The Dangers Of A Heavy Purse
Can a cluttered purse cause you mental, emotional and physical stress? We say, emphatically, yes! We’ve all had that heart-stopping moment when we can’t find our wallet or keys because they’re buried under a mountain of receipts. Or the stress you feel when you’re waiting for an important call but can’t get to your phone in time because it sank to the bottom of your handbag.
And now it’s becoming increasingly common for women to suffer physically from their heavy purses. In this article from HuffPost, a full range of dangers are outlined, such as muscle damage, back and neck pain and arthritis. They offer several great solutions but as organizers, our favorite answer is to lighten the load!
How To Declutter Your Purse
Like any other time you declutter, the first step is to take everything out of your bag. Make sure you check the pockets, both inside and out, and then depending on the material, either wipe it down or use a lint roller to make sure it’s clean and ready to go.
Next, create categories for trash, keep, and relocate.
*Trash old receipts, candy wrappers, business cards you’ll never use, and all the odds and ends that accumulate from everyday life. They may not weigh a lot but getting rid of the visual clutter will help you see what you’re really carrying around.
*Keep what you actually use and need on a daily basis. Wallet, keys, sunglasses, etc. These items should be front and center and easy to get to.
*Relocate all the things that have found their way into your purse but would be better off somewhere else. Maybe it’s a toy your kid used to play with but hasn’t wanted in ages, or a seasonal item such as gloves that you don’t need right now. And the biggest thing to relocate? Spare change. Have a convienently located container that you use for all those coins and empty out your change purse on a daily basis.
Keep Your Purse Decluttered
Now that your purse is slimmed down and at it’s lowest weight ever, how do you keep it that way? The good news is you’ve done the hard work. Once you’ve taken the time to fully declutter your handbag, it’s all about maintenance. If you just take five minutes everyday to do a quick clean out, your purse will never be heavy again! You may find our post about habit stacking helpful if you think you don’t have time or won’t remember.
It may seem that having a lighter purse isn’t a huge deal, but neck and back pain can be debilitating. If a decluttered handbag can help you avoid that, we think it’s absolutely worth a couple minutes of your day!
