Hoarder's Anonymous, Part 6

[Solo]

Well, here we are embarking upon part 6 of our epic journey of sorting out our homes.

We are a varied group of likeminded householders that are leading somewhat challenging lives; be that living with too much 'stuff' that we find difficult to deal with, houses that are falling apart (mine included), health issues within the family unit, wider family, or ourselves that makes sorting out our households challenging, to say the least. So...

Anyone and everyone is welcome to join us for support, adding their own ideas to help others out, storage ideas, even tips on actually getting those items out of the house which sounds so simple when you say it. Encouragement abounds here, and we do not criticise. EVER! We even try not to criticise ourselves as it's not helpful to anyone.
If you are feeling overwhelmed, don't know where to start, can't be bothered but really do want to be bothered...think you are lazy, just need to see it in print here...we'll help. We'll virtually fist bump your achievements - small or large, and virtually hug you when the need arises, and if you want a hug, just ask because we are here for you. Here for one another because we get it - the highs and the lows, the art of washing up is sometimes our great achievement of the day, but it's still an achievement.

Welcome to thread #6 of Hoarders Anonymous - Carrying On Sorting It Out

HERE

Hello,
not made any progress here and not keeping up with MN as the page keeps failing to load and asking me to accept cookies again at every navigation!
now full of cold so I am not expecting more progress for a few days at least

Some good progress being made @Nordicmom . Anything you do @Peppapigforlife big or small will help.

@Peppapigforlife I also get overwhelmed and procrastinate and feel like I don't know where to start! All familiar types of feelings for us all, I'm sure. Don't beat yourself up for those feelings.

I've washed 7 towels today. They became a pile in my en suite that I've been ignoring for about two weeks. Anyway they're clean and hung up to dry now.

I've had groceries delivered today and they're put away. Brilliant feeling when that's done.

Sorry about the broken finger of your daughter @Nordicmom .

Our garage has gotten out of hand recently. Lots of empty boxes from different online shopping. We'll eventually get it all recycled or reused.

Life has been off track here recently but I'm starting to bring things back in line. I'm finding some days are too busy so I've scheduled 2 days each week to get in with clearing, and on the other days I'll just try to do some general living jobs. I'm working my way through a mountain of dirty washing this week, at least 5 loads left. I've got greenhouse plants to arrange appropriately inside until I've cleared the greenhouse. I need to list more items for sale, I've already taken photos. And I've got a lot of paperwork to fill in that's been waiting a while. These are my jobs for the weekend.

No progress whatsoever and I’m so frustrated with myself.

@DownUdderer thâbk you, it sounds like you've had quite a productive day yourself.
I managed to get the washing up all done and I even cleaned the fridge and cleared it out. İt took a good hour and a half, but I'm glad it's done now. The living room is tidy and I changed my bedsheets and then I've taken myself off to my mum's to not have to look at it all for a few days.
My mum's house is a lot worse and more uncomfortable for me to be in, but I figured I needed a change of scenery, no matter how bad!
My next goal is just to get rid of a little bit at a time and also keep on top of keeping the place tidy, because that's the main thing that gets me down, seeing all the toys everywhere and letting the kitchen get out of hand and having clothes everywhere. Gradually as I descale, it shouldn't so easily get messy but I'm still going to work on keeping it tidy and clean, as I go. I've had enough of spending whole days tidying up.

