4 Reasons why your closet might be the root cause of your depression
Have you ever opened your closet and felt like screaming because you either hate what you see or maybe, your clothes are screaming at you and you do not feel like dealing with it? Have you ever felt frustrated about not knowing what to wear for an event or to work every single morning? Do you feel that your clothes do not represent who you are? Then maybe that is your cue to change your wardrobe because, yes, your wardrobe might be the cause of your depression and you don’t even know it.
The number one question you most likely ask yourself on a daily basis before leaving the house is
WHAT AM I GOING TO WEAR TODAY?
This question haunts you, makes you feel frustrated and you end up running late for work or that important event.
A survey of 1,000 American women found that one in ten women is depressed when she opens her closets. 40 percent say that they don’t like any of their clothes and 47 percent admit that they struggle to pick out an outfit before heading out to work. It also showed that most of them really like only 10 percent of their wardrobe. A quarter of these women confess that their clothes storage space is completely disorganized and, when faced with the carnage within, more than 60 percent will instead buy new clothing and one in six will sneak an item out of the laundry basket.
‘It’s no wonder so many women are depressed about their closets when they are not happy with its contents.
Studies have also shown that the average individual wears only 20% of what is in their closets, why is that, why is it that the majority of consumers around the world are highly delusional about how much they own versus how much they actually wear? Why are more and more of you feeling depressed about your closet? It is even worst when you are a fashion lover like myself, you spend time shopping, hoping that it will solve the problem. Why do 73 percent of men feel inappropriately dressed for an event or have trouble getting dressed for an event? Why are a third of men skipping important events because they didn’t have the right clothes?
Here are a few reasons why your closet might be the root cause of your depression.
- YOUR CLOTHES DO NOT TRULY REPRESENT YOU.
The truth is that you have a bunch of stuff in your closets that you cannot even account for. Most of these clothes are a collection of different seasons of your life that you have already passed and moved on from. Some of these clothes are in your closet as a reminder of what you never became. My guess is, if you clicked on this article your closet is probably full of junk, it is disorganized and messy. Nothing in there fits properly, most of the clothes you have were bought due to FOMO and you are a victim of retail therapy. Or maybe you spent a good coin on that dress and now you feel bad letting go even though it does not represent you.
Did you know that the most important decision you make every morning may be what to wear? This is so crucial because your clothes are a visual representation of your personality and you get to choose who you want to be in the world. You get to show up in the world however you want to. So my question to you is how are your clothes representing you in the world? Why do you choose the clothes you choose; do they express your true personality and can they really determine the course your day will take? Or even your life?
2. YOU DO NOT FULLY UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT YOUR CLOTHES HAVE ON YOUR MIND.
If you truly understood the relationship between what you wear and your brain, you would pay more attention to the way you dress. What you wear has an effect on your mood and overall emotions. Did you know that there is a psychology behind it all? Whether you realize it or not, you are affected by the clothes you wear. This effect is called “Enclothed cognition”, A term coined by Hajo Adam and Adam D. Galinsky. It relates to the effect which clothing has upon a person’s mental process, and the way they think, feel, and function, in areas like attention, confidence, or abstract thinking.
Karen J. Pin psychologist and author of the book Mind What You Wear: The Psychology of Fashion, in her research, found evidence that
-Our clothes have the power to change our minds.
-Making a simple tweak to what you wear can literally be life-changing
-The right outfit can make you a better thinker.
-Or make you more likely to get the right job.
She shows how clothes can boost your confidence, bolster your self-esteem or lift your mood.
-And the impact a color change can have on your sex appeal.
You may say you don’t care about fashion, yet you wake up every day and wear clothes. The same clothes that are all about fashion, which you ironically claim you do not care about. Well, news flash, fashion cares about you. I also bet you have a favorite pair of jeans, or a favorite t-shirt, blazer, or those sweatpants you wear every day because they are so comfy.
3. YOU DO NOT KNOW WHO YOU TRULY ARE
I stand for the fact you must dig deep and find originality in your own self. If you do not truly know who you are you cannot dress up as your authentic self. You will find yourself in the cycle of buying trendy clothes, you will not need to buy all the clothes in the world, moreover, you can maintain a sustainable closet and even contribute to a sustainable environment. Did you know you can reduce the impact of fast fashion if you drop all the excuses and learn more about who you are? When you learn about yourself and appreciate yourself more, you will start finding clothing that is meant to fit your unique body. You probably bought a lot of your clothes to impress people when you got to a new level, even when the item does not suit you. You are probably addicted to that luxury brand to prove to yourself that you can afford it even when you don’t need it, you are depending on your clothing to prove your worth. When you should really be focusing on yourself, and appreciate the fact that you are enough and everything else is only an addition not a validation of your worth.
Start learning about yourself
Start finding and building value not in material things but in your objective core, in integrity, in things that actually matter. These will all eventually manifest into your closet and you will start dressing like your authentic self
4. YOU NEED TO CLEAN UP YOUR CLOSET
Yes, you heard me right! Yes, it may be as simple as cleaning and organizing your closet, so you better clean up!
Get rid of all that crap because if you keep holding on to it you will never get to where you want to be. Change your closet, change your mindset, change your life. If you read up to this point then you already understand how crucial it is that you clean up and get organized. Studies have shown that clutter produces anxiety and can make you feel depressed. One study of mothers living in cluttered homes found that they had higher-than-average levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Thus, living in a messy room means that the nervous system is always in a state of low-grade fight-or-flight mood. If your home, which is supposed to be your safe space is so cluttered to the point where you have can have increased cortisol levels. Imagine just how much more stressed you are when you go into your bedroom which is supposed to be your sanctuary and then into your closet which is meant to be a place that makes you feel good about yourself. Imagine how much more stressed you will feel with all the clutter. Listen friend, this is a wake-up call for you to do some decluttering because your messy closet is literally messing up your millions, it is messing up your life. Decluttering is necessary and important in the self-care journey as it simplifies your life creating more space and room for things that are important to you as an individual. Research from Princeton University found that decluttering your living spaces helps your brain focus. In other words, this research found that clutter competes for your attention.
On the other hand, an organized environment creates and enhances a sharp, productive, and concentrated mind. When you are constantly surrounded by clutter both visual and mental, you are bombarded by the distractions. The effect is that your eyes and mind do not have a clear and empty space to rest on and relax. The process of decluttering comes with multiple benefits both in the long and short term.
Decluttering will help you account for what you have in your life.
Your living space mirrors what your lifestyle is and how you have changed over time. You must make sure the stuff you keep in your spaces are things that make you happy, bring more life and make being at home more comfortable and calming. Clearing clutter can significantly improve your overall physical, emotional and mental health.
I want to challenge you to transform your space, create a space a closet that truly and sincerely represents who you are. Walk into your closet right now and take out all the yucky stuff, walk into your closet and take away all the frustration, the pain, the anger, the stagnation. There is a lot of old emotion and bad energy stuck in there. All the clothes from your past, sitting in there, those things your ex gave you, why are they still in your closet, it’s time to let go, its time to turn that new page and show the world who you are, step into the real you. It’s time to create a space that makes you feel like royalty, it’s time to create a closet that speaks life and joy into you every single day. Join my closet declutter challenge here to get more support on this
