This is mostly a vent more than anything. Husband and I struggle big time with having too much stuff; husband especially. At the advice of our therapist(s), I finally broke down and hired a professional declutterer. Licensed, insured, professional website, all that. Mind you, I don’t live in a big-city metropolitan area, but I do live in a mid-sized suburban city, I guess you might call it. Either way, a far cry from San Francisco, NYC, LA, you get it. I guess that’s relevant because the area I live in doesn’t feature a highly varied selection of professional organizers/declutter-ers.

Anyway…the lady hasn’t told me much that I didn’t know already. None of her “tips” or “systems” have been novel to me whatsoever. It should have been a red flag to me when she mentioned that some of her clients often hire her to come back for maintenance (a red flag because obviously she didn’t give them any systems to keep the clutter from accumulating again). I had asked her if she’s able to take a look at spaces, and create a visualization for how to maximize them, somewhat related to interior decorating. She said yes, that’s something that is part of her service.

Well, lo and behold. I feel like I paid a lot of $$$ to just…have someone come help us clean up a bit. Does my home look better….? Yes. But was it the job of what I would have expected from a fancy “professional declutterer?” Not at all. I guess I’m just wondering if anyone else out there has been in my position, and found a professional organizer to be a pretty big waste of money. ? Thoughts/opinions/experiences welcome. Thanks in advance. : )

I'm from India (so apologies in advance for broken english {it's not being Indian mean bad english it's that my English may not be very good}), M30, my parents, as much as I understand now, may have been having issues related to hoarding and have issues with parting with things, specifically focussed on many things with connections with memory like old clothes, but what I found in general many other things also. My dad is currently 70 and my mom 60. Our life had been through several sad and traumatic events, and life had been really hard, and that was a result a series of mental health and physical issues occurred for my mom. My dad is still very stoic, but over the years have also suffered from health issues. I myself if I remember back have been also may have to contributed to hoarding, I'm not sure but yes, although I didn't used to buy much. My parents, specifically my mom, loves to do cloth shopping, and we have so likes to buy clothes for us mainly. We had so much surplus of clothes that gradually we had to dedicate our bed room bed full of clothes, because all almirahs were full. It was a very hard time trying to convince my mom trying to touch the cloth stash and maybe try to filter out old clothes and sort out the good ones and clear out bed, but my mom used to be furious kind of didn't allow touching. And I myself was going through (and still going) multiple mental health issues including depression and anxiety disorders, I used to bedrot and procastrinate extremely, and waste, so I not always did not have energy to force to clean up. But on the other hand, when required, my parents were really great organizers, I mean, they can do make shift organize, sometimes involving people when they could afford, for special occasions in house, which was pretty rare, used to happen before though, currently nearly none. Fast forward to this day, as I said, my dad is 70, mom is 60, mom is suffering many comorbidities, including issues related to hormones and nerve and mental health, she has extreme OCD issues too. Dad, still to this day is very strong, but he is slowly becoming weak, obviously for age related reasons. Still to this day he has capability of trying to help to sort to arrange the house.

One thing to mention, we currently have 2 houses, one where we currently staying, it is my maternal grandma's house, another apartment which is nearby, we occasionally stay now but before predominantly used to stay there. Previously we used to have an old house which we sold, there was several stuff on that house which was first shifted to our apartment, then afterwards, many things were shifted from apartment to this house. Also, atleast 4 big occasions happened which involved getting lots of gifts, one includes my marriage, and the marriage gifts and all gifts are with us in this house. My parents, specifically my mom, refuses to part with any gift, I tell to repackage this gifts and gift them to other people in their occasions like marriage and others (whose invitations are also rare for us) but they refuse, they even decided to open up nearly 60% of those gifts, majorly photo frame, and fix them all over house.

Much of the issues, I know, as many suggest, one of the simplest fix many people suggest is, leave your house, go elsewhere, then find peace, but for me I find it but cruel to my conscience. I know that it is on my parents who should have fixed this, and should have, i am nearly everyday furious on them for bringing this mess (one of the things I fight with them that they kind of refuse to acknowledge they have a issue of hoarding disorder, and they messed everything up). Now over the years, the mess all over hand accumulated so much, in both of the houses, it will take dedicated efforts, money and determination, and most importantly, the right mindset to be able to fix this. But achieving them, idk for me feels nearly impossible, considering our financial constraints, the lack of support (there is no good sources or people or any org who would take all the junk, NGOs now rarely take old clothes, none we find of), my parents being old, they obviously suffering from mental health issues which contributed to this problem, my own paralysing executive dysfunction which is shackling me, my lives own sets of problems, my extremely uncertain career, our dwindling savings, private jobs stress u so much it don't give u time to sort your house out, and weekends or Sundays feel extremely tiring, paired with my issues with Dysthimia and several anxiety disorders and cPTSD. Also, our family have been suffering long term ostracism and hostility in our neighborhoods, because indian societies are toxic normally, and when they see u at your weak spots they nearly drive you to your deaths.

