clutter

Every Monday, millions of Hoarders fans watch the show and get motivated to dig around their own homes and discard debris. Today’s post is a practical list of things that might inspire you to ‘edit’ your closets and cabinets. Most of the things on this list are “no-brainers,” meaning you can toss them with no regret.

Everyone has a story. Clutter is never about the stuff and for me, hearing someone’s story is the best part of my job. I decided that the next few posts would be from viewpoints other than mine.

Today’s post is from a client who, for the time being, wants to remain anonymous.

She is 44 years old and widowed. She has a college degree in Business Administration and enjoys bird watching, being an environmentalist & activist, volunteering, crafting and watching documentaries.

The new A&E documentary, “Hoarding,” has recently shed light on how hoarding impacts a family’s life in specific and tangible ways: how it affects a family’s living conditions, social ability, the children and jobs of family members.

While we may all feel we have clutter and disorganization in our lives at one point or another, knowing the difference between hoarding and chronic disorganization can help address these conditions more effectively, bringing organization and peace back into our lives.

Do you feel overwhelmed because of the paper pile in your home? There are times in everyone’s life when aspects of work, school, and your home just seem to slip away from you because you’ve taken on too much or are experiencing a major life change. But when does disorganization go beyond “situational disorganization” and become chronic? Ask yourself these three questions:

Since the premier of the A&E documentary, “Hoarders,” which airs on Monday evenings at 10/9C, there has been an overwhelming response. After answering a lot of emails and phone calls from hoarders, friends of hoarders and family members of hoarders, I’ve noticed there is still a stigma attached to mental health conditions, especially hoarding.

"Sometimes I'll just buy something at a thrift shop not even knowing if I'm gonna need it."
~ Amy Wells, set decorator for Mad Men

There may appear to be many obvious similarities between collectors and hoarders. The truth is, collectors and hoarders actually lie on opposite sides of a single prism. For those outside the orbit of professional organization, the differences might be confusing, but the difference between the two is a distinction well worth noting.