Are your clothes the source of your stress?

Can organizing your closet really reduce your stress level?

For most of my life my closet has been a mess. I try on an outfit, it doesn’t fit, I throw it on the floor. My clothes fit some days and some days they did not. When I put my clothes away, I would procrastinate but eventually just throw them in my closet haphazardly without organization. It was a chore I dreaded.

My routine of having a hateful relationship with my clothes has continued through my entire adult life. It wasn’t until I was charged with de-stressing my life as much as possible that this all changed. You see, I unfortunately suffered a major head injury and any stress was major stress to my brain. I could no longer handle the stress of colors let alone being simply annoyed at anything. My search to rid stress from my life took all forms until one day it took me to my closet. I stood in my closet annoyed and aggravated that my favorite jeans didn’t fit from belly bloat. Belly bloat is just another wonderful thing women have to deal with. Mine was bloated way more than its ever been due to stress. Nothing fit. Nothing felt good. Everything hurt. And to make matters worse, I couldn’t find anything because I was exhausted after searching for a few minutes. My brain easily tired in those days and boy was it a task to find clothes. I used to be able to search and try on many outfits until I found one that satisfied me. Now, my nearly scarred and swollen brain could only handle a few minutes in that endless maze.

It was in that moment that I decided to organize my closet in a system that felt easier on my brain. I couldn’t keep fighting with my brain every single day just to get dressed. I’d never go anywhere! I needed a way to walk into my closet relaxed and walk out relaxed with minimal effort.

First, I decided that I had to let go of what image of myself I had cooked up in my brain. I had to let go of having to fit a standard I was not at. My body had been through so much. Giving birth to and nursing four children had shaped and morphed my body past my teen years. Years of impossible stress had changed my belly. And my new head injury had changed my face and the way I no longer smiled. The person I saw in the mirror was someone I hated. My stretch marks were not beautiful to me, they were ugly reminders at how far I had fallen from the beautiful perfection of my early years. All I saw was a disappointment and a body that was no where near desirable.

This same scenario is sadly familiar to thousands of women all over the globe. We hate ourselves because we’ve changed with time. We don’t celebrate our bodies. We compare and let it steal our joy. We compare our bodies to those that haven’t gone through what we’ve gone through. We self sabotage ourselves with hate and bitter resentment. We don’t even realize that our entire day is shaped by that hatred. It all starts right there in our closet!

What happens when we are stressed? Our cortisol levels are raised. What happens when our cortisol levels are raised consistently over a long period of time? We bloat, we gain weight, we get moody, our bodies get inflamed and sore. What’s mistaken for normal body aches and pains could be your raised cortisol! Something as simple as getting stressed over clothes first thing in the morning can have a huge impact on your health! 

You are starting the day with an unnatural spike in cortisol levels. Add to that the morning rush, work and family stress and then financial stresses and you have a cortisol mess.

By simple starting your day off happier, your levels can more slowly adjust to the day at a normal pace. Start by learning to accept yourself for exactly who and where you are today.

Our bodies are AMAZING things. They’ve withstood so many trials and tribulations. If you are breathing and still here today, you’ve overcome 100% of your hard times! You’ve pushed through and sacrificed. You become stronger and tougher and wiser. Your body may look unrecognizable from the standard you have inside your head but that body you see before you is a work of art!

When I learned to accept and love what I saw before me, I started shopping for what made me feel good and what made me feel my best. I stopped looking at sizes and started focusing on what I loved. I didn’t care if it had a size that I thought I should be in. I was alive and breathing and that was enough. It was time to start celebrating life instead of being depressed of where I was. And then the organization began..

At first I had to start off very slowly because of my brain. But then once I made a little progress, I kept going. My kids helped me too. Together we came up with a simple system. And that system made my heart happy.

I began to notice that just by organizing my closet, I started my day with a happy heart. My hate for the closet disappeared and turned to joy and excitement. I began looking forward to getting dressed in the morning. I couldn’t wait to wear all of the things that made me ME!

You can do it too! You can change your entire day just by organizing your closet. You can change your mood and your life by starting your day off on a happy and loving note.

So how do you do it? How do you even begin? Take things slow and simple. You don’t have to do it all in one day. But put a little bit of effort into every step and see how much better you feel.

I’ve written down the 10 steps I’ve used in my own life to help you implement them for yourself. Here they are:

10 ways to destress through your closet

1. Get rid of any clothes that don’t make you happy.

Stop holding onto jeans that you want to fit into it again. Get rid of that image that you have to be a certain way. Get rid of the self sabotaging you do to punish yourself for not looking like you did when you were younger. The YOU you are now is so much better!

Stop holding onto clothes that don’t make you feel good when you wear them. If it hurts your stomach or is a size too small, get rid of it! Stop sacrificing for others when you’re not even happy with what you’re wearing. Get rid of every single piece of clothing that doesn’t make you feel good about yourself. You went up two jean sizes? Who cares! How many people do you really think care what your Jean size is? And if they do, I’m willing to bet they aren’t even an important part of your life. We all have a certain amount of energy each day. Don’t waste it on people that aren’t even important to you.