It kind of feels it's a death loop which I (we) will never get out of.

Three months ago, I broke up with and moved out of the apartment I shared with my ex fiancee (level 3 hoarder). At my wits end, I had no choice but to move back in with my narcissistic parents. Well, that ended horribly. I knew it would, but it happened much sooner than expected. My ex was also aware of this possibility, and we stayed on decent terms in case I needed that escape.

My ex and I are cohabiting while I start a new career. It’s been a long process, but this company is training me from the ground up, and I am only a few weeks away from fully completing my training. I have hefty experience in the restaurant industry, was managing corporate locations before my health got the better of me. This new job is WFH.

When I moved out, I packed up all of my things. Due to the unsafe living situation with my parents, I had to leave all four suitcases of my clothes and shoes behind. I safely made it back to my ex’s place with my laptop, a backpack and a duffle bag of my most important items.

I’ve been back for a week and I can’t even unpack what little things I now have. My ex cleaned out his storage unit and loaded everything into what is supposed to be the office. As I type this, I am surrounded by contractor bags of clothes and bins of knick knacks. The kitchen has no clean surfaces to prepare food, the fridge is filled with very old leftovers, and the oven/stovetop fills the kitchen with smoke whenever it’s used.

For the last five years, I cleaned our apartments from top to bottom, organized his things, and just generally made sure rooms and walkways were accessible. I can no longer do this in the current state of my health.

His hoarding disorder no longer affects just him and I, but now our dog. While I was away at my parents, I received constant updates that the dog was doing great, on some new medicine for his allergies, happiest he’s ever been. Great, I thought. When I returned home last week, within 5 seconds of me petting him, I discovered he was absolutely covered in fleas. So much flea dirt on him that I genuinely thought he rolled in dirt outside, until I saw the generations of fleas crawling on him. This might be more of a symptom of his unmedicated ADHD than hoarding, but regardless it’s animal neglect.

Two months and he didn’t notice the fleas?? I was petting my baby for less than a few seconds and I could instantly see how itchy and uncomfortable he was. I was so, so, so angry.

When I can, I will be purchasing a mini fridge and one of those portable/college cooking pots. Other than that, I don’t know how to cope with what I’m looking at day in and day out. Pup has bravecto in his system and is finally doing better, and I really can’t think far past that. I’m struggling to even focus on this job.

I am yet again surrounded by things that are not mine, that I get yelled at for moving, despite tripping over his clothes and shoes daily. The bathroom smells, the microwave smells, the laundry smells. There is pet dander and dust piling in the corners. There are things in the walkways. We’ve got a mosquito infestation in the backyard because he leaves dirty bowls and pots and pans outside instead of cleaning them, and over the years they’ve all filled with water.

He knows he is a hoarder. He has been in therapy for over a year with no change in his behavior. He has become angry, and he takes it out on me verbally. I can tolerate this, it’s nowhere near as bad as what my parents put me through.

All I feel like I can do is put my blinders on and try to ignore all of this, but I’m too broke to even talk to a therapist about right now. I am broken, tired, and sad. My credit is not great and I have no money saved up due to health issues. I have spoken to a guy nearby who is willing to rent me out his Airbnb at $1700 a month, which is fantastic for the future when I’ve got money coming in again… but until then, I’m stuck in this hoard.

What can I do to not absolutely lose my mind right now? Thank you so much if you’ve made it this far.

I (20F) live with my parents and our house has gotten to the point where there is one line from the front door to their bedroom. I sleep in the living room and we spend time in their room because the living room has gotten so bad.

My mom has a shopping disorder and works in retail so our house is full of shopping bags. My dad throws trash wherever and does nothing around the house at all.

I have been put in charge of cleaning the house because im in college. Every day is a battle mentally to try to clean. I want to so bad. I HATE that I live like this...i hate that they live like this... but I have no idea how to start. I try to "just pick up a little here and there" but it never works. Ive tried the whole "doom box" thing but it always just ends up with big piles and nothing more.

