TRAIT 5 Resistance To Stress

conquering Clutter

There - in that pile of month-old post. There - in that stack of newspapers. There - in the collection of china scattered across the mantelpiece, in the overstuffed hall cupboard, in the junk under your bed, Clutter! The bane of a long-lived life.33333333333333333333
Clutter means more than a messy living room. It takes away your sense of control ('I just don't know what to do with all this stuff.'). It isolates you ('I can't invite anyone over to the house until I get the clutter under control. '). Clutter can even be physically dangerous, leading to tripping accidents, increased allergens and insects and other vermin.

1 Make a list of cluttered spaces you wish to clear out, It could include drawers, cupboards or surfaces. Do not list an entire room, such as 'living room'.

2 Schedule 'clutter-control' mornings or evenings, giving yourself enough time to complete one item on your list.

3 Approach the cluttered area with three boxes labelled 'keep', 'donate' and 'rubbish'.

4 Pull every item out of or off the cluttered area. Don't put anything back without asking yourself the following questions.

•     'Have I used this in the past six months?'
•     'Will I need to use this in the coming six months?
•     'Does this hold significant sentimental value?'

if the answer is no to all of those questions, put the item in the donation or rubbish box. If the answer

The key to controlling clutter is to start with a little at a time and maintain the clear space as you move towards the next cluttered area. Here, then, is our clutter-control prescription.

is yes to any of these questions, ask yourself one more:

• 'Does this need to be in this location, or is there a better place for it?'

Then put it in a more appropriate spot.

5 Once you've completed, the decluttering, take a picture. Tape the picture to the bottom of the decluttered drawer, stick it on the inside of the door of the decluttered cupboard or tuck it under an item on the shelf/desk.

6 Make sure you give away your donations within a week of the clean-up.

You may need to do some research about who accepts what and whether they will collect. Likewise, some rubbish - such as old cans of paint or glue - needs special treatment. Whatever you do, don't just transfer the clutter from one space to another. The job isn't done until the rubbish and donations are long gone.

   Every week, look at a photo you look of your cleaned and organised room. It will motivate you like nothing else to keep it clutter-free

Just Choose not to There's an old expression: 'don't take the bait'. It means that when given the opportunity to  get angry or stressed, choose not to. Make this your mantra. The next time someone does something that would typically anger you or increase your stress, smile, let the hostile emotions pass right by and deal with things calmly. Over time, you can teach yourself an amazing amount of healthy self-restraint, even in the face of constant pressure.

Walk away Any time - and we mean any time - you can feel your heart rate rising due to stress or anger, excuse yourself from the situation and do what it takes to recover. Breathe deeply, think positive thoughts, go outside, have some cold water, force yourself to smile and remind yourself that you are in control. Re-enter the situation only when you know that you can handle it calmly and positively. You'll not only help your health but also prevent challenging situations from deteriorating further.

Practise mindfulness Mindfulness is a way of approaching life based on the concept that 'the present is the only time that any of us have to be alive - to know anything - to perceive - to learn - to act - to change - to heal,' according to its originator. Jon Kabat-Zinn. It's a technique shown to have multiple health benefits, and has successfully alleviated anxiety and depression in many people. The idea is to focus on your thoughts, so that when you ruminate on negatives you can redirect your attention elsewhere. For instance, you might redirect your musings about a big car repair bill to the day you spent last week with your grandson. When people practise this every day for about 30 minutes, their stress levels and feelings of being overwhelmed fall and their sense of coping increases.

   A specific technique called Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), partly developed by Professor Mark Williams at the Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practise at Bangor University, has been shown in trials to help even relapsing depression resistant to ordinary treatments - so much so that the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) now recommends it for such patients on the NHS. You can learn this form of mindfulness meditation through classes, tapes.

Turn on Beethoven People who feel stressed are more likely to listen to music than they are to do anything else, including eating, crying or sleeping. Numerous studies find that listening to music during stressful situations, including surgery, reduces stress hormones. Our advice is to skip the heavy rock and stick with the classics. One study comparing Mozart with New Age music found that people listening to classical music relaxed more and reported greater levels of 'mental quiet', 'awe and wonder' and 'mystery', suggesting that the music provided a sense of spirituality as well.

Make yourself laugh Really Start by smiling. Then say 'ha, ha, ha.' Then think about how ridiculous you look and let out a real laugh. Not working? Then try some of the ideas on our laughter advice for building resilience on previous. Laughter helps to shut down  your body's stress response, cutting off the release of harmful stress hormones. When researchers compared people who received an hour of quiet time with those who had an hour of humour and laughter, they found that the laughter group showed significant drops in the blood levels of several key stress hormones, while the group sitting quietly had no change.

Build bonding into your schedule We talked about social networks and friends earlier. This is so important to successful ageing that it's worth addressing again. Particularly for women, having close friends with whom to vent and bond makes more of a difference to chronic stress levels than the most luxuriant bubble bath.

Surround yourself with stress-relieving tools These include fresh flowers, peppermint or vanialla candles, pictures of people you love, photographs of a particularly good holiday, works of art and a sign that says 'Breathe'. All can reduce stress levels, studies find.

Stop multi-tasking All you're doing is increasing stress hormones on a regular basis, even when nothing really stressful is happening. Instead, do one thing at a time. When that one thing is particularly stressful, take a break before you move on to the next task. During that break time, practise your mindfulness meditation or deep breathing, or simply lie down with a cold cloth over your eyes and drift.

Clean a cupboard There is simply nothing that puts more control into your life than cleaning up a mess you encounter frequently.

Take up yoga Just one class is enough to reduce stress hormone levels, studies find.

Hold hands with your partner A good relationship is a great stress-buster. In fact, simply holding hands with someone you love reduces brain activity related to stress better than holding a stranger's hands. The better your relationship, the calmer the brain response.

Munch pistachios After four weeks of a heart-healthy diet containing  45-85g of pistachios daily, participants in one study had reduced stress responses, including lower blood pressure and greater artery relaxation.

Spend time in a garden Even if you live in a high-rise flat, try  a container garden. The greenery has a tremendous effect when it comes to reducing stress. The best are 'healing gardens', which contain some form of water, green vegetation and flowers, in either an indoor or outdoor envirnoment. Design it properly, though. The garden should be easily controlled and tended, offer social opportunities (with a bench or small table and chairs), allow for physical movement (an indoor or patio garden can do this with a variety of potted plants in different spaces and at different levels) and provide natural distractions (plants that attract butterflies are ideal).

Stress isn't just in your mind. It is real, and affects your entire body in strong, measurable ways