Thanks Downudderer, DD is managing with her finger pretty well just has to be off games for months and can’t do her piano right hand etc . She seems to be able to write and draw though which is great for school .
Besides the daily housework and endless laundry we got a bunch of admin done yesterday which will make me feel better and free me up to do some decluttering in the weekend while alone . Then hopefully on Monday / next weekend more going out the door to dump / charity shop .
We managed to book DD next covid vaccine , book more driving lessons for DS and to move his theory test since we’re now going away for my birthday without the kids then ,and started registering to senior schools 5 more to go . also contacted a new gardener finally fx they’ll answer and I can book them for a visit soon ,plus a few more other things so those are off my mental list now .
Today DH works from home so did the school run and took the dog to his doggy daycare where he’ll also be groomed today . I’m having a bit of time off and going to get my hands and feet done which really need it after all the travelling and scrubbing . Afterwards it’s back to the toil I’m sure . The laundry mountain beckons for one …

Just wanted to put this up here incase you people think my house is now all neat and spotless from the earlier pictures 😄…
I have some laundry to fold this weekend 😒… Granted I haven’t done it at all except for my own after coming back from our trip a week and a half ago , normally I do it once a week since we hang it all up in the top floor and keep the clean laundry baskets out of sight there too . Normally one basket each plus sheets and towels separately to make it quicker to fold and put away but seems there’s two for my son now . I refuse to be folding dry laundry and putting it away daily except my own which I do right away when I’m already washing it daily and scrubbing this house and tidying all the time . I rather do it all in one go once a week while watching tv ! And no we generally don’t iron anymore either . Anything I don’t want wrinkled we wash a small load of ,hang right away and put away in wardrobes not into the baskets . Once I got ill 12 y ago and then had DD ( DS was 7) and struggled and my health just went downhill with more chronic conditions I decided life is too short and what mattered was that the clothes were clean and not broken and fitted ,a few wrinkles didn’t matter . My mum irons sheets and I used to iron pillowcases…

Don’t know why it’s sideways now …

My house is a genuine looking hoarder site. I struggle to get into one of the rooms. I never seem to have the energy or time or motivation. Hopefull I can declutter soon. A while ago I managed to get rid of about 10 large bin bags. If I can fill 100 this time, I'll be a bit more settled.

We ended up not doing the dump today there wasn’t a full load without me going through more stuff in the dining room and a lot of it has to gone to charity not dump anyway . Instead DH went to get the buggies from the storage locker so he could clean them ,take pictures and list them with his motorcycle panniers and office chair plus a few other things . Now only the changing table and two Lego boxes left we’ll remove next weekend then giving the one week notice and we can cross that job off our list even if we’re still left to finish sorting out a couple of more boxes from there and to sell things .
Quite a few things to the charity shop box today too and to the rag bank bags which will both go next weekend . I folded the 6 baskets of laundry today and we changed my bed including the mattress and pillow protectors , need to do the others later . Have been laundering the ski clothes so DD ones can go to charity and others packed away until next winter . Tonight I was longing for minimalism , I’ll be so happy after the rest of the boxes from the locker have been decluttered , the rest of the attic organised and the garage as well which will take time since we’ll need our shed built for that and that requires hard landscapers and we’ve had trouble booking them . Am hoping to get rid of quite a bit of stuff yet but now I can hardly move so might have to rest tomorrow !

Welcome, @Peppapigforlife! 🤗

This thread (now in its nineth year) has been a great source of inspiration and support for me, so I hope you find it helpful, too! Using an outhouse as a temporary storage for ‘to be decided’ items is a good solution, and throwing everything into a skip is something that all of us here have probably considered doing at one time or another, but… it is never easy for a hoarder as there’s usually a lot of sentiment or guilt attached to it.

@DownUdderer I am so so humbled and happy to hear that you’ve found inspiration in my digital declutter process! It is very much like physical clutter – the less you let in in the first place, the less you have to deal with/organise/bin later! So unsubscribing is definitely the way! 😉 👍

@Stripyhoglets1 @BlueSummerBaby I know how big a task the wardrobe can be! My clothing hoard currently consists of 276 items (clothes, shoes, bags, accessories), and I can’t bring myself to get rid of anything unless it’s in tatters.