I feel like such a failure and disappointment to my family. I cry every night because of the house.

I need advice because its getting to the point where we cannot live like this anymore...

It started when he found his long time girlfriend dead in the bathroom. Her adult kids tossed him out of her home. He went to live with my mom, staying in her basement. Then he started bringing old lawnmowers, bicycles, anything he saw someone put out to be removed. He's taken over her garage. He now has 4 vehicles, one actually works, he's using others for parts or going to fix up but never does.

Mom has always taken great care of house and yard. This is a daily aggravation for her. My brother gets scary angry if anyone talks to him about getting rid of his junk.

I understand he has a mental illness so I'm compassionate about him. He was alcoholic most of his life, never really supporting himself and now gets SSDI which is only $600 a month to live on so she won't kick him out or he'd be homeless.

I have a sister and another brother who are frustrated too. We thought of buying a piece of land out in the boonies (where bro likes to be) so we can move his hoard where it won't bother anyone. But we're not sure that would stop him bringing crap to mom's.

Where do I start addressing and how? I'm not afraid of his anger, I'm the only one who isn't.

About 9 months ago, my partner (34M) had our friend, Diane (72F), start staying with him as she had been living in her car all winter but the it stopped running and it was dangerously cold for her to stay there with no heat. Now at his house, she has a room that she sleeps in and a room that she puts stuff in (much of it she says is winter clothes she plans on giving to her homeless friends when it gets cold).

Having seen the state of her car beforehand, I had anticipated that she has tendencies to not remove trash from her space and to accumulate lots of stuff. A few months before she moved in, she also had 8 cats removed from her car by the animal cops (none of them were in bad shape healthwise), but when she moved in she only had one. She then found a kitten a couple months later, so now has two cats.

Since she moved in, the main issue outside of the space has been the smell of the litterboxes (we make sure she always has litter to use to clean them). It seems that her method is to let the boxes get used until all the litter needs to be changed instead of scooping it daily, which leads to a strong smell that permeates the house. I have talked to her about this, and she does try to stay on top of it but sometimes has periods where she feels unwell and can't manage it. I have offered to help her with it during those times and she said that I could, but when it comes down to it she doesn't let me help.

She, understandably, does not really want my partner or I to come in to her space and we respect her privacy but recently my partner was looking for the broom and she wasn't home so he went in her room and realized that her room is probably not totally safe/healthy for her or her animals.

We hope to find her a place to live on her own (and will need to take legal responsibility for because she has an eviction on her record) in the coming months as my partner needs to try to sell his house soon. From what she has said, it seems like the eviction might have been related to hoarding behaviors but it's hard to get a clear story from her on certain subjects.

So, my questions are:

1) how do we approach a conversation with her about needing to come in and help clean her space now, and also creating some kind of ongoing support for her while she's still living at the house?

2) in terms of finding a new living situation, what strategies could we use for helping her maintain a decent quality of life and hopefully to prevent another eviction?

My goals are:

1) prioritize her continued sense of safety with us (she talks constantly about how no one has ever treated her as kindly and generously as we have and we really want her to keep feeling loved and supported)

2) respect her autonomy and desires to the greatest extent possible, I think perceived infringement on these will likely cause a huge decrease in trust

This seems like a really supportive community and I hope that I can learn more about how to support folks dealing with these behaviors. thanks for any feedback!

I (18) live with my parents and younger siblings (17 and 14). We have always lived in a messy house but it's gotten to the point of our back yard being so cluttered and gross that our dogs hold it when let out and have accidents in the house when we can't walk them (ie. it's to hot outside). We have bad rat and roach infestations that have now spread to every room. We can't use the kitchen as it is filled with rats, the sink is full of moldy dishes, and there is no dishwasher. We have several bad leaks including a toilet, 2 sinks, the shower, and the bath, which have all caused mould in the plaster board. My parents seem to think that if we all work together we can fix everything, but it's to the point where we just use our bin as our normal trash fills it up to quickly. I am so sick of this and I really want to tell someone, maybe my therapist, but I really don't want my parents to get in trouble. I'm scared CPS will be called and that my siblings will be removed. I love my parents and we are all pitching in to try to solve this, but it's just too much. I know my parents are just as if not more embarrassed as I am about this, they are actively trying to manage things and we always have plenty of fresh clean food, clothes, etc, but they have there own struggles to deal with. Any advice is appreciated

Is anyone else scared they'll never stop being a hoarder?
I always mentally kick the can down the road and procrastinate to myself. I'll tell myself things like "oh, I'm only confined to one bedroom basically, once I get a house, I'm sure things will work themselves out."