Do you realize every time you look in your closet, you could be punishing yourself, and feeling depressed by seeing that pair of jeans that doesn’t fit any more? Get rid of it! Retrain your brain to celebrate your body instead!

2. Make sure to throw away your “someday clothes.”

Throw away any clothes that you are saving for “someday when I’m thinner “. If you do get thinner, then go buy new clothes. But don’t keep anything that will make you depressed every single time you look at it.

Get rid of clothes that you are holding onto with unrealistic expectations. Love yourself for the body that you are in right now! If you want to work out and reach your goal, that’s great! But don’t be holding onto things. You are creating a lot of bad energy by holding onto things for the future. Try to live in the moment right now. Your clothes are no exception!

3. Organize your clothes by color.

This may seem ridiculous but it helps a lot! Your eyes can be a big source of stress to your brain. If you are searching way too long to find your favorite sweater, your eyes are moving all over the place and getting your brain stressed out. This can be so much worse before an already hectic day. By simply organizing your clothes by color, you’ll be able to go to the exact place you need. You will be amazed how much time you can save by organizing your clothes by color! It’s such a simple solution, and relaxes your brain so much!

4. Only buy clothes you feel great in!

If you are buying new clothes, do not buy it if you don’t feel great in it! I always say to go clothes shopping when you feel your worst. Women bloat, it’s a fact of life! If you go shopping when you’re bloated, you’ll pick clothes that feel good. When you go to wear your clothes and your bloated, you won’t have to worry about punishing yourself for not having the ideal body at that time! Always buy clothes that make you feel great. Take a look at your body shape and find clothes that compliment that shape. Stop trying to look like someone else that has an entirely different body shape. You’ll end up frustrated and sad. Find clothes that compliment you right now for exactly who you are.

5. Ignore the sizes!

It’s not a mystery that women’s sizes are different in every single label that is made. Why do we punish ourselves by looking at that number? There’s no point! Our family loves us for who we are, why can’t we? Ignore every single size in your closet. Ignore the sizes when you are buying new clothes. Buy and wear what fits you and makes you feel your best self. Only look at the sizes as a mere tool to find what will fit. Stop looking at the sizes and punishing yourself!

6. Stop the negative self talk.

When you are in your closet looking for clothes, be aware of what you are thinking. If you were thinking anything negative, stop it immediately! Your closet should be a place that makes you feel relaxed and happy. It is not to be a place of punishment and self sabotage! That is your closet and you should not be punishing yourself for being in it. You should be surrounded by things that make you happy and ready to take on the day.

7. Put positive words of affirmation in your closet or on your mirror.

If you are having trouble remembering to stay positive this can help. Put motivational quotes that inspire you to accept your body for the warrior it is. Repeat them and read them every time you’re in your closet. Pay attention to them and envision yourself as the warrior that you are. Learn to retrain your brain from the stressed out and depressed woman to the self loved creation that you are.

8. Take some time to use Pinterest as a tool for your closet.

Look up styles for lazy days as well as professional days. Take off the stress of having to look a certain way every day. Look good even when you’re having your well earned lazy days. If you are a stay at home mom, look up wardrobe ideas for stylish stay home styles. Feel good wearing whatever you do.

Be purposeful about wearing the styles that you love. Pin styles for every occasion on your Pinterest board. Pin lazy days, holidays, workdays, date nights, etc. This takes the guess work out of trying to find things to wear. Look for styles geared towards your body type as well. Make sure not to Pin ideas that are of your dream body type. Pin ideas of the body type you have now. That’s a huge plus. It will help you focus on the goal of loving yourself busy seeing other women loving their bodies as well.

9. Get your man’s clothes away from yours!

Have a space that is all yours when it comes to your clothes. Get his out of there. Don’t mix them at all! Give yourself some self care and keep a spot that’s all yours. I don’t know about you, but if my man’s clothes were mixed in with mine, I’d lose my mind. I have to have my own space.

10. Lastly, put your clothes away!

I hate doing this and it’s my least favorite part of having clothes. I absolutely loathe putting them away. But make sure you do this step. Having baskets of clothes sitting around is a really bad unnecessary stress for the brain. You’d be surprised how much it can bring you down. If you struggle with this like I do, set yourself a 5 minute timer to do as much as you can before it goes off. Then be done until you’re ready to tackle it again. This tricks your brain into thinking it’s an easy task versus the extremely burdensome one that is cooked up in your brain.

I hope that you are able to implement these strategies for yourself and that they help you love yourself a little more! Please try them and love the stress less love you deserve! Remember that your body is amazing and you’ve earned every single scar and stretch mark. Be proud to show them off! Your body is such a work of art and deserves to be cherished and loved.