6 minute read
Are you looking for effective, simple ways to kickstart your recovery from narcissistic abuse? Decluttering is one way that can help you make this happen.
The impact of narcissistic abuse, whether it be from family members, partners, friends, or colleagues, can be crippling. The abuse centres on power and control, using manipulation including gaslighting, triangulation, isolation, devaluation etc. to make you feel worthless, confused, dependent and questioning your sanity. The effects can leave you spinning long after the relationship has ceased.
Significant self-doubt and self-blame often plague survivors prior to recovery. As well as the tireless quest to understand what you did wrong (despite having done nothing wrong, and the responsibility sitting entirely with the narcissist) you are likely to also be revisiting traumatic thoughts and memories which seem to intrude no matter how much you try to avoid them. You might feel hopeless, powerless and stuck in the trauma.
These are symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Complex-PTSD (C-PTSD), commonly experienced by survivors of narcissistic abuse.
Accepting what has happened, and letting go of all that is holding you trapped in the nightmare is part of your antidote. This may seem an insurmountable and impossible challenge, but you can do it. Securing support through a therapist you connect with, who specialises in narcissistic abuse, PTSD and C-PTSD is strongly recommended.
There are also things you can do in your own time, at home, to stimulate the needed shift of letting go as you begin to recover. As bizarre as this may sound, decluttering can be a mighty force in helping you achieve this, as well as being instrumental in reclaiming your true self, and carving out what your best life will look like for the future.
Decluttering & becoming unstuck
Decluttering is about reducing the stuff in spaces where you spend most time, for instance your home or work space. It’s about choosing what you will keep based on various litmus tests such as what you need vs. don’t need, what you use vs. what you don’t, or what brings you joy.
Decluttering, and minimalism, have for some time now been widely pushed as life changing for a variety of reasons: to lead a more intentional life, to increase creativity and greater capacity for focus, to reduce stress and cultivate calm, to promote better sleep and health, to shape an aesthetically pleasing space, to become more organised, to foster environmental sustainability…These are just a small sample, there can be little doubt that decluttering delivers super positive outcomes! Ask any convert and light beams from them as they excitedly share their story.
So given the awesome life changing power of decluttering, is it possible that it can also be beneficial for narcissistic abuse recovery? Is there a link between letting go of physical stuff enabling moving forward emotionally? Is it possible that ditching things can precipitate becoming unstuck from the memories that are holding you in place in that cycle of traumatic memories and self-doubt?
The answer is yes. Here’s why.
The things that surround you have all been acquired at some point in your past. This means that each item has the power to trigger memories from your history, if you have associated that item to a person, event, or situation. Where this link has been forged, the item cues recall of emotional memories and connected thoughts.
These of course can be positive. Photos of special moments with friends you hold dear, are likely to bring you huge warm & fuzzies. In this instance, you probably would choose to keep these safe and close by.
Conversely, items can hold negative connotations for you. Using the same example, you may ponder a pic of a special moment with a friend who ultimately betrayed you deeply, which may give rise to great sadness and hurt. In this scenario, you may want to consider whether having this constant reminder will serve you in the future or hinder you by pulling you back to focus on the pain. Is it time to let this item go? More importantly, is it time to let that pain go?
Having suffered narcissistic abuse, you are likely to be surrounded by many items that trigger replaying the traumatic emotional memories and agitate that cycle of self-blame and doubt.
We tend not to really pay all that much attention to how the things in our daily lives make us feel, until we take the time to reflect on them. Until you mindfully ask yourself how you feel, and what comes to mind when assessing different items, awareness of the impact the stuff is having on you may be limited.
I encourage you to use Marie Kondo’s question ‘does this bring me joy’ (2014) to truly tap into what emotions are connected to any given item. This probing will show you what does in fact add to your life positively, as well as identifying trigger items that are anchoring you to the causes of your pain. When you determine it’s the latter, it’s gotta go!
Setting aside items by giving them away, recycling them or throwing them out, PARTICULARLY when there is a strong negative emotional memory attached to them, sets you free. When you keep these things despite the pain it gives you, you are choosing to remain attached to what has caused you harm. In doing this, you remain stuck.
When you let go of the thing, it’s not really about the thing – you are choosing to break the power the person, event, or situation that caused you harm, had over you. You are choosing to reclaim your power, let go, move forward, and seize your freedom.
So, by intentionally choosing to keep only things that bring you joy in your surroundings and removing all things that trigger negative emotional memories, you are building a safe and nurturing space for you to begin healing. True, the memories are still within you, but these will no longer be regularly cued by your environment. This may also calm feelings of hypervigilance, another symptom of PTSD/C-PTSD.
Decluttering as a superpower
These benefits can be profound, although decluttering isn’t just about stuff in your environment and removing anchors to negative emotional memories.
As survivors of narcissistic abuse, a strong sense of identity is often compromised as a function of the trauma experienced that shatters previously held worldviews. This loss of sense of self is in itself deeply distressing, and finding a way back to your true self fundamental for recovery.
Getting clarity on what you like and don’t like, what is versus what isn’t important to you, is strengthened through the practice of decluttering. You’ll perceive an awakening sense of becoming reacquainted with your true self.
You’ll also notice a dawning superpower within you of being able to identify negativity and walk away from it – if you are co-dependent, this is indeed a revelatory superpower and precious gift. Repeatedly asking yourself whether this or that material thing enhances your life by bringing joy, starts to creep into other areas of your life. You will find yourself mindfully asking yourself this same question of people and situations, and choosing to let go of the negative and hold onto the positive, laying the foundation for your best life to bloom.
The empowering nature of decluttering is about developing a mindful practice to consciously choose what you will allow in your life.
