The Psychology of Shedding: Minimalism as a Nervous System Reset
I have always had a fascination with minimalism. I'm not drawn to it for the aesthetic of empty white rooms, but for the rebellion it represents. We live in a culture built on a one-size-fits-all mold. We are told how to work, how to consume, and how to measure our success. The underlying message is often that if you do not fit into this mold, you are wrong or a failure. But if one size truly fit all, there would be a lot less unhappy people. The Mental Load of "Stuff" In my clinical work, I often talk about capacity. Every object we own, every commitment we keep, and every standard we try to meet requires a tiny fraction of our bandwidth. When our environments are cluttered with things or expectations that no longer serve us, our nervous system stays in a state of low-grade hypervigilance. We are constantly negotiating with our space. Choice vs. Conditioned Response Have you ever explored the thought that many of your choices may be conditioned responses over actual need...