Anything that obstructs your ability to think or act is considered mental clutter. Mental clutter, like physical clutter, must be dealt with before it becomes overpowering. We live in a society where information is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, multitasking is the norm, and being busy is a badge of pride. It’s no surprise that our minds have grown clogged with useless information.
WHAT CAUSES IT?
Every day, your brain processes thousands of thoughts and stimuli. It’s a powerful and enigmatic skill that science is only now beginning to comprehend. Unlike physical clutter, which is relatively easy to remove, mental clutter is more difficult to eliminate. This is because you are unable to control your thoughts. Have you ever attempted to put anything out of your mind? You’re successful in the first few seconds, and your mind is clear. The notion returns, and you make an effort not to think about it. The more you try to avoid thinking, the more stressed you become, and the more your mind wants to concentrate on it. This starts off a cycle of negative ideas, which in turn stimulates unpleasant feelings, and the cycle continues indefinitely. Because emotions are now tied to your thoughts, they get rooted in your body and mind.
THE IMPACT OF MENTAL CLUTTER ON YOUR HEALTH
When you have a negative emotion, your body will respond as well. In response to the stimuli, the amygdala, which processes emotions in the brain, sends messages to the body to produce hormones. When you experience a negative feeling like fear, hormones like adrenaline and cortisol are generated to prepare you to fight or flee. Blood is shunted from certain regions of the body, such as the digestive system, to other parts, such as the heart and muscles. To survive in the stone era, your brain developed this talent, but it never outgrew it. In today’s world, fear is largely associated with perceived rather than the actual threat. When your mind is unable to clear the undesirable clutter, it causes worry and anxiety.
