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General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: KT 💣 KλBoƠM on April 30, 2024, 12:15:26 pm
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Anyone who is a gamer knows that clutter becomes normal. But throw in health problems and it can become overwhelming as you have less energy or time to deal with it or do regular upkeep.
So I have been watching videos and reading advice and came across this. I thought, "You know, not much talk goes on in the SA forums, and we are all gamers who are getting older and may have less energy than we used to. Why not make a thread about what helps each of us tackle clutter around our home space and work space?"
So here it is. Got any suggestions or advice for me?
Was thinking about this as I was reading this:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/wellness/8-decluttering-tips-for-hoarders/ar-AA1d4V6N (https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/wellness/8-decluttering-tips-for-hoarders/ar-AA1d4V6N)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhWvfNhqGeg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdk3gkJ7Kvk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHWyNZpQpXk
and I DO actually have a video game drawer but it is mainly computer components such as wires and connectors and some PC CD's or DVD's and manuals and such. So this next video I also thought was pretty relevant. Who else has such a drawer? Mine is in one of those plastic 4 drawer things under my desk (you know the one Dave).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIvnyxWRsu0
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I actually got a pretty big shelf to put the bulk of my clutter on. I know I need to start getting rid of all the old stuff I know I will never use again. I've just been too lazy to do anything about it.
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I use the crate method. Everything has a box. I put it in said box. Declutterrd
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I use the crate method. Everything has a box. I put it in said box. Declutterrd
Ya that is the basics of the typical method I have heard of. The "everything has a home. If it doesn't, discard it" system. I also have heard of the death cleaning system. It is where you think of what your family would be left with having to go through if you died and getting rid of things that are just added clutter there is no use for by anyone in your family or your friends.
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Death method is stupid. Like people are allowed to enjoy things that other people would discard lmao. Like a garden dwarf collection for example. Or legos. Etc lmao
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My parents for example held onto just about everything. My mom was a bit of a hoarder, and my dad just tried his best to keep it somewhat organized. When they passed away, my sisters and I spent months throwing away most of the stuff they had. I kind of wished they had planned a little on the "death method".
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Yeah that's just dealing with hoarders period lmao
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But how do people draw the line between clutter and hoarding?
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I personally differientiate clutter from hoarding this way : If you have like 1 spot for everything or just have more stuff, that’s clutter. If you have stuff that you can’t use anymore (more than a room or a table) or some equipment that you can’t use anymore because there is stuff blocking it, of that doesn’t work and u didn’t replace it, that’s hoarding.
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Technically, clutter is just a bunch of personal belongings that are in a state of disorganization. Where hoarding is taking clutter several stages higher and never throwing away anything or hang on to everything thinking that they will find a use for it someday. But never do and can't allow themselves to part with anything. Angie, you and I are both on that razers edge between the 2.
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Technically, clutter is just a bunch of personal belongings that are in a state of disorganization. Where hoarding is taking clutter several stages higher and never throwing away anything or hang on to everything thinking that they will find a use for it someday. But never do and can't allow themselves to part with anything. Angie, you and I are both on that razers edge between the 2.
Oh heck I don't mind throwing anything away. It is more of my health and energy keeping me from going through it all. I think when I was younger I would hold onto things but as I age I find I care less about it as I have less hope of my life being anything other than it is (no family, just me, nothing changing, living here forever). With nothing to hold onto things for I have no qualms about throwing things out at all. In fact I have been desiring it more and more in the last year or so.
I personally differientiate clutter from hoarding this way : If you have like 1 spot for everything or just have more stuff, that’s clutter. If you have stuff that you can’t use anymore (more than a room or a table) or some equipment that you can’t use anymore because there is stuff blocking it, of that doesn’t work and u didn’t replace it, that’s hoarding.
I think that is an excellent description. My dad was border line but when he moved into his gf's his own house just was used to hold onto stuff because it was not in his way at all. When he sold the house to my brother he was able to get rid of all that he could not take with him.