Wishing a speedy recovery to @SingToTheSky and @Nordicmom‘s DD! 💐

To everyone who’s struggling with their progress right now, please don’t be too hard on yourself, and maybe take some time off to rest, and recharge your batteries! 😉

P. S. I’ve just remembered that in April 2021 Solo came up with a great idea of doing a self-assessment of our current situation. There were eight categories with scores from 1 to 10, where 1 is perfection and 10 is a disaster. Would anyone like to share their current scores?

Mine are:

Clutter – 6 (was 8 in April 2021 – I have managed to declutter the bathroom and the digital data in the last 12 months).

Untidy – 3 (was also 3 – I’m the same highly organised hoarder as before).

Dirty – 6 (was 7 – I cannot effectively clean most of the areas but last year I gained back my bathroom. The score will keep improving as I declutter other areas/zones in my flat)

DIY SOS – 8 (was 7 – my loft urgently needs to be re-insulated with a better ventilation system installed. The condensation that is constantly building up on the inside of the roof right now is running down and leaving ugly brown marks on the ceiling. Fingers crossed, the housing association will stop ignoring my emails this year 😒)

Holding onto things of emotional value – 10 (still 10 😥)

Holding onto things that could be of use – 8 (was 9 – this year I am finally ready to put some of the items up for sale)

Buying unnecessary items which I have nowhere to put – 9 (was 8 – my insatiable fantasy self made me do it! 😫)

Procrastination – 9 (the same as last year – tasks which take a couple of hours to complete are sometimes delayed for years)

I'll play CherryMargo 🙂 I never realized this thread has been running so long.

can’t bring myself to get rid of anything unless it’s in tatters

Very familiar! I'm working on it.

Scores:

clutter - 5 I have too much stuff.

untidy - 4 due to the clutter.

dirty - 2 I don't clean under or behind furniture.

DIY SOS - 3 it's looking pretty good.

holding on to things of emotional value - 5 I've made good progress with this.

holding on to things that could be of use - 7 I've been decluttering.

buying unnecessary items which I have nowhere to put - 9 made a small amount of progress this year.

procrastination - 5 constantly working on this.

Here's mine:

clutter - 8 it's bad

untidy - 9 it's really bad

dirty - 8 small clean areas for preparing and cooking food, can't clear everywhere else

DIY SOS - 6 not great, but not a disaster

holding on to things of emotional value - 6 I struggle less than I used to

holding on to things that could be of use - 8 read the arguments but this still feels sensible

buying unnecessary items which I have nowhere to put - 6 no time for a fantasy life so only impulse buys

procrastination - 180 95% of the time, right before I have to leave the house I sometimes get the urge to start

@FoolShapeHeart I was tempted to copy yours - especially 180 procrastination

clutter - 9 currently worse than usual

untidy - 9 no clear surfaces/corners

dirty - 7 I just about keep on top of kitchen and bathrooms

DIY SOS - 6 so many jobs to do but house not quite falling down, dealt with emergencies last year

holding on to things of emotional value - 7 getting better, thanks to you lot - less holding on to things for the people my children used to be

holding on to things that could be of use - 9 drive myself and all my household crazy with this, should be closer to a 6 but recycling/waste guilt makes this a 9

buying unnecessary items which I have nowhere to put - 5 because no time really

procrastination - off the chart, I start 15 jobs then finish none

Its just non-stop and a bit overwhelming. I got the cupboard of doom sorted and bow I have a bedroom of doom. And I have a pleasant mix of my various illnesses and general laziness/ insomnia working agsinst me. I realise my last flat was really clean because we had no belongings and no internet.

Very nice & encouraging to read people’s updates and to see posters old and new - welcome or welcome back.

I have put about half my recycling mountain in the blue bin. The fact this is notable and feels like an achievement is sobering.

Unfortunately the weather has not been conducive to line drying so I’m a bit behind with my laundry at present. I’m managing to run and fully empty the dishwasher every day, but not always at the most efficient time so I need to try and get my routine back on track.

I’ve managed a few social outings which has improved my mood somewhat. I’m also reading more physical books and slowly adding most to the charity shop box as I finish them.

