you feel when all bag of clutter leaves the room. You can think clearly and you don't feel so overwhelmed. A lot of that day-to-day overwhelmed feeling is because of your space. Clean room = clean mind.

And once I realised that an object's value isn't so much about the physical thing, but more about the memory, it completely chnaged my perspective. There will always be things we will never let go. Im not saying to get rid of everything, but think about it.

Here's me writing my blog in said kitchen:)

What's the strategy for the home stretch, you may ask? I'm taking pictures of all the things I plan to sell and putting them neatly into boxes until they do.

That's also something you can remember: you don't have to throw everything away. Give it to people who need it or sell it and earn something along the way. Someone might enjoy it more than you do.

In the mirror I see...

(an essay by me)