This group is bringing clean clothes to anyone who needs them, one laundromat at a time.

Remember the last time your house felt clean?

It felt good, right? Everything back in the right place and your floors smelling like they’ve just been aired out in a garden can give you a deeper sense of relaxation and wellbeing than you might realize.

For instance, did you know that a clean space can make you more productive? If you’re a parent — a clean home can help your kid do better in school. But that’s still only the tip of the iceberg: Researchers have also found that people who work in neater spaces are healthier, that those who have a clean home sleep better and eat healthier. All that leads to you being an all around friendlier person, too.

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[rebelmouse-image 19534672 dam=1 original_size=”800×800″ caption=”Photo via Public Domain Pictures.” expand=1]

Perhaps you’ve been looking for such a transformative clean – the kind that can bring peace of mind to your life — but don’t necessarily believe cleaning can be that powerful until you see it. Maybe you need proof from others’ who’ve cleaned before you.

We’ve got five real, spectacular examples of how cleaning made a huge difference to people — in their homes and far beyond.

Let’s start with our closets which, I think we can all agree, are tricky to get organized and clean.

If you, like so many of us, have haphazardly thrown everything you own into your closet and then pushed the door shut as hard as humanly possible, you likely dread opening it back up and looking for something to wear.

According to professional organizer Lauren White, the way you treat the rooms in your house is an extension of how you treat yourself. When you decide that it’s time to improve home looks, you’ll also be upgrading how it functions, which should help make the levels of stress you associate with your once-cluttered space dissipate.

If you’re looking for tips about the transformative power of clean, here are a few nuggets of wisdom from White: Empty every space you’re trying to organize completely; touch each item you want to discard to see if you truly need it; group items that should stay together; find a storage system that works for you; then let everything else go. The good vibes will follow.

Don’t take our word for it, here’s a closet that looked like it was hit by a tornado before White wrangled it into submission. How much calmer does that “after” photo make you feel?

[rebelmouse-image 19534674 dam=”1″ original_size=”650×891″ caption=”Photos via Lauren White.” expand=1]

This cleaning magic doesn’t have to begin and end in your bedroom closet though. There’s a whole world outside your front stoop just waiting for you to jump in and help make it sparkle.

And you’ll be far from alone in undertaking a public space cleaning project.

In the past few weeks, a new form of activism has sprung up under the moniker “#Trashtag.” It’s a holdover from a 2015 UCO campaign that’s had new life breathed into it by social media. And “breathed into” is right, because with all the the cleaning that’s going on in neglected outdoor spaces, people aren’t just breathing sighs of relief in their newly cleaned homes, they’re feeling more calm and comfortable outside, too.

One reddit user named Daniel picked up some trash on his way home and ended up making a noticeable difference.

[rebelmouse-image 19534675 dam=”1″ original_size=”514×624″ caption=”Photos via Daniel/Reddit” expand=1]

Another user works with a local group in Jaffa, Israel to restore beauty to areas that had been previously overlooked by organizing cleanups that make public spaces accessible again. Their advice? Don’t be afraid to get dirty. Pointy sticks can help rid you of a few pieces of garbage, but there’s nothing quite as transformative as getting in there and cleaning up waste with your gloved hands and big bags for collecting trash.

“The only thing needed is your good intention and determination,” the user writes. “Also [use] eco-friendly bags to dispose of [trash] properly, don’t use plastic ’cause that defeats the purpose.”

[rebelmouse-image 19534676 dam=”1″ original_size=”1200×597″ caption=”Photos via Jaffa/Reddit” expand=1]

In Northern Ireland, a group of friends cleaned plastic debris from the River Faughan. One of the group’s members, Joel Edgar, told us that it’s something they’re going to continue doing every few weeks to keep the area looking pristine. “It made me feel like we were only scratching the surface,” Eger said. “There’s a whole lot more work left to do.”