I’m pretty sure I filled in the ratings on a previous thread but am too scared to look back in case it’s now worse. I will do it again but not compare.

Well yesterday we made lots of progress !
I found a Children’s Hospice Charity that gladly took all 4 big boxes of our stuff ; 1 of my clothes , 1 of kids clothes and a few pairs of new shoes and welly boots , and two of assorted stuff like books, baby portable high chair and other baby items , DD nearly unused ski clothes etc . Then he went to finish emptying the storage locker and to give notice on it so that’s now done yes! We had it for 2,5 y in the buying this house and moving twice process . It was good to have but I never wanted it for good and have now now gotten rid of I’d say 2/3-3/4 of the contents inc the last bits that were there yesterday . He went to dump twice with recycling , clothes bank stuff , boxes , garden waste and stuff from the house and the locker . He also took away some parcels and managed to sign for a newspaper delivery for me which I’m really happy about and I think he washed the cars too . I have continued finally to look through more boxes from the dining room we have been putting them in from the locker so I think I have now 6 left . I dealt with a camping box and threw away one sleeping bag that was DS it had a few rips and was old and well used so is going to fabric recycling. I did a box of new wall picture frames I’ll keep so just moved them into a new clean labelled box and will try to find the rest I thought I had . there were some new wooden blocks I’ll put into box I’ve kept a few toys in for grandkids . There was a box of baby paraphernalia like a changing bag that’s all going except a 2/3 pairs of little shoes I had to keep for now at least . Then I looked throw two boxes of kids books , turned out they were mainly Finnish so I kept nearly all the English ones I’d put aside and about half of the Finnish the rest I’ll try to put on Olio and see if by a miracle there’s someone Finnish living nearby that wants them otherwise they’ll have to just go . There were a few damaged ones I removed too . I’ll sift through the two loose Lego piece boxes DH brought in yesterday and will try to Olio those too . I now have 2 more boxes of kids school books and papers which takes a while to look through I’ve done several boxes already , 2 memory boxes I might pretty much just decant to another clean box and label so that’d be quicker , and two big ones of each kids art I’ll have to look through too but mostly will keep if it fits into the boxes since have already reduced the amounts . Then DH has a box to do with his sailing boat he’ll sell once he’s fixed it after selling his motorcycle but he can put that into the garage until then out of my dining room I’m trying to empty so I can move the new dining chairs in it and buy a table . This week we also started listing stuff again ; the two buggies with all their accessories inc a big transport bag , nearly unused motorcycle panniers and DH old office chair . Praying they’re all going and will be picked up next weekend it’d make a lot of space ! Other than the motorcycle and the small boat there’s then smaller items left to list like a bag and several pairs of new shoes ( added 2 kids pairs ) . We finally unpacked the two remaining outdoor clothes bags from our trip and besides DD ski clothes that will be too small next y I added her boots to the shoe bank and a bunch of thermals old hat, snoods , mittens etc to clothes / rag bank . Also am having DD go through a stack of old annuals, magazines etc and recycled a pile of my newspapers and magazines I try to only have one of each magazine I subscribe to and one of the newspaper after living with my mums piles … I also decluttered a few toiletry bottles and another face mask I’m using up one a week . I feel like there’s still so much left to do here after years of sifting through and throwing stuff away but I know we are getting there and I’ve just got to take it stage at a time I knew that with this buying a new house house process that took 2 y and two moves but im becoming so inpatient and depressed about how it feels like it’s never end! We’ve now gotten rid of the locker so that’s done but have to finish those 7 boxes ( and hopefully get the listed items out of here soon , if they don’t sell we’ll donate ) then I’ll have to return to the messy attic that’s maybe about 2/3 done and then there’s still DH garage that’s messy mainly because of the lack of landscapers to do his shed foundations. We’ve now contacted a new company so will have to see if anything comes out of that ! In getting a bunch of admin done contacted a gardener too but not sure we’ll hire them yet before more plants are put in since they only can do weekly we don’t need atm . We’ve been ticking a bunch of things of the admin list but it’s never ending . Today DD will have a school sports charity event and I feel sorry for her with her broken finger and now sore left wrist too . Hopefully she will have a nice time taking part anyway . Unfortunately I can’t go watch since from the map it looks like too much walking for my atm nightmare back ( I couldn’t even do school run on thu and yesterday DH was home anyway , I’m dreading it on Monday getting in and out of the car will be hard . I’m on a roll atm with the decluttering regardless so will try to keep at it in the coming week and we could actually soon empty that dining room although would still have the new elliptical machine I can’t use with my dizziness so we might have to sell that too …
i also must go through a shelf of Christmas food in the larder and some laundry random items ( stained etc ) and wash through that laundry bin and get rid of it from taking up space in the Utility .We just changed all the mattress protectors and pillow ones so that’s lots of extra laundry . The winter duvets we’ll send off to laundry though . I need to rewash the part of the sofa cover DD got chocolate on immediately and the whole set from the attic that we last had on the sofa . We have a school trip coming up for one kid and halfterm one with a grandparent for the other so trying to get organised for those . Also started the open days at senior schools (I of course couldn’t go to the first one on fri to walk around with this back and another is next week aaaaarghhhh plus one more to book ) and registering left for 5 more ,I’ve done just one so far . At least we’ve managed to agree with DD her birthday party will be in the fall when her fingers better and she can actually do an activity so that’s less work now thankfully .
i don’t known where to rate myself so I think I’ll just continue my usual updates but it’s interesting to read others ones of course . Good progress all around , it all counts !

