As the years’ pass, it’s surprisingly easy to accumulate more belongings. Whether it’s pieces of furniture, clothing, unwanted gifts, or all of the above, these items can soon start to clutter your home and affect your quality of life. As they say, a cluttered home leads to a cluttered mind.
If this sounds familiar, then you’re likely long overdue for a good deep clean and decluttering of your home. Now is the perfect time to go through all those belongings and figure out what you don’t need anymore.
Once you figure out what you want to get rid of, you may still be wondering what to do with them. The answer is to donate them. There are so many reasons why you should donate your old items. However, in this post, we’ll focus on our top three.
You’re Helping Those in Need
When you donate your clothes to charity instead of tossing them in the trash, you’re helping those less fortunate.
While you may not need those clothes anymore, they could be somebody else’s prized possession. The old loveseat you keep in your garage could be the focal point of someone else’s living room.
That old blazer you never wear anymore could give someone the confidence they need to nail a job interview and land the role of their dreams.
It Could Boost Your Mental Health
Giving back to your local community doesn’t just help others – it can help you, too! Specifically, when you do something to help others, you feel inherently good about yourself. It’s a phenomenon called the “helper’s high”, which refers to the positive mental and physical rewards you reap after an act of altruism.
The act of giving triggers the parts of the brain associated with pleasure, trust, and interpersonal connection. When you complete a selfless act – such as donating your old objects to charity – your brain releases feel-good chemicals into your body, including serotonin, oxytocin, and dopamine. These chemicals can help improve our mood, lower stress levels, and combat mental health conditions like anxiety and depression.
It’s Better for the Environment
Donating is also beneficial for the environment. For instance, when you donate your old clothes, you’re directly combating the fast fashion industry.
Fast fashion refers to the increasingly speedy manufacturing process that clothing retailers are using to keep up with trends and high demand for clothes among the middle class.
Additionally, when you donate old items instead of throwing them out, you’re reducing the level of waste in landfills. Clothing can take an extremely long time to break down and, as a result, releases harmful gases into the air.
By donating your clothes instead of throwing them in the garbage, you reduce your carbon footprint significantly.
Clearly, there are plenty of reasons to donate your old belongings to charity rather than dumping them in the trash. With that in mind, head to your local Goodwill or Salvation Army drop off to declutter your unwanted items and do good at the same time.
