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Do you control your stuff, or does your stuff control you? If you feel like you fall more into the second category, you’re in league with millions of people who struggle to let go of accumulated belongings. For some, it’s more than an annoyance. An estimated 2% to 6% of Americans have a psychological condition called hoarding disorder. This condition is about three times more likely to occur in the retirement years than in midlife.
The risks of hoarding to health and well-being include increased risk of falls and fires, lack of hygiene, difficulty preparing food and getting good sleep, social isolation, job and financial difficulties, and housing difficulties, such as having heat or electricity cut off.
Whether you or a loved one simply has a lot of clutter or falls into the hoarding category, taking steps to reduce clutter can have important benefits.
Up front, find ways to reduce the amount of stuff you bring into the home. Ask of each potentially acquired item if you have an immediate use for it, time to deal with it appropriately, money to afford it and space to put it.
When you’re ready to clean existing clutter in a room, have supplies and a strategy before you begin, including:
- Making a spot for everything — Have four containers labeled “trash,” “recycle,” “sell or donate,” and “keep.”
- Asking hard questions of every item — Do I need it? Do I have a plan to use it? Have I used it in the last year? Do I have space to keep it? Make every item justify its continuing presence.
- Pacing yourself — Give yourself breaks. If you feel overwhelmed, stop. It’s a stressful, draining process. Rushing things or pushing through severe anxiety can be counterproductive.
- Having an exit strategy — Put garbage and recycling in bins outside the home. Take donations to a drop-off site. Immediately place ads or create online posts for things to sell or give away. Things allowed to linger in the residence are less likely to be removed.
Connect with others looking for ways to enhance their health in the Healthy Living group.
Don’t throw away a chance to get dozens of health tips every month. Subscribe to Mayo Clinic Health Letter.
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I've started decluttering so many times and you are right, it's stressful to say the least. I'm hoping there will be some spring in my step this Spring to get started again on decluttering. This is a very good strategy and I think it will work if I can some buy in from my better half 🙃
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6 Reactions@johnbishop, and all...I bet your other half will be right beside you. Between the 2 of you, John, you can get this done with flying colors.
I'm willing and wanting but lack the able! I have sorting begun, but can't handle the job physically. So, I hope to find someone to help me out. Wish me luck, my friend. I've had multiple yard/garage sales through the years, cleared out so much but still need at least one more sale. and, have several bins to donate. I can get those gone on my own, using the phone!
Wishing you well. elizabeth
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5 ReactionsOh, I have the best de-cluttering secret to success - my mom. She loves decluttering and organizing (thank goodness). When I ask her sort a room, a closet, a drawer, whatever, she makes 3 piles:
1. Keep
2. Maybe
3. Ditch
This helps me see the items in smaller chunks. Sometimes her criteria for sorting into the 3 piles differs from mine, but it gives me a starting point and is less daunting and less emotional. It can really help to have a helper.
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5 ReactionsColleen- I hate that a secret motto of mine is, maybe someday! All of my stuff seems to be on a conveyor belt.
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6 ReactionsThis is the blog I belong in!! LOL Baz10
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3 ReactionsI have found it very difficult to throw things away because as an artist I have many projects that use recycled stuff…(ex.used old piano keys to paint miniatures and raised money for elephants…when my childhood piano was being thrown out!) Stuff like that and collaging things…but now at 83yrs old family is very critical of me and my studio…so I have decided to stop trying to stress myself out by justifying to them as to why I am keeping this or that..I tell them “When I’m dead you can have a bonfire or what ever” I can’t waste anymore energy on pleasing neat-niks when I am trying to Paint/Collage/Write for my next exhibition/book launch..BY the same token I don’t waste $$$ buying things, clothes etc just to be a la mode…I do give away clothes and food I can’t use..Sorry this seems to have become a rant.
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9 ReactionsHaving the same issue of clutter, I discovered a new hobby and that is scrapping. I take metals to the local metal recycling center and make a little money out of it. Google that topic if it interests you.
Apart from that, the biggest way for me and I imagine for many others is making a habit of decluttering. Schedule it for an hour a day and you will find not only that hour you accomplish something, but it is so ingrained in your thinking that thought will come up at other times and you will think" I might as well get rid of that while I am at it."
Lastly, I will say count your success by the piles you created. How much bigger is the trash or goodwill pile today compared to the time before. "Can I make it bigger?" With the goodwill pile then I think, "Wow I bet that item
is really going to bless someone who needs it."
That's about it from me. I would just summarize my contribution that success comes from our thinking, on how we approach this challenge with our thought life.
-RKO
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11 ReactionsClutter is mind boggling and your suggestions are helpful! Thanks!
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2 ReactionsI love all these suggestions! I also find if I commit to sorting through one corner of a room or just the top shelf of a closet it’s less daunting. Then when I step back and see the finished result it inspires me to do another area. I think it helps to have some kink is system
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3 ReactionsI found "The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning" to be inspiring. I can't remember the author's name, it's packed away now as I'm moving to a small senior apartment and all packed up and waiting for the movers. It was a great help in parting with a lot of stuff in preparation for this move. But I can see that when I'm moved in, there will be more I won't even bother to unpack. Out it goes; bless it and thank it for the use or pleasure it gave me, then pass it on!
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6 Reactions