I'm falling behind on laundry. I've put a load in now. I know we won't have enough socks for tomorrow. I'd better gather up all the dirty socks and put them in later. When I'm in a rush I can never be bothered to hunt high and low for dirty socks. My kids take them off wherever and sometimes I think they get chucked into random corners and of course end up under the bed or down the sides of beds! I try not to berate myself for falling behind. Or for ignoring socks. But sometimes all I think about is how I'm failing. But I know I must be kinder to myself.

Also I'm not drinking any alcohol for two months starting today. I just need a lovely clear head for a bit. I don't drink much, be the habit had crept up on me.

Just signing back in! No decluttering here still but I got my essay done last week so I’m hoping having a clearer head will help a bit. Just so tired and a bit overwhelmed with everything!

When I’ve read back I’ll do my scores too!

Also signing back in after a break.

The flat's a tip. I need to record what I have done as otherwise I will be upset/demoralised when it is still a tip later. Slightly less tippy tip but still tip. (Doing worst things first)

So:
Emptied bathroom bin and replaced bag. Full bag is still in the bathroom as I had an idea I would hoover the hall...

Picked up more washing and put on a long wash.

Transferred the compost to a biodegradable bag. Will send off with ex later.,(it looks more acceptable now)

There has been a cauliflower on the floor in a carrier bag for nearly two weeks. Picked it up, cut/washed off the outer leaves and will put in fridge after it has dried off...it is surprisingly ok. Outer leaves protected it. I am having a no shopping order week so I can use fridge veg up.

Emptied the washing up bowl of manky water and pots. Scrubbed out. Put kettle on to boil.

Picked up a bottle of squash and wiped it off and put in cupboard.

Put a pair of pants into soak.

Bought milk, wiped, put in fridge.

Picked up two packets and put in bin.

Brought biodegradable bags from ex's house to use for compost.

Hung carrier bag back on door and started collecting, washing, squashing the recycling. One bag full went out last night.

Coffee now then:
Dry pots away and wash up. Possibly.

I've discovered how socks end up half way along the landing. DS comes in, sits on stairs with phone, takes his socks off and pokes them through the bannisters.

Pots were put away and half the washing up done. More later.

stripped dd's bed and put in wash.

hung first load of washing up to dry.