But a part of me is just so terrified of seeing extra space as more room to clutter up and it becoming a never ending cycle. I've been trying to clean my room for 8 years now and it's only gotten worse and worse.

I am having an absolutely wrenching and fucked up time and would love a pen pal/chat buddy? thanks

In the past I’ve posted abt wet items esp clothes on the floor due to AC leakage and how much of an issue it was to clean it

This morning i woke up and my mom told me i need to stop hoarding which i was kinda annoyed by because this is part of my recovery and in a way i need people to not get in my business, especially since they didnt bother helping me while i was in distress

Mind you, I paid a very considerable amount of money to pay for cleaning people to come into my bedroom, told them to just get rid of everything laying on the ground cause most of them are literally MOLDY

And my mom just, dug out the trash bag and “recovered” my items straight out the trash. There were literal plates and half pair of shoes w gross stuff on them, I mean does she expect to js clean them up? I feel like I’m going insane. Not to mention theres stuff there that r “private” like my dildo and alcohol bottles

I’m planning to move out yes but I can only move next year bcz I’m saving money right now. But rn I’m just so sad

When my nana passed away I got some of her jewellery. Nothing with resale value just a splash of character I recognised from when she was alive. Among the items were two charm bracelets. I remember the charm bracelets, she was quite besotted with them. 

The day we scattered her’s and grandad’s ashes the bracelet fell off while we were at the waters edge. A superstitious person might have thought they were meant to leave it there with nana. Im not though, I tucked it into a pocket of the baby bag and it traveled there ever since. It’s been to India twice, where that bag goes it goes.

Until now. The front pocket broke. My dad sewed it up and washed the bag. Various things from the front pocket I found in a shitty side pocket with a big hole in it (the hole is meant to make it easy to grab baby wipes ) No charm bracelet though

Presume it’s finally taking its own journey. Feel sad about that Thought maybe I could replace it. I find it easier to recover from losing an object when I can replace it. Nope, these bracelets were a moment in time, no longer available

I tell myself no object is meant to walk with you forever. They are tools to aid us in our journeys. You still have all the other jewellery. Still i feel really melancholy about it. I know in a day or few I will have totally forgotten this sadness but right now it’s settled all over me like morning dew and it’s making me wet and cold.

I grew up in a home in the late 50's and early 60s with a stay at home mom. She waited on us hand and foot. I never made a bed, never vacuumed, mopped, did a load of laundry, washed a dish, cooked, ironed -- absolutely NOTHING. Didn't even know how. Moved out when I was 18. My various places stayed very clean for about 40 years. Then as I got older, those things were less important.

So you go to a shrink and their almost IMMEDIATE go to is "well, it's OCD." NO. PERIOD. It is NOT. But shrinks are often lazy and frequently incompetent and OCD is the lazy diagnosis.

I have NO emotional attachment to the 40 empty Amazon boxes in my living room. I simply don't have the ENERGY to deal with them. They're mainly from cases or bags of pet food, NOT just junk purchases.

So unless you actually KNOW what you're talking about -- and most shrinks DO NOT -- don't say that's your OCD. No, OCD is when you go to your car to leave then have to go back inside 10 or 15 times to make sure the stove is off. OCD is when you refuse to have blinds with cords on them because one of your animals might strangle. OCD is when you worry if a pet will fall in the toilet and drown. OCD is getting up 10 times to make sure the front door is locked. Finally solved that one by taking a pic of it on my phone.

So QUIT saying "it's OCD" unless you HAVE it and know what the hell you're talking about.

I know it’s a problem, and it’s been a problem for a while, but I am physically incapable of letting stuff go.

I just moved and the movers took a few more hours than what was originally quoted. Had to rent a storage container for a lot of stuff.

Staring at my stuff on the lawn and now condensed in the new home has been a wake up call. I need help, or at the very least advice on what I should be doing or how I should be approaching ways to start getting rid of stuff.

