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The Dark Side of Decluttering That No One Talks About

Don't Be A Lemon

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Getting rid of things and buying fewer things are not the same skill, and I think we've been treating them like they are. A declutter feels like the moment you finally fixed your spending. The bags go out, the closet has room in it, everything looks handled. But if nothing actually changed about how we shop, the empty space is just space to fill again.

So this video is about the parts of decluttering we don't really talk about. Why resale money isn't new money. Why stores want your old clothes back now and will hand you a coupon for bringing them in. What organizing bins actually solve, and what they only make look solved. How buying fewer and better things can quietly turn into spending more. Where the donation bag really goes. And a different way to tell whether a declutter worked, which has nothing to do with how much left the house.

I still think everybody should declutter. I just don't think an empty closet proves anything yet.

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20 Comments

@dbalemon Creator 1 month ago Pinned

Visit http://growtherapy.com/DBAL today to get started. Availability and coverage vary by state and insurance plan.

@lalablotz7348 1 month ago

Trying to sell stuff isn’t as easy as we think. Nobody wants to pay you what you want for it and it takes a ridiculous amount of effort to deal with selling it. I gave up and just donate what is worth it and pitch what’s not. Honestly nobody wants our crap and this has helped me to really evaluate what I buy. We need to just STOP buying. Just STOP. 🛑 Thank you for another great video. ❤

@Olga-pm7qg 1 month ago

13:12 I used to declutter for years and saw the significant change in my house only when I quit buying stuff. It was such a relief.

@Crystalorchids 1 month ago

It sounds like you're describing a binge/purge eating disorder without the food.

@AnneODyne 1 month ago

I've keep telling my family that constantly buying more boxes and bins to reorganize their stuff is like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

@pennybarker1596 1 month ago

A Persian Iranian here. I was born at the beginning of the Iran, Iraq war and had to deal with the aftermath of it all. During the war most of our necessities came from Turkey. Turkey actually imported products to both countries and made a lot of money during those 8 years because factories were closing down and materials were scarce. During those years my mom made most of me and my sister's cloths. She knitted sweaters, pants,....even for my dad. The things we had to buy were winter coats, snow boots and undies. Make up was hard to find. Most of the products came from either Turkie and the UAE. During the war there were only 3 shades of nail polish available, red, pink and nude. You have no idea how good it feels when war ends and economy goes back to normal. I remember when I actually saw the first bottle of blue nail polish in a store😂 The first time I could purchase a bottle of perfume that wasn't Max Factor. By the time Iran settled after the war, I was in my teens so obviously all of these new shiny things were a reason to celebrate. The trauma of scarcity lead to consumerism in women of my generation. We went from simple clothes to have the ability of buying what Ruby from MTV India wears the next day?? Heck yeah! It was towards the end of the 90s that the talk of climate became a thing over there because of all the Western shows on TV. That's when it hit me that I don't need so much if I want our lakes, mountains and animals to survive. I went from spending the money I earned from art work I used to do for a tiny home decor store on makeup and clothes to learning how to sew. I became my mother in the span of a short few years. Now after so many years I save buttons to use for something else. I sew most of my dogs' winter clothes from scarves that family members no longer want. 90% of their store bought items were gifts. I fix harnesses and leashes. I fix their toys. I am typing this while wearing a linen shirt that belonged to my late grandma.

@JE-pd8fp 1 month ago

Bought a $130 purse from Etsy --> sent to ThredUp --> ThredUp sold it for $36 --> My payout was about $2.70. This is definitely helping me to rethink reselling as an excuse to buy more.

@Jinxie-Bravo 1 month ago

Our poor planet is screaming at us to STOP.

@lisarhoades3559 1 month ago

I would never wish this on anyone, but I lost everything I own in a house fire and honestly realized I didn’t miss a thing - we were all ok - and just like that, I was a minimalist. That was 25 years ago and I still look at things as things. Honesty it was the best thing that happened to me

@wendisparadeofperfumes5034 1 month ago

Most people "declutter" just so they can go shopping again but somehow feel virtuous that they got rid of a few things.

@CocoB22 1 month ago (edited)

We waste so much time scrolling that we never have time to dress nicely in the clothes we have or put on the makeup or use the skincare - therefore we don’t get any joy and we buy more thinking we will wear it/use it. Very profitable for retailers. Stupid for us. This isn’t even fantasy self- this is every day self.

@Sundance694 1 month ago

I guarantee the average person has absolutely no clue the apocalyptic level of waste on our planet caused by clothing. No one would buy a new piece of clothing ever again if they truly understood it

@SunshinyDay88 1 month ago

Almost 40% of people get rid of clothes they purchased un the last 12 months? That's literally insane. Mindless overconsumption to fill an emotional hole that NO amount of shopping can ever fill. We have just got to STOP buying as a form of self soothing.

@Notbrandnews 1 month ago

In the past 8 yrs or so, I try very hard to not buy things.

@safebeauty9162 1 month ago

I’m in the midst of a huge life declutter. I feel really good about this declutter, because this year is the first time I’m coming to grips that my spending was an actual addiction, not in a casual or funny way. But this year, hitting the big 40, there’s been a sudden mental/emotional shift where I don’t want to do it anymore. I’ve made good progress but I know it will be a slow process for me. I don’t buy like I used to, but I still have some slip ups. Trying to progress over perfection.

@vanelisyfarber7105 1 month ago

Why do we keep buying things, if we barely leave home anymore?

@Rositasparks 1 month ago (edited)

Well, in my town we have wonderful charity Elle. This charity has a free store, it’s not resale like Goodwill. So underprivileged families and immigrants just moving to the area can make an appt and come in and “ shop for free” ; they even get assigned a personal shopper, who helps them (as they can only receive so many items each time they come in to the center). A person like myself can volunteer to work in the sorting facility or as a personal shopper. Maybe you should find a place like this and give back to your community. Seeing people who have very little- to nothing , may just change the way you spend your dollars on clothing, household items and beauty supplies ..❤

@shrenikashourie241 1 month ago

You won't believe it, but I went through eight decluttering cycles before I realized what you just described here. This cycle was fueled by my constant desire to upgrade. What is most surprising is I did not recognize or know how to change that pattern until a previous video, when you talked about comparing an item that you want to upgrade to the best version of what you own. That really stopped me in my tracks. I appreciate you, your content, your discussions, and your channel. Thank you.

@michelleanna1277 1 month ago

I decluttered and I love the simplicity of my choices now . The opposite happened to me , I was disgusted by my over consumption, that I refuse to buy anything now . I can walk into a store and walk out carefree buying nothing . I don’t have the urgency or impulse to buy anymore . I look at pieces in the store and picture them in a black garbage bags . Done. This is going on a year now .

@kikihodges8695 1 month ago

Our local charity shop is closing because they can't make enough money to pay their rent & energy bills and have some left over for the charity. Despite the stock being fully donated and staffed by volunteers, they can't sell enough. The prices have to be low because the quality is poor. Even priced at £1, or fill a bag for £5, it's a pretty sad indicator of the problem.