If Someone Leaves These 11 Things Out On Their Kitchen Counter, They're Low-Key Struggling
Bbernard | Shutterstock Everyone is guilty of leaving random things out on their kitchen counter at some point. It’s an easy catch-all space when you walk into the house after a long day of work. However, if someone leaves certain things out on their counter habitually and for long periods of time, it may be a sign that they’re struggling a little bit. There’s no need to judge people for the contents or cleanliness of their house, but seeing these things might clue you into their mindset.
Mental health writer Dr. Kristen Fuller, MD, shared, “While accumulating a few extra possessions may not seem like a big deal, clutter can actually harm your mental health. Clutter can increase stress levels, make it difficult to focus, take a toll on relationships, and more.” It may not seem like a big deal for someone to leave something sitting out on their counter, but it can actually be detrimental to their mental health, especially if it’s one of these items. Here are the 11 things that people leave on their kitchen counters that could mean they are low-key struggling.
1. Bills
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For some reason, bills just seem to end up in the kitchen. Some people have a drawer or storage container designated for them, but others just let them sit on the counter. Now, if someone is letting their bills sit on the counter overnight after an exhausting day at work, that’s one thing. But if they just leave them there, letting them pile up, that’s not such a good sign. It could have implications related to their finances and their mental state.
Ramsey Solutions noted, “It’s the end of the month. Your bills are piling up on the kitchen table, and your paycheck can’t seem to stretch far enough to cover even half of them. If you’re wondering what to do when you can’t pay your bills, you’re not alone. In fact, 78% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, too. Not being able to cover your bills is pretty normal.”
It’s a very real possibility that someone may let their bills sit on their kitchen counter because they simply can’t pay them, which is, of course, a sign that they’re struggling. This is a situation a lot of people find themselves in. It could also mean that someone doesn’t have the motivation to pay their bills, which is also a red flag. Not keeping up with necessities like this can be a sign of mental illness.
2. Dirty dishes
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People traditionally put their dirty dishes in the sink, but if they’re overflowing onto their counter, it can definitely be a sign that they’re struggling. Whether they genuinely don’t have the time to wash their dishes or they just don’t really care to, letting the dirty dishes spill out onto the counter shows a lack of effort. Plus, what do they do once they’ve actually used up all of the clean dishes, and they have nothing left but dirty ones?
Barbara Mullan, an associate professor at Curtin University’s school of psychology in Australia, explained, “Ultimately, if you leave dirty dishes around and there are people in the house, and possibly animals, they are likely to spread bacteria around. Bacteria will stay alive on surfaces, even clean surfaces, for up to four days. So on dishes that have contamination like food particles, bacteria can stay alive for a very long time.”
Someone leaving their dirty dishes out isn’t just a sign that they’re struggling with a lack of motivation or too little time to handle essential tasks. Doing so can pose a health risk. No one wants bacteria living in their house, especially in their kitchen. If someone is struggling with keeping dirty dishes off their counter, they really need to reach out to someone for help with their specific circumstances.
3. Food
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Obviously, there’s going to be some food on kitchen counters. It is a kitchen, after all. It’s completely normal to keep a fruit bowl or a breadbox on one’s counter. However, if there’s half-finished, forgotten food lying around, it could mean someone is struggling. If you’re not going to finish your food, it belongs in a storage container that can go in the fridge or freezer, or in the garbage can. Leaving it sitting out on the counter is not the best move.
The Washington State Department of Health called it a “myth” that “if you let food sit out more than two hours, you can make it safe by reheating it really hot.” Instead, the truth is, “Some bacteria, such as Staphylococcus (staph) and Bacillus cereus, produce toxins not destroyed by high cooking temperatures. Refrigerate perishable foods within two hours in a refrigerator temperature of 40 degrees or below.”
Taking a few bites of something and then leaving it out on the counter for hours is a bad idea. This is how people end up incredibly sick from bacterial infections. Making this situation even worse, old food that is left out on the counter can attract bugs. No one wants to walk into their kitchen and see a swarm of flies around an unfinished plate.
