As ‘manic cleaning’ trends on TikTok, psychologists reveal reasons, risks behind impulsive tidying

 Most of us have at one time or another found ourselves in an urgent state of motivated cleaning, as we feel compelled to clear the sink of dirty dishes or organize an entire closet.

Social media users have now dubbed this sudden urge to clean as "manic cleaning," and the term has gained traction on TikTok.

Many users have posted videos showing their own frantic cleaning sessions, explaining how the "high" of productivity subsides as suddenly as it came.

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A video posted by user @b0btailDog shows him vacuuming and suddenly falling to the ground with the caption, "When your frantic cleaning and not eating or drinking anything all day finally stops."

The video currently has two million likes - with lots of feedback from other users.

TikTok user @szafanatic commented below the video, "Frantic cleaning is the only way I can get the job done 100%, I swear."

"The frantic cleaning is real," another user said in response to the same video.

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TikToker Jessica Roof posted a similar video that has been viewed more than eight million times.

The placeholder TikTok, where Roof is seen walking into a room and dropping an entire basket of laundry, is captioned, "When you've been frantically cleaning for the last 8 hours and go to dispose of 3 baskets of laundry are, but then feel the switch flip."

Viewers were feeling able to relate, including a TikTok user named Sophie, who commented, "It's the dishes for me. I can scrub bathroom tiles on my knees, but as soon as I do the dishes... If I think about it, my work is finished."

Another user, @sydbran, said, "For me, this is like remaking my bed after washing my sheets/frantic cleaning of everything in sight."

While frantic cleaning seems to be a shared experience for some people, according to experts, it wouldn't be fair to consider it "manic" at all.

Nilou Nekou, a licensed marriage and family therapist and chief clinical officer of Alter Health Group in California, emphasized the difference between "manic" and "impulsive."

"I think the word 'manic' is attention-grabbing," he told Fox News Digital in an interview.

"It attracts a negative component to it, because if someone is really inactive, or they have that diagnosis, it can be a dangerous label (to use) on social media," the therapist said.

Dr. Aaron Tendler, a board-certified psychiatrist and chief medical officer of neurostimulation treatment provider BrainsWay, also discourages the term "manic cleaning."

"This is an unfortunate use of the word 'frantic'," the expert said. "When people use these words inappropriately, it kind of defuses the conflict."

Tendler, who is based in West Palm Beach, Florida, said mania prompts increased "goal-directed activity" in people with conditions such as bipolar disorder.

According to Tendler, the hypomanic period lasts at least four days, with increased energy for most of the day.

"You may go through a distinct period of abnormally, persistently elevated, extended or irritable mood," he said. "And during that period, your normal behavior will usually change."

While manic cleaning can sometimes resemble a hypomanic period, Tendler said a decline in energy and mood follows it.

This "compulsive cleaning" can be compared to a similar condition called obsessive-compulsive disorder, also known as OCD, he said.

"But that's not really the trend," Tendler said. "OCD is a chronic illness, the severity of which can vary over a person's lifetime."

“When people have OCD, they have unwanted, intrusive thoughts and worries… They usually have a few things they worry about and become overly focused on.”

The doctor said he finds cleanliness to be a "common topic of concern" in OCD, as rituals such as hand washing and house cleaning often come up.

"A person with OCD will be constantly cleaning, washing clothes, wearing gloves all the time," he said. “It won't be like cleaning once a week or twice a week for a few hours.”

Other mental disorders, such as ADHD, can also be a factor in manic cleaning, Tendler said, as prescribed stimulants can cause hyper-focused behavior.

"Nobody should be manually cleaning at hours when they should be sleeping," he said.

Instead of cleaning for several hours at a time, Nekou recommends creating a weekly schedule for various household tasks.

In her work at residential treatment facilities, Nekou said she teaches individuals not to act on their impulses and to strive for "structured programs and environments."

Tendler agreed that "the time spent on cleaning is good to be structured, focused."