Few things can excite and terrify you as much at the same time as having people come to your home. Even if you’re someone who loves entertaining guests (*waves*), knowing that people are going to be at your house within 24 hours can really cure you of your “home blindness” and you’ll be suddenly scrubbing the front of your dirty dishwasher.
House blindness isn’t exactly a diagnosis, but it’s something we all suffer from, and in different ways depending on the circumstances.
House cleaning blindness
house blindness is not exactly What it sounds like, but it’s close. It’s a term coined by the internet and refers to the feeling that you don’t notice something in your house unless something lights it up, like someone coming over. A scuff mark on the door, a stain on the window, a sock scattered under the footstool – these are small parts of your house that over time you get used to and then suddenly become “blind” to. That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with these things (houses are meant to be lived in), but there are a lot of TikToks and Instagrams out there about the confusing feeling of having your house blindness “lifted” and seeing your home as your own. It was a stranger walking through the door.
For me, this was when I suddenly saw a half-finished painting I had done in the upstairs hall about…four years ago. It feels weird saying it out loud, but it’s one of those unfinished projects that I completely ignore until someone comes over and then I go into a full-blown panic trying to paint in 12 hours.
But this type of house blindness is also prevalent in ADHD circles. Maybe you don’t agree with the clutter in your home, but like time blindness, your brain hasn’t quite figured out how to process or accept the situation. So, to save energy, your brain is essentially rewired not to notice the teetering pile of junk on top of an already full can. Your house blindness allows you to live without anxiety or overwhelm, but it can also make things harder to deal with because something happens—like a holiday party or a decision—until you notice. Do a general cleaning.
House blindness when renovating
House blindness can also be used to reference home decoration and design. TikTok is littered with videos of people asking commenters to rate their “house blindness” as they try to portray a certain vibe or trend in their own homes. Like they wanted a traditional home or coastal granny vibe, but something didn’t seem right. What is blind about their house? What do they not see because they live it every day? What can they add or remove from their home to give them the vibe they want?
No matter what type of atrial blindness you have (or suddenly realize you have), this is completely normal. Living in our surroundings, working, cooking, sleeping and playing in them every day, it’s easy to become blind to what’s going on around us. Stains can build up over time. Or maybe you never had time to hang curtains, and although it felt like something you needed to install ASAP when you first moved in, you’re now totally used to not hanging them.
The trick is to figure out how, if at all, losing your house’s sight will affect you. Then start from there. Best case scenario: Invite friends over. Have them come tomorrow afternoon and see how quickly your house blindness disappears. Nothing rejuvenates your brain like “here comes the company.”