4. Purse or wallet
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Understandably, there are days when someone who is exhausted would walk into their kitchen and just set their purse or wallet down wherever there’s room, including on the kitchen counter. Technically, if the kitchen is the best, most logical place for a person to leave their purse or wallet, the counter may be the best option. But if it’s something that’s just done because they’re tired and feel like they don’t have time to put things away and organize properly, it could be a sign that they’re struggling.
Judi Igwe, from Rescue My Space, explained why you should take the time to do small acts of tidying in your house, like putting your personal belongings away where they belong. “Maintenance is so important,” she said. “You can organize it, but it’s not going to stay that way if you don’t maintain it.”
In other words, someone can organize their whole house and make everything look nice, but if they don’t keep up with the day-to-day upkeep, their house will never be clean. It may be easiest to put your purse or wallet on the kitchen counter when you get home, but if that’s not the proper place you’ve picked out for them, it’s really best to put them away where they belong to keep clutter from piling up. Leaving that purse or wallet out could cause a domino effect that makes someone think they can just put anything on the counter.
5. Medicine
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There’s nothing wrong with needing to take medicine, whether it’s by prescription or over-the-counter. And, if you find yourself on a lot of medication for various health problems, it can be incredibly hard to keep them all organized and tucked away somewhere that keeps the house looking tidy. If someone just leaves medicine bottles out on their kitchen counter, it could simply mean they’re trying to make their routine easier. Or, it could mean everything is in a state of chaos, and they don’t know what to do with it.
A study published by the Environmental Design Research Association found that people who were presented with a messy kitchen were actually more likely to overeat. Brian Wansink from Cornell University, who participated in the study, explained, “The notion that places — such as cluttered offices or disorganized homes — can be modified to help us control our food intake is becoming an important solution in helping us become slimmer by design.”
This doesn’t mean that someone who has medicine bottles strewn across their kitchen counter is automatically going to eat more than someone who doesn’t. However, the study does show a link between overeating and clutter. Someone may think they’re leaving that medicine out for convenience, but it could actually be harmful and a sign that they’re going through it.
6. Dirty dishcloths
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If someone leaves a dirty dishcloth or two out on their kitchen counter, it is partly a good thing because it means they made the effort to clean something. Unfortunately, just leaving the cloth there means they’re struggling. Dirty laundry can be put in the place where it’s supposed to be so easily, so if they couldn’t even take the dirty cloth to the hamper, it’s not a good sign.
Charles Gerba, an environmental microbiologist at the University of Arizona College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, stated, “Studies have shown that skin, blood, feces, and saliva-borne pathogens can be transmitted by laundry. Laundry is a collector of human bodily waste, in addition to food and dirt from normal daily activities.”
Just like leaving out dirty dishes can spread bacteria that can make someone sick, dirty laundry can do the same. This includes dirty dish cloths that were picked up with the best of intentions and later left sitting right where they were on the counter. Just leaving dirty laundry around like this is a red flag that someone is struggling.
7. Extra Tupperware and dishes
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On the opposite end of the spectrum from dirty dishes, someone might leave extra clean Tupperware containers or dishes out on the kitchen counter. Technically, these belong in the cabinets, but they may just sort of overflow onto the counter. Leaving clean dishes out on the counter isn’t the worst thing a person can do, and it’s not a health risk, but it adds to the clutter and disorganization.
Medical writer Barbara Brody said, “It’s hard to focus on important tasks when several things compete for your attention. Researchers have found that being around disorganization makes it harder for your brain to focus.” So, while those clean dishes may not pose any danger from the standpoint of physical health, that clutter can make it hard for someone to function mentally.
It may seem like it’s really not a big deal to leave extra dishes or Tupperware on the kitchen counter. After all, someone is bound to put them to use eventually. However, this lack of care for the kitchen and the house in general shows that someone is probably stressed, and it’s just getting worse because of the clutter.
