Clearing anything releases energy that has been stuck for a long time, sometimes for an entire lifetime. When energy is moved in a big way, it is possible to feel more tired than usual, or more cranky and edgy and uncomfortable. You may feel more emotional, have a bout of grief, panic, anger, or sadness. You may notice yourself wanting to sleep more, or overeat, or quit. You may experience spaciness, memory lapses, mental fog, or, the opposite: more alive, energized, excited, and clear. You may feel awesome one moment, and completely fall apart the next – all in less than sixty seconds!
All these responses are NORMAL. Clutter is a sticky, dense energy. As you begin to clear it away, your bio-energetic system will be responding to these changes – not unlike the stormy weather that gets stirred when a high pressure system collides into a pre-existing low pressure system. Consider that you are detoxifying your home (and yourself) and it may not always feel very good.
Self-care is your secret to reducing the side-effects associated with clearing. Here are some simple ways to cultivate it and support your clearing journey:
1. Don’t Identify
Anytime you notice another bout of emotional “weather” moving through, take it as a sign that energy is shifting. Begin by allowing this weather to come through to the degree that you can handle it. If it’s clammy hands, notice them. If it’s resistance, experience it. If it’s nausea, allow it. If it’s tears, shed them. If it’s shame, embrace it. As you feel each weather pattern, do your best not to take any of it personally. Remember it is just energy. The less you personalize these symptoms the quicker they pass.
2. Reduce and Repeat (R & R)
Anytime a task becomes too overwhelming and threatens to stall your efforts or shut you down, take it as a sign to slow down. Reduce your clearing task and/or time spent on a task to something that feels doable and manageable (i.e. doesn’t elicit stress), and repeat the same or similar task, every day.
The R & R approach to clearing the refrigerator, for example, would be to clean, clear, or consolidate one item a day, beginning with the leftovers, moving on to the condiments, ending with the stuff in the freezer, every day for one week, or until the task is complete. The R & R approach to clearing a behavior you’d like to change, like surfing the Web for example, would be to set an alarm clock for a specific time and stop when the bell rings. Reduce the time spent by one minute increments each day. Adjust any task as your stamina and desire increases.
Remember, any feeling of overwhelm, worry, or stress would be an indicator that you’ve taken on more than you can handle, and suggests you reduce your range even more. No matter how small your effort, clearing or moving even just one paper clip or one pencil nub off a chronically messy desk every day – with awareness – creates a powerful energetic shift that can change your life.
3. Rest
It may not seem like much at first, but even the tiniest clearing efforts can be enervating. Remember to rest a lot and often. Give yourself plenty of space to integrate the deep clearing work. Take a break, take a walk, take a nap. Do something that keeps the energy moving in a positive, uplifting way. Do something that makes your heart sing. Do something that makes you laugh. You can only recharge your batteries to the degree that you allow yourself to experience a level of deep rest.
4. Drink Water
Drink plenty of good water, at least eight glasses a day. Clearing of any kind is very dehydrating.
5. Take a Salt and Soda Bath or Shower
This is a wonderful remedy for integrating deep clearing work. Use equal parts coarse sea salt (not Epsom Salt) with “Arm and Hammer” Baking Soda. For a shower, make a paste in your palm and rub it all over your body, including your hair, and shower off. For a bath, just pour into the tub and soak. It doesn’t matter if it’s a cup to a cup or a teaspoon to a teaspoon, as long as it’s equal parts of sea salt and soda.
Want more? Try these other ways to support your clearing practice:
- Check out Stephanie’s books that offer a gentle and lasting approach to clearing physical, mental, and emotional clutter from the inside out.
- Support and deepen your clearing practice – one day at a time – with Stephanie’s best-selling online courses from DailyOM.
Top Photo: “Flaming June” by Lord Frederic Leighton