Sandman I think you could throw things out easily but it just is not important to you to get rid of the stuff that has been with your family for generations. It is just you and no push to change things and you have access to all rooms and all things so for you it is just clutter. For my health holds me from getting rid of things but the main thing I have too much of is clothing but only because my weight has been unstable and I can't just afford to toss out clothes and then buy them again when I am that size again. However I have learned to let go of some as I realize I will never be as skinny as I once was. I kinda gave up on that by now. However, coincidently once I threw the small sizes out, my mom got sick, lost lots of weight and the clothes I had that would have fit her are now gone. Go figure lol! It never happens when you have the stuff just laying around.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sS-C19Cl_18
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Sandman I think you could throw things out easily but it just is not important to you to get rid of the stuff.
True. I've just been too lazy to sort out what I want to keep and what can go. No motivation.
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Sandman I think you could throw things out easily but it just is not important to you to get rid of the stuff.
True. I've just been too lazy to sort out what I want to keep and what can go. No motivation.
For me lately it is lack of time but before that it was lack of energy, feeling overwhelmed, and just tired and needing help. But ya lack of motivation is a huge one of course.
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Covid killed everyone’s motivation
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Covid killed everyone’s motivation
Naw. For me, I have been worried about getting sick since the '90s due to being immunosuppressed. For me, my motivation was killed since I was out of commission from abscesses and Home IV, daily nurse visits and loss of muscle mass in 2008. I had great energy and motivation before my health really went south physically despite all I had been going through healthwise since the 70s... Even though Anemia really kicked my ass, I find that loss of muscle mass is a lot harder to recover from. With all the surgeries I have had .. and that sudden weight gain of 4 sizes in only a few months that doctors just shrugged at and misdiagnosed me, my motivation is sitting on my ass on disability and playing video games or checking in on all the sick around me, my nieces and nephews, my medical Facebook, as well as sleeping as I am always tired since being diagnosed with sleep apnea years ago.
Blaming Covid is easy to do but not what killed my motivation. It was dead way before that :P.
Covid affected everyone else a lot worse than me, including family members as 40% of my family are conspiracy theorists.
In fact, I have gotten rid of a LOT of stuff but my situation has Impeded my ability to just get rid of all excess since 2001 when I ended up back on dialysis the first time around and was severely anemic. Then moving from a 3 bedroom house with a basement to a 2 bedroom and then after switching from Peritoneal Dialysis to Hemodialysis moving to a one-bedroom but still having a lot of the stuff from the house ... ya ... you can see the situation clearer now.
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Covid :
Trained people not to go outside and not interact
Killed people
Broke families
Ended businesses
Bankrupted small businesses
Decreased the quality of healthcare permanently
Put us in a depression (economic)
Broke everyone’s habit cycle
And let’s be honest, changed the path of human history, kinda like events that happen every 400 years.
Not minimizing everything that happenned to you, just saying that the way humanity handled covid did way more than we think. And i am sure some of those things affect you in a way or another, even if you say you were already there.
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Covid :
Trained people not to go outside and not interact
Killed people
Broke families
Ended businesses
Bankrupted small businesses
Decreased the quality of healthcare permanently
Put us in a depression (economic)
Broke everyone’s habit cycle
And let’s be honest, changed the path of human history, kinda like events that happen every 400 years.
Not minimizing everything that happenned to you, just saying that the way humanity handled covid did way more than we think. And i am sure some of those things affect you in a way or another, even if you say you were already there.
Not that it did not affect me but that because of how I already lived it did not impact me as much as some who fell into a deep depression.
I was already living as a hermit and spent most of my social time online as it was. I was already practicing the medical habits due to already being immunosuppressed and the fact that masks and hand washing became more commonplace was easier on me.
But I do agree that health care has plummeted and is much worse than I have seen it in many aspects even though I have seen many of the things that have come to life even as far back as 2008. Just was pushed under the rug easier back then.
Family was the worst part. The divide. There was a very clear distinction in families between those pushing the shot and those opposed to it. It really brought out a different side in people at times as well if not on the fence but strongly on one side or the other. There was a lack of searching for truth and believing and pushing all that was told to you. There was also a lot of paranoia that led people to not be able to distinguish fact from "fake news" pushing cures that did not exist. So much confusion. It definitely became the Age of Confusion for sure. Some family members outright cut off connections to some families due to their views and others called the rest sheep, putting them down and insulting them. Communication deteriorated. Clear lines were drawn in cases while gray lines widened.