EDITED TO ADD:
Well, my friends, thanks to your very thoughtful ideas and support, I've come up with a plan! That itself is huge. Over the past few days, I went from "I can't let any of this go!!" to actually dividing up this stash into things to keep (for future crafts I actually WANT to do) and things to let go of, based on a hard, honest look at why I bought them in the first place, and how those plans not only no longer excite me, but would take time away from the things I still COULD be excited about. I wanted to show you the plan (in the form of a table), but apparently that involves uploading it to Google docs and then posting a link. Too much trouble. Suffice to say, the table consists of seven rows of things I have found peace with getting rid of, and 13 rows of things I want to keep. I mean...that's progress, right?

***

Hello, all. I am desperate. Does anyone here craft? I have just come across an observation in another reddit by a person who does cleaning. She said that, among all the hoards she has gone through, many of them belong to crafters and other creatives.

I so get that. Off and on all my life, I have enjoyed creating not just sewn, crocheted, painted and upcycled things, but music (I have been a singer/songwriter) and writing (for publication). Here's my problem: I am going to be 70 this year. This latest spate of crafting dates back about 12, 13 years, and it really picked up steam for the past eight, especially since I am retired and all my time is my own. But this year, it's as though I've hit some sort of wall. All my crafting mojo is gone. (I'm just generally depressed, too.) When I look at my crochet thread, fabric, jewelry supplies, scrubbed food jars (for upcycled vases), ribbon flower supplies...you name it...I still feel a strong connection and can't get rid of any of it. And yet, I can't bring myself to make anything, either. All this stuff is still very emotionally charged. And about that endless discretionary time: It's actually contracting, not expanding, my sense of the time I have available, because I sit here paralyzed by this dilemma of not wanted to craft anymore, but not being able to let go. Can anyone help? Thanks in advance.

I live in the Chicagoland area. My mom recently died and left a huge mess. I’m talking like biohazard issues. I’m talking like huge hoarder issues and I really really need help in search of a company that can do a whole house cleanup as well as sanitizing and cleaning up the place. I know some people before suggested two companies, but in all honesty I just want one that can do the job. Money is not really an issue because all I want. Is My Child at home back and I’m going to be getting a very generous life insurance policy to help try and restore it. I need to know what company can fit this criteria.

I live with my dad (60M). I got diagnosed with depression and anxiety over 10 years ago. I’m 25F.

I don’t know why but I cannot keep my house tidy, I don’t know if it’s because of my depression or that I’m just lazy.

It’s gotten to the point where I don’t invite anyone over to my house because I’m deeply ashamed of it. Not even my boyfriend has come to my house and we have been together for over a year.
I’ve lived here my whole life, so it’s an old house, it’s not in the best condition and there are leaks in the ceiling when it rains.

I hate my room, it’s a mess (full of clothes and stuff everywhere). I’ve been thinking of donating clothes because I cannot put anymore in my closet so there’s piles of clothes everywhere.
There is a leak in my room, so I cannot keep my shoes on the shoe closet I had because the leak kept falling on them, so they’re just scattered on the floor.

My living room is full of my dad’s stuff, he’s a repair man so he has a lot of replacement parts and his tools everywhere, not just the living room but the office as well, to the point where I cannot work there because I cannot even move my chair.
I don’t know if that counts as a hoarder but I’m sure he is.
And honestly, I am as well and I hate it.

It makes me feel ashamed of myself, my house and living conditions make me ashamed of myself.

I’m pretty sure living here has made my depression worse in the last few years but I’m at fault at that too because I cannot keep it tidy. It’s gotten worse in the last two years.

I don’t even know where or how to being, or is this even the right subreddit to ask for help.

How to Help Hoarders?

I just learned that my SIL nd BIL are hoarding. Some relatives went to their place recently, and apparently it's not good. Mountains of boxes, and a not very functional house.

My in laws have a lot of hoarding patterns, so I'm not surprised. And the inside of my BIL's truck is good evidence. I also saw their house a few months after they moved in (a few years ago), and can see the signs now.

If live that way its one thing, but now they have an infant daughter. And that environment is not okay for any child.

Currently, my niece spends 5 or 6 days/nights at my mil's home, as it's 90 minutes closer to my SIL's work. So SIL and niece will stay with MIL from Monday to Friday or Saturday, then go back to their house for a day or two. Apparently BIL sleeps on the couch. SIL sleeps on the nursery floor, because they made the nursery nice for the baby, and it's the only place left to sleep.

Anywhooooo. My thought is to try to talk and help them get things in order over the next 3 or 4 years for niece. If they don't I'll call child services on them. I'm not set on that, that just seems like the appropriate thing to do. I do know that I won't let my niece grow up on a hoarder home.