[rebelmouse-image 19534677 dam=”1″ original_size=”622×624″ caption=”Photos via Joel Edgar.” expand=1]

In South Africa, Henning Lubbe, a 21-year-old activist, has made cleaning the world around him a huge part of his life and future. He started by simply picking up trash in his neighborhood. Now Lubbe is organizing cleanup initiatives with his friends and anyone else who wants to restore the world to its natural beauty.

“On my way to work every morning I pass this dumpsite,” he told The Guardian. “I thought, why don’t I clean it as part of the challenge?”

“I think this challenge can make a huge impact, especially in places like my town, where we have problems with waste management.”

[rebelmouse-image 19534678 dam=”1″ original_size=”1200×624″ caption=”Photos via Henning Lubbe.” expand=1]

Now it’s your turn: Whether you’ve got a closet to untangle or a park down the street you’d like to restore to its former glory, know that you can make a difference — in your life and others’ — just by getting a little dirty for a few hours.

Through the power of clean, anything is possible — whether it’s a more beautiful earth or just peace-of-mind as you get dressed every morning. It doesn’t take much to brighten the world around you. Even if you don’t snap a picture, your impact will be felt.

Clorox believes clean has the power to transforms lives, which is why they’ve partnered with Upworthy to promote those same traits in people, actions and ideas. Cleaning up and transformation are important aspects of many of our social good stories. Check out the rest in the campaign to read more.

When you’re homeless, finding a clean place where you feel safe can seem impossible.

Homeless shelters used to be nearly identical: they offered temporary shelter for a few hours a night. In most cities, people started lining up for shelters well before dusk. They’d get a meal and a few hours of sleep in a crowded room before being sent back out early in the morning. And shelter for the next night would not be guaranteed.

While these types of shelters certainly still exist, they’re no longer the only option. In fact, more and more city governments are changing the way they think about fighting homelessness, moving away from a model where temporary shelter is seen as a solution to situational and chronic homelessness and towards one where permanent housing and social support are the goals.

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Transition Projects is one of the shelters that’s on the precipice of this necessary change.

At Transition Projects in Portland, the goal isn’t simply to get people off the street. The organization is helping people regain hope, reclaim their dignity, and find long-term housing.

That journey begins with a safe environment that provides showers, a place to wash clothes, and a clean bed. Those may sound like simple things, but they’re not often attainable for homeless people. The 24 hour shelters Transition provides allow them to take care of their hygienic needs, which can help them start their day feeling good. That outlook can be the catalyst they need to change their circumstances.

In Portland — where home prices have begun to be described as “unaffordable” — more than 4,000 people have no place to go on any given night. Many of these people are living with disabilities. Many are veterans. And most don’t have a safe, clean place to be during the day either.

Transition runs eight shelters in the city. Seven are open 24 hours, meaning that clients can come in and take advantage of services whenever they need them. And because Transition’s policy is built on meeting people where they’re at, clients can enter with their partners (many traditional shelters separate mixed-gender couples), their pets, and their possessions.

“When you’re living on the street, you already have a lot of barriers. We want the least amount of barriers to keep you from coming inside and getting our help,” says Roma Peyser, Transition’s Director of Development.

One such barrier is the late in/early out policy of many traditional shelters. At Transition, the staff know that this model often doesn’t provide enough support to help people change their circumstances.

People who come in tired at the end of the night aren’t prepared to do anything other than sleep. However, if they’ve had a good night’s rest in a clean bed, the chance to take care of their basic hygienic needs, and know that they don’t have to leave immediately, they’re more likely to be open to assistance that can transform their lives. And Transition provides services that do just that right in their facilities.

“We only have one [shelter] that closes in the morning,” says Peyser. “That’s it. The rest are all offering wraparound services. It gives us a chance to develop a relationship [with the client] and get a good understanding of what each person needs so that we can guide the case managers.”

With the 24-hour model, Transition’s been able to offer clients more programming than they might find elsewhere. This includes AA meetings, art therapy, and mental health support. They provide clients with peer support from mentors who have lived in the shelter. They work to connect clients with medical services, and they have case managers who help veterans learn about and receive their benefits.