And the ones who could not handle the breakdown of families and the separation of loved ones and the lack of hugs and time with them, especially those who live alone and depend on emotional help, fell into a downward spiral of depression that affected them long-term. For them, it was easier to fall out of strict practices of self-care and care of their environment and living space. A lot more people have fallen into clutter, disarray and chaos in their home and their lives. Financial goals had to be rearranged and many who lost loved ones ended up with their stuff and no energy to deal with it all.
For me, I already had too much stuff before Covid. That is why I don't blame Covid for my home space situation. For others, it could be the main cause.
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8 Signs You Have Too Much Stuff and It's Time to Declutter
https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/home-and-garden/8-signs-you-have-too-much-stuff-and-it-s-time-to-declutter/ar-AA1h6zol
- You Can Never Find What You Need, When You Need It
- You Own Lots of Duplicates or Products With Tags
- The Idea of Doing Chores Is Overly Daunting
- Things Are Never in the Right Place
- You Don't Have Any Free Surfaces
- You Have More Than One Junk Drawer
- Your Home Is Filled With Expired Goods
- You Don't Look Forward to Returning Home
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8 Signs You Have Too Much Stuff and It's Time to Declutter
- You Can Never Find What You Need, When You Need It
About 15% of the time, that's true.
- You Own Lots of Duplicates or Products With Tags
I have very few, if no duplicates of things I don't use.
- The Idea of Doing Chores Is Overly Daunting
Sometimes. And the older I get, the truer that gets.
- Things Are Never in the Right Place
This is very rare.
- You Don't Have Any Free Surfaces
Well, okay. That's kind of true.
- You Have More Than One Junk Drawer
Yup. 2 of them.
- Your Home Is Filled With Expired Goods
I wouldn't say filled. But yeah. You will find some expired items in my house.
- You Don't Look Forward to Returning Home
Not true.
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- You Own Lots of Duplicates or Products With Tags
I have very few, if no duplicates of things I don't use.
- You Don't Have Any Free Surfaces
Well, okay. That's kind of true.
- You Don't Look Forward to Returning Home
Not true.
I find that duplicates and tags, tend to be more for those who are shopaholics to be honest. Typically women (and since I am a woman I CAN say that lol). This is because women are more likely to do a lot of shopping for that perfect clothing item but then be tired when they get home, put it aside and then forget about it. Sometimes if they put it aside for too long they forget they bought it and see it again and like it and buy another. Other times they remember they bought it but the right event to wear the item to does not come up so they forget they did not take the tag off it and never wear it. Sometimes they even outgrow it and can't even get into it and become depressed about it. I am not saying this is me but what is typical for women. Probably typical for gay males as well but I would not know.
The no free surfaces I think depends more on a few factors: Size of space, space of living with amount of surface space for stuff, and where you spend most of your time with an flat surface where you access that stuff the most. The stuff will mostly accumulate in the area you spend the most time at but depending on if you do the in/out method won't build up. Other surface areas may be used as storage instead and stay cluttered for the reason of nowhere to put it. I know my mom has a problem with paper clutter. She prints out a lot of stuff but refuses to get a filing cabinet as she lives in a small space and does not know where she would put one. So she has stacks of paper on her table and coffee table. She does keep the end tables clear though. So for her it seems to be areas she spends the most time at. Her desk is full of papers but in neat stacks so she has some sort of organization.
When it comes to not wanting to go back home and enjoying time somewhere else, that is more typical of people who feel their homes have gotten out of control and have somewhere else they like to go that they do feel equally at home in. I think for us, we all feel most comfortable in our own homes so it does not apply. But for those who have a family member, they like to visit all the time and then don't look forward to going home, or go out drinking and partying and don't look forward to going home, that would be true for them. I know I look forward to going home. I am free in my own home. I rest in my own home. I have control over my own space in my own home.
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But how do people draw the line between clutter and hoarding?
I don't usually quote myself but I went back to see if I posted this already. Seems I did not so I will now as I wondered at times when clutter turns into hoarding. From what I understood, hoarding is more of a mental issue (especially if family members have had this issue) but as we age there have been people who were neat freaks that turn into hoarders as well. It made me wonder what turns someone into a hoarder and what exactly is the line you cross. Is it still just clutter if you are tired and weak rather than lazy and just have nowhere to put the stuff and no energy to go through it? Is it only Hoarding if you can't let go of things you don't even need and can't give a reason why?
https://www.familyhandyman.com/article/clutter-vs-hoarding/
Clutter vs. Hoarding: What’s the Difference?
