Dear Karen,

Our home was recently broken into and many things were taken. Our shelves and drawers were dumped to the floor. The things that were taken from me were highly personal and many were very sentimental. I seem to be unable to replace things where they belonged as I am too emotional and I feel that there is too much bad energy.

I need to do clutter clearing, etc., but due to my type of seasonal work, I cannot make the time right now. Do you have any suggestions for me?

Thank you - T.M., USA

Karen's reply:

Your question asks about clutter clearing but as you can see, I have put it in the category of Space Clearing.

Most people experience churning emotions after a burglary, accompanied by a sense of violation of personal space and sometimes feelings of lack of safety too. Your email certainly describes emotional churning and it is this that needs to be addressed rather than how to tidy your home.

My advice to you is as follows:

1) Space Clearing is the best way I know to clear out the sense of violation associated with having your home broken into. You can do this yourself by following the instructions in my book, Creating Sacred Space with Feng Shui, or if you are too busy or too upset to do it yourself, check my Directory of Practitioners to find a professional who can help you. Tidying your home will follow naturally after that, as the ceremony will deeply settle your emotions and allow you to get on with your life again.

2) Read Chapter 7 of my book, Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui, which gives information about how to deal with the emotional effects of a burglary.