Transition also runs a resource center during the day. It’s a clean space where people can come in, take a shower, take care of other basic needs like cleaning their clothes, get connected to a mental health counselor, and start working with a case manager to navigate the often difficult path to housing. The center allows participants to spend the day where they feel safe and supported — something many of us with homes can take for granted.

It’s a testament to why clean matters* — it can be the difference between an ordinary day and one that puts you on the path to a better, brighter future.

Since approximately a quarter of Transition’s shelter participants are working, having a place where they can come in and leave their belongings not only helps them stay in the program, it reduces the stigma around homelessness. Transition’s goal is to end stigma while simultaneously providing services that clients need.

“We’ve flipped the way shelters work on its head,” Peyser says.

For many people, Transition has made a life-changing difference. The program helps more than 1,000 people a year find housing.

For the people who use the services Transition offers, being involved in a group, taking a class, or even using the computer lab is a step towards feeling like an integral member of society again. And being able to do that in a space that’s clean, bright and feels welcoming is just the beginning. What happens next means everything.

For Danita, a Transition client, having a place to go during both day and night meant that she could focus on getting a job. Now she’s a program manager who helps women find and maintain affordable housing. It’s thanks to Transition that she’s come to a place in her life where she can give back.

Jon and Jennifer used Transition’s day program because they knew that it was a place that they would always be welcomed. It’s where they showered and did laundry. It’s where they took classes. When the couple decided to pursue long-term housing, they used Transition’s services to help them find and maintain it. After that milestone was achieved, Jennifer was reunited with her teen daughter (who now also lives with the couple).

Today, both partners work at Transition helping others who, like them, may only be looking for a warm, clean place to be for right now, but for whom a better future may be closer than they think.

“Housing is hope,” says Peyser. For the thousands upon thousands of people that Transition has helped, that hope starts with consistently open doors to a safe space.

* Clorox believes clean has the power to transforms lives, which is why they’ve partnered with Upworthy to promote those same traits in people, actions and ideas. Cleaning up and transformation are important aspects of many of our social good stories. Check out the rest in the campaign to read more.

Was your New Year’s Resolution to clean up and finally get your home organized?

If it was, you’re not alone.

Since the start of the year, cities all over the country are reporting more clothing donations than usual. And, of course, it seems like everyone is obsessed with the show “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo” and showing off their new home organization projects on social media.

So whether you were inspired by a TV show, the millionth fight with your partner over dirty dishes, or simply a walk past the Container Store, it’s always a good time to clean up and organize your space.

“There is a pleasure in imagining that this thing — being organized and clean — is a task that can be done,” explains Dr. Gail Saltz, associate professor of Psychiatry at the New York Presbyterian Hospital Weill-Cornell School of Medicine. “Once done, things would look nice and be less cluttered and you’d know where everything is. It’s sort of like imagining how good you’d feel after you do a spin class or a run.”

And that’s part of the reason, she adds, why so many people are inspired right now by Kondo’s Netflix show: it gives them the tools to plan out how they can get something done, and help them feel like their goals are, indeed, attainable.

The good news is that setting a goal like this — and working to achieve it — can have a lot of positive effects on your life and your health, as long as you tackle it in a manageable way. Here are just 7 of those benefits:

1. Cleaning up can alleviate stress.

A 2009 UCLA study found a correlation between women’s stress levels and untidy homes. Women who described their homes as untidy, messy, cluttered or unfinished had higher levels of cortisol — the body’s main stress hormone — than those that described their homes as “tidy” or “restorative.” They also had increased feelings of depression during the day.

This suggests that living in a cleaner, more organized space has a relaxing effect which can, in turn, lower your stress. On a slightly different note, according to MarketWatch, Americans spend about 55 minutes a day looking for stuff they own but can’t find — which is stressful and disheartening in a totally different way. Not only that, but sometimes mess can simply be overwhelming, leaving you feeling defeated and depressed.

2. It can also improve your relationships.

“For many people the issue of how clean and how organized to be is a real source of relationship stress,” says Dr. Saltz. This is especially true in couples. One half of the couple might really like things organized and obsessively clean. The other might think it’s no big deal if the dirty clothes pile up or if the house goes a week or two between vacuums.

