There are certain therapeutic chores that can do more than give you an uncluttered home. They can also provide you with clarity of mind, which contributes to more productive work. Learn how cleaning is therapeutic and the tasks that contribute to it.
In this article:
Therapeutic Chores That Boost Clarity and Productivity
Why Be Clean?
More studies show therapeutic chores can provide many health benefits.
Many cultures view cleaning as a valuable and important activity. People in Japan do heavy housecleaning on December 28 to start the year fresh. Buddhist monks think of housework as a spiritual exercise that helps clear the mind, soul, and life.
There’s also a correlation between a clean house and mental health. For a lot of people, it’s clean house, clear mind. The orderliness of the space reflects the state of your mind. In other words, if your area has a lot of clutter, you may be in a state of confusion or anxiety.
Cleaning is also one of the effective ways to relieve stress. Running up and down the stairs, scrubbing floors, and moving items can help release pent-up energy. Physical activity also releases endorphins, which are “feel good” hormones. These are the same ones that give you a “runner’s high.”
Engaging in physical activity, such as doing housework, burns calories and boosts energy. A 150-pound person can burn about 153 calories by mopping floors for an hour and burn more than 90 calories while scrubbing the bathtub for 15 minutes. Pushing a broom for 30 minutes will burn 136 calories, and cleaning windows for a half an hour burns 167 calories. All these activities help you lose weight, and this can help boost your mood.
Of course, these therapeutic chores can also make you healthier. Researchers in one Indiana University study found people with clean homes are healthier than those with messy abodes.
You can also practice meditation with therapeutic chores. Mindfulness is a practice where you pay attention to what you’re doing without judgment.
Getting rid of unwanted items during housework is like shedding emotional weight. It frees you to enjoy the items that make you happy. You can even throw away things that bring back bad memories.
Lastly, engaging in therapeutic chores can help you think more clearly. Research shows clutter can make it harder for you to focus on something. The things you see compete for your brain’s attention.
Therapeutic Chores That Provide Clarity of Mind
Almost anything you do at home can be therapeutic chores, but here are the four of the best of them:
1. Making the Bed and Washing the Sheets
There’s nothing like a good night’s sleep to clear your mind. Research shows making the bed can help you sleep.
A National Sleep Foundation survey found people who make their beds each morning are 19 percent more likely to get a good night’s sleep regularly. Three-quarters of the respondents said they sleep better on freshly cleaned sheets. Everyone loves “clean sheet night!”
2. Washing the Dishes
One of the common therapeutic chores is washing the dishes in a mindful manner. It can significantly reduce your stress level, according to a 2014 Florida State University study of 51 college students. The participants in the study group read a short excerpt about mindfulness before washing some dishes. Those in the control group read a passage about dishwashing before they washed the dishes.
The researchers found some of the participants did the dishes mindfully. They focused on touching the dishes, feeling the water temperature on their skin, and smelling the soap. Mindfulness while washing dishes improved the feelings of inspiration by 25 percent and lowered nervousness by 27 percent.
3. Picking Up the Clutter
In 2010 study published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, scientists asked 60 people to describe the cleanliness of their homes and their mental state.
Women who said their homes were cluttered or had unfinished projects were more likely to be sad and tired than the females who described their living spaces as “restorative” and “restful.” Women in cluttered homes also had higher levels of cortisol, which is a stress hormone.
4. Finishing Those Nagging Projects
The Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin study also showed women who had unfinished projects lying around were more prone to feel sad and tired than those who had completed their tasks.
Does a clean house make you happier? It will be when you learn more ideas from Erica Lee:
Performing therapeutic chores doesn’t only give you a clean home. The benefits of being clean and organized include reducing your stress levels and boosting your clarity. It helps you find joy, peace, and appreciation in what you’re doing.
What are your favorite therapeutic chores? Do leave your comments below.