8. Cleaning supplies
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Cleaning supplies are one of those things that are somewhat good to leave on a kitchen counter in the sense that it means someone was going to clean, or maybe they actually did. But if they just got left there, there’s a problem. It’s another thing that shows a lack of energy and motivation. Even if someone’s cleaning supplies are all-natural and pose no risk to their health by sitting out on the counter, it still speaks volumes about their mental health.
Health and wellness writer Daniela Ginta noted that depression is one of the things that can cause a lack of motivation. “If depression is responsible for your lack of motivation, you may find that your level of motivation is directly related to how depressed you’re feeling,” she said. “It may seem hard at first, but persistence will help feed the growing sense of motivation, and you may find that over time it becomes easier to get up and do things.”
Whether someone didn’t have the motivation to clean or just didn’t have the motivation to put those products away, it could be a sign of depression. Even if they’re not actually depressed, they are feeling a lack of motivation at the very least, which isn’t a good feeling. It means they’re struggling.
9. Trash
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Maybe there are crumbs spread out across someone’s kitchen counter, or maybe there are used paper products that should have ended up in the garbage can. Leaving trash out on the counter instead of putting it where it belongs is a bad sign. It signifies that that person just really doesn’t care anymore. They’ve become apathetic to the state of their house and just feel like it’s okay if anything goes.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, “‘Apathy’ is a term healthcare professionals use to describe a lack of goal-directed activity and motivation compared to previous behavior. It can also look like a lack of spontaneity, interest, or emotional expression.” They clarified that apathy and depression are not the same thing, although they can coincide.
Saying someone is apathetic doesn’t mean they necessarily have a mental health condition. But it does definitely mean that they’re struggling. They aren’t motivated and working towards their goals anymore. They just let things slide when they really shouldn’t. This is serious and can lead to further problems in someone’s life beyond just letting trash pile up on the counter.
10. Unfinished projects
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Saying someone has an unfinished project lying around sounds serious — like they were replacing their cabinets and just stopped halfway through. It doesn’t have to be that meaningful, though. An unfinished project could simply mean someone left behind an open notebook with a pen, or some forms they had to fill out, or the start of a dinner recipe. This goes back to energy and motivation. It takes less effort for someone to start a task than it does to see it through to the end.
Psychology professor Nancy Darling, PhD, explained, “I am not a naturally anxious person nor a person who suffers from chronic or disabling anxiety. But all of us have anxiety in our lives. For many of us, anxiety is fed by circling back, over and over, to the things we ought to do. For conscientious, fairly planful people like myself, this list can be long.”
Sometimes a person literally does not have the time or resources to finish a task at the present moment, meaning they have to leave it for later. But if they’re just leaving it for later because they don’t want to deal with it, that can create a sense of anxiety. Signs of lots of unfinished projects on the kitchen counter mean that the person is probably under a lot of stress and could use some help.
11. Miscellaneous things
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Everyone has miscellaneous items around their house that just don’t really have a set place. Like we’ve established, the kitchen counter is a catch-all place where everything naturally tends to gravitate, especially when there’s nowhere else to really put it. It’s impossible to get rid of all of this clutter and keep the kitchen counter completely clean all of the time, but if someone is just letting little things sit out indefinitely, they might be struggling.
If someone takes the time to assign things a place and actually puts them there, they’ll feel so much better, according to Cheyenne Ely, the owner of Cheyenne Paige Interiors. “Countertops and table surfaces seem to be a magnet for all the things,” she said. “While it may seem easier to plop your items on the first flat surface you see, it only takes an extra second to return them to their rightful place.”
Someone may feel like there’s no real “rightful place” for an extra pair of scissors or a set of sticky notes, but things can always go somewhere — and chances are, it’s somewhere better than the middle of the kitchen counter. People who live with this endless clutter are not in a good place, but doing a quick cleanup can work wonders.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
