Keeping it Together: Are you 'manic cleaning'? Probably not.

The urge to aggressively clean your home after catching dust bunnies in action isn’t an unusual feeling, especially when springtime rolls around or guests are coming over. Some people on TikTok, however, are slapping serious labels onto a relatively ordinary behavior, calling these random bursts of motivation to tidy up — “manic cleaning.”

Now, people who actually experience mania are speaking up.

Hello, I'm Katie Camero, a health and wellness reporter with Paste BN. This week we're exploring the consequences of tossing psychiatric diagnoses around with little regard for those who have them, which, according to people knowledgeable about mania, diminishes real manic experiences to a trendy quirk. 

Although intense cleaning spells are common behaviors among people experiencing mania, experts say that they last much longer than a couple of hours, aren’t done out of boredom and can be followed by a severe depression that can last weeks to months, unlike what’s discussed online. 

“It is absolutely insensitive and invalidating to see mental health language being used as a cute little adjective or referring to something completely normal,” said Hanno Ortiz, a 25-year-old from Kansas. Ortiz is diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder bipolar type, meaning she experiences both manic and depressive episodes, as well as delusions and hallucinations.

“Unfortunately, serious symptoms of mental illness have become trendy and have lost their meaning," Ortiz said, "so people who suffer from mania are being spoken over by people who act on pretty normal impulsive behavior.” 

“Manic cleaning” videos, she added, contribute to misinformation about mania as people associate it with ordinary behaviors and ignore other, more debilitating symptoms. 

Continue reading to learn more about what real manic episodes are like, and what to do if you suspect you're having one. Then stick around for other content my team worked hard on this week.