Letting go of things, people and situations that keep you attached to traumatic memories kickstarts the narcissistic recovery process and short-circuits that stuck feeling.
Ditch the material, people-shaped, and situational junk in your life and make way for the goodies that make your soul sing. Get your decluttering revolution started now!
With gratitude,
Maggie x
Recommended reading
There are two books that stood out for me in exploring the link between recovery and decluttering.
The first is The Life Changing Magic of Tidying: A simple, effective way to banish clutter forever, by Marie Kondo. It struck me that her question of what does/doesn’t spark joy, is also a clarifying question I use for myself and in coaching others in recovery from narcissistic abuse. When I read Kondo’s book I was inspired to embark on a bit of a mission to explore the power of decluttering as a healing tool – turns out it is powerful. This simple question does indeed peel back the layers of internal clutter to laser in on what we truly want in living our best lives.
The other title I discovered while on this mission, that resonated at a deeper level than the pragmatic ‘tidy’ focus of Kondo’s, is Slow by Brooke McAlary. Her words reminded me of the power of mindfulness and intentionality in creating a life of freedom and joy.
Both of these books while not specifically speaking to trauma recovery, provide insight on the importance of reconnecting with our deepest selves, and bringing our true needs to the fore. If your looking for some tangential empowerment and wisdom on living juicy lives – read these now!
(Note – if using link/s provided to purchase, you’ll receive free shipping and title heavily discounted. You’ll also be supporting my work in providing you free resources on this site, by earning a very small commission, at no extra cost to you – thank you 😊)
Bibliography
- Blum, H. (2002). Psychic trauma and traumatic object loss. Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 51(2), 415-432.
- Davidson, J.R.T. (2000). Trauma: The impact of post-traumatic stress disorder. Journal of Psychopharmacology, 14(2), 5-12.
- Kondo, M. (2014). The life changing magic of tidying up: The Japanese art of decluttering and organizing. Berkeley, US: Ten Speed Press.
- McAlary, B. (2017). Slow. Sydney, Australia: Allen & Unwin.
- Vandervoort, D., & Rokachi, A. (2006). Posttraumatic relationship syndrome: A case illustration. Clinical Case Studies, 5(3), 231-247.
So, this explains my obsession with throwing things out, giving away, and making everything “just so”. I call it the purge, and it does bring me comfort.
Yes! Hurrah for the purge!
Converted a shed into a 16×8 tiny house.Have room only for my dogs,bird and other things that bring me joy!
I love this! Sounds like a cocoon of joy!
What a lovely post! May I share?
Love you to, thanks Elizabeth!
I have already started doing this on my own! I was always a saver of things. I can see many things lately that show me I am healing!!!! Don’t give up! You can do it too!!!!
Thanks for sharing Donna and high five to you! Love it if you shared some of the practical things you’ve been doing to heal 🙂 Maggie x
Purged for 6 months. It cleared my mind and gave me clarity.
It really is soooo transformational isn’t it! This is seriously one of my fave tools. Thanks for sharing Anonymous, Maggie.
I can see how getting rid of things we can control is great exercise & practice for learning boundaries…the skill we are generally so lacking, due to being torn down early by manipulators.
Hi kmmrky, great point around exercising boundaries, love it. I hadn’t thought of it from this perspective, this is so on point! Maggie x
Oh my gosh! I’ve suddenly started bagging and throwing out so many many things over the last few months, with a panicked knot in my stomach through each session. It comes over me suddenly, almost like a panic attack, and off I go, scooping things up and filling garbage bags… with no real reason except that I feel claustrophobic and I need to clear some space around me. I’ve been with ‘my narc’ for 11 years, and am desperately trying to get the strength and courage to leave him. I was previously married to an alcoholic for 25 years, so clearly, I’m a world class co-dependent as well.
Dear Glenda, this is so wonderful! Of course not the awful panicked knot, although I am hoping that there is a sense of relief as you work through this? It does get easier, the suffocation feeling lifts, and most importantly the process of catharsis you are going through just starts doing its thing building the strength & courage internally to make whatever it is you want to happen come to fruition. You’ve got this Glenda! Keep on purging! This is just the beginning! Light, love, strength & courage to you gorgeous one. Maggie x
Thank you, Maggie! Your encouragement is a breath of fresh air into my life! Yes, as I go through each purge session, the knot in my stomach slowly loosens, and by the time I’m ready to stop, I’ve relaxed and I can breathe deeply once again. I’m so very happy to have found you and your blog… It has been the most on the mark, concise and promising place I’ve found on the internet regarding narcissists. Your own experience with the hell that is narcissism has made you not only a total expert on the subject, but a ray of hope for all of us here. Thank you so much! Glenda
Dear Glenda, wow. How powerful is that? Being able to breathe again is such a gift. I believe that these seemingly small (yet oh so hard to do) actions we take on our recovery journey have a snowball effect and begin to work magic inside us in reclaiming our freedom. Combine a whole bunch of these small actions, and our lives transform. Go you Glenda! I’m so pleased for you. And dear Glenda, thank you so much for your very kind & generous words. I am grateful. Light & love to you, Maggie x
Dear Maggie, I feel fortunate today because I stumbled across your website and having been taking it all since this morning. (Its now 9:30 pm!) I have an thirst for all the information, education and support I can find about Narcissist Personalities, as I am married to one and have just realized what’s been happening to me the past 15 years. I knew there was something very wrong with my relationship, I just didn’t have the words or definition to explain it and any support that would believe it. Until now, my moment of grace, thanks to you! Thank you for your gentle and real approach, your warmth and sincerity. I am still in my relationship but ready to stand up and take my life back. Thank you for being here with your light to guide the way! Karen H.