But I don't know what actually helps hoarders. I've watched the hoarder TV show, and I've been in very hoarded homes, but that's it-so basically know very little.

What is a good way to approach BIL and SIL about this? What actually helps hoarders? When do I actually need to call child services? What online resources can I look up? And yes, I understand I need to confirm that things are as the relatives reported.

I knew she was a hoarder before i moved in. We have been friends for a long time and i love her very much. I have some hoarding tendencies myself that i've been working on for a few years now. Regardless of that, i'm in no place to judge her and i never want her to feel ashamed of it.

But it's not something that has been addressed out loud at the moment, and she keeps adding to it, ignoring the fact that she doesn't have space for the things she's got at home, and surely doesn't have space for new things.

I don't know if this is a conversation i should have with her, or let her figure things out on her own. But she is out of the house right now and i'm cleaning up. I would never throw away any of her things!! That's out of the question. But i'm taking apart the piles of boxes and bags. Everything is getting stacked neatly in categories to clear floor space, and i am THROWING AWAY the boxes, and other packaging (plastic bags, etc). I think this is an acceptable way to handle things? She knew i was gonna help put away some of her books while she was gone. But i think she needs to see how many books don't fit on the shelf (about half) and stop forgetting about things once she brings them home

33F, finally coming to terms with my hoarding. As a kid, I hated cleaning and organizing my personal space. I wouldn't mind cleaning shared spaces, public spaces, but my own room was always a disaster. It doesn't help that my ADHD brain keeps wanting to try 297174 hobbies at a time.

I've been living on my own in a studio and was able to hold it together for a few years. However after my dad died during covid, I fell into a vicious cycle of neglect and shame. Garbage and clothes piling up, but I somehow was able to pull it together in my professional and personal life so the people close to me don't realize how big the problem is.

2 weeks ago, the owner of my flat informed me he wants to sell and an appraiser will need to visit. This was the kick in the butt I needed to start tackling the problem. I have professional cleaners coming tomorrow for a 6 hour cleaning and I'm already planning for another 6 hour cleaning the day before the inspection.

I've been reading the posts in this group and it feels so good to not be alone. I'm so inspired by everyone who made it out the other side. I'm hoping to hire someone who can actually take the time to help teach me how to clean and how to declutter

Hi. I have been using this group as a resource for helping my mom - thanks for sharing, you’ve helped a lot. Keeping a very long story short, we had to completely clean out my mom’s house. She is down do the few things I purchased for her before we did the clean out. She is currently with other family members while we continue to clean and repair her space. My sibling and I want to reestablish her supply of household items - including what is necessary and what provides comfort - but in a way that helps us avoid a repeat of this most recent situation. We have plans in place for treatment, have hired a cleaner, and she has agreed to financial controls. We think (hope) we’ll be in a better place. Does anyone have any advice on bringing in new things? Should we make it reward based? Develop a schedule (we have found that being clear about what will happen and when is helpful) of when we’ll add new things? Other thoughts or ideas on how to develop this part of our plan?

Idk if this is allowed on this but I gotta try. I really need my moms house cleaned she was really depressed and wasn’t able to clean so we just really need it cleaned and we don’t have a lot of money so we can’t afford cleaning services so is there anyone here who would clean it for free or knows anyone who can clean it for free please

SO - I had an inspection….after days of intense work and now I’m aching from the final push😩, I passed.

What I did: trusted a friend who said we need to get a storage space or you’ll never be able to clean up in time; we focused on getting stuff out so I could clean one area every couple of days. To do a really deep clean takes about a day for bathroom, day for kitchen etc. and I mean a FULL day.

I fixated on sorting things. Like I would find a tissue box and it had to go with all other tissue boxes. But I realized I was running out of time. So I went for organizing into big categories (kitchen, bathroom, cleaning supplies) so I could keep the momentum going.

It’s not ideal but I just had to get stuff into storage so I could have empty space to clean everything. Now comes the hard part of moving stuff back and going through stuff to get rid of literal garbage

Oh and PSA - do NOT put dirty paper towels from using bleach with paper towels from using other chemicals. You still get chlorine gas…

Today I dropped off some donations at a thrift. It’s generally accepted this place is run by a very organized hoarder. Polite- but has issues.

Her anxiety was off the charts today, and she was following me around the thrift and at one point took the shoes I was buying straight out of my hands. Upset, emotional 😭

Point: we’ve all met hoarders who -at thrifts- cannot stand to let anything be sold, even other customers who stalk other customers.