“This can be a source of arguing, disagreement and upset that takes a lot of emotional space up,” she explains. That’s why it’s often important for couples to learn to compromise and agree on a certain standard of tidy for their shared space.

“Having a relatively clean and organized space is probably better for a couple’s wellbeing. I mean, unless you happen to have found your soulmate in filth,” she adds, with a laugh.

3. You’re more likely to socialize if you keep your space tidy.

Almost half of Americans say that if their house feels cluttered, they won’t invite people over. But not socializing in your space can have a tremendous impact on your friendships and your well-being, making you feel isolated and increasing your chances of depression or poor mental health.So get out those Clorox Disinfecting Wipes and start planning that potluck you’ve been meaning to! Your mind will thank you for it.

4. Cleaning up can boost your creativity and productivity.

Clutter and dirt can have a negative impact on your ability to focus or process information, according to a Princeton Study. This can make you feel distracted and stressed out, inhibiting your ability to get things done — which is bad at home and at work.

If you take the time to clean up your desk and your home, it can help you be more efficient. “One’s productivity and creativity might be increased once one has completed organization — mostly because mentally, that distraction has been taken off the table,” explains Dr. Saltz. “It frees up more space to be productive and creative.”

5. It might also help you financially.

If you can’t find something in a messy house, but you really need it, you’re likely to give up looking for it and just buy a new one. This can waste your money, according to MarketWatch — and it won’t help your clutter problem either.

Extra stuff can also get expensive if you aren’t willing to let it go. More than 10 percent of American households rent storage spaces to hold their extra belongings — and they can spend as much as $1,000 a year on that facility. It should come as no surprise that the sale of home storage products, such as plastic boxes, has become a $10.5 billion business.

6. You might eat healthier.

A study in the journal Psychological Science suggests that people in orderly environments can show a preference for healthier snacks. That’s something that can benefit every one of us!

7. A clean bed could help you sleep better.

According to a National Sleep Foundation survey, people who make their beds every morning are 19 percent more likely to report getting a good night’s sleep.

Not only that, but that same survey found that 73% of people said that they got a better night’s rest if their sheets and bedding were clean. It simply made them feel more comfortable — helping them nod off at night. So if you’ve been sleeping in the same sheets for over a week, it might be a good idea to take a trip to Laundry Town.

Before you embark on your cleaning adventure, though, there are two important things to remember:

First, not everyone has the same definition of “clean” or “tidy.”

“There can be a lot of variability between one person’s ‘this is acceptable’ and another person’s ‘are you kidding me?” says Dr. Saltz. “I don’t think there is a uniform [standard] that everyone aspires to.”

In other words, maybe you’re the kind of person who finds that keeping a minimalist home is very relaxing. But someone else might find that same minimalist space depressing and too sparse. It’s okay to want a bookshelf chock full of books or a lot of sentimental things around you. The key is to find the level of tidy and organized that makes you happy.

As long as your space or clutter doesn’t interfere with your ability to function — i.e. you can never find things, you don’t want people over, it’s affecting your relationships or your job, etc. — then it’s okay to decide what organized looks like for you.

Second, don’t overwhelm yourself in the process of trying to better your space.

“Usually when you tell someone that they need a major life overhaul, it doesn’t work — sort of like the New Year’s resolution to lose 50 pounds. It’s probably not going to happen,” Dr. Saltz explains. “You have to break things into bite-sized chunks so that it feels manageable and not overwhelming or anxiety-producing.”

“If it feels anxiety-producing, most people won’t even embark on a project at all,” she continues. “So start one closet at a time and feel good about what you accomplish. That’s more likely to work for you in the long run.”

If you stress yourself out trying to achieve the impossible overnight, you’re never going to experience the benefits that cleaning up can have on your health, defeating the point of your newest New Year’s resolution in the first place.

Clorox believes clean has the power to transforms lives, which is why they’ve partnered with Upworthy to promote those same traits in people, actions and ideas. Cleaning up and transformation are important aspects of many of our social good stories. Check out the rest in the campaign to read more.