(https://www.familyhandyman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/clutter-vs-hoarding-whats-the-difference-ft-via-getty.png)
We all struggle with clutter, but hoarding can cause serious safety and hygiene issues for you and your home. Learn how to spot the difference.
Clutter makes it difficult to enjoy our homes to the fullest. Clutter can make it tough to feel motivated to clean or invite people over. But how do you know if clutter is simply a result of some bad habits or if it indicates a deeper issue— like hoarding?
First, it’s important to understand hoarding is a distinct psychological disorder that goes beyond clutter. That’s according to Joseph Kim, an assistant professor at the Huntsman Mental Health Institute with a doctorate in clinical psychology. “Not a lot is known about why people develop hoarding problems,” he says.
Many people develop symptoms before age 20. But for at least a quarter of people, the disorder comes on after age 40 or 50. Unfortunately, limited evidence exists for effective treatment, Kim says, although some studies have shown promise.
What Is Clutter?
“Clutter is anything that doesn’t have a home,” says Brenda Scott, a professional home organizer and owner of Tidy My Space. “It’s the stuff that no one knows where it belongs, so it gets dropped anywhere and everywhere.”
This doesn’t always mean you have piles of stuff everywhere, Scott says. It’s more about constantly moving things around, fruitlessly searching for things or lacking storage solutions.
What Is Hoarding?
“Hoarding refers to a behavior where someone has difficulty throwing away or letting go of their possessions, even if they may not have much value,” Kim says. People with hoarding disorder may save boxes, plastic bags and junk mail, Kim says. “This difficulty is thought to be caused by a strong urge to save items and distress around throwing them away,” he says.
Kim says people in any age group can develop hoarding disorder, but how it manifests and the risks involved present unique problems for older adults.
Older adults have “more physical ailments, a greater likelihood of having cognitive difficulties, and a higher risk of social isolation associated with the context of aging,” Kim says. “Each of these factors can cause a greater adverse impact on mental and physical health caused by hoarding behavior.”
Clutter vs. Hoarding
Kim says hoarding differs significantly from clutter. “Many people may be surprised to hear hoarding disorder is at its core a type of anxiety disorder,” Kim says. “This is because anxiety — of throwing away objects — is a fundamental driver of what causes hoarding behavior.”
People with hoarding disorder often lack insight into their behavior. That’s why television show-style interventions offer superficial solutions, Kim says, and don’t address the underlying behavioral patterns.
“When something like this happens without improving insight, or addressing the underlying anxiety [or other psychiatric issues] that promote hoarding behavior, patients are very likely to re-accumulate hoarded objects,” he says.
So while we all deal with clutter from time to time, hoarding is a distinct disorder that will not be solved by just getting rid of the hoard. Kim says it’s similar to taking alcohol from a person with an alcohol use disorder. “We do not expect them to get better just from that, do we?” he says.
Do I Hoard or Am I Just Messy?
According to the American Psychiatric Association, diagnosing hoarding disorder may include asking the following questions:
- Do you have trouble parting with possessions, whether discarding, donating, recycling or selling?
- Is it difficult for you to use the rooms and surfaces of your home due to the clutter?
- Does hoarding, saving, acquisition and clutter affect your daily functioning? To what extent?
- How much do these symptoms interfere with school, work, social or family life?
- How much distress do your symptoms cause you?
Too long to post but I did post most of it. More of this article is on the site: https://www.familyhandyman.com/article/clutter-vs-hoarding/
From what I have seen of YOUR home Jeff, you just have clutter. In my dad's case he was a collector until he had to get rid of things before moving in with his girlfriend, and in my mom's case well her situation is because my brother moved back in yet again into her 1 bedroom apartment and there just is no room.
As for myself it is clutter and laziness. I can toss out anything (I am not as attached to "memories" as I once was as a teen or in my 20's) but it is just a matter of strength and going about getting rid of the stuff I don't want. And with me it seems my health keeps stopping me and then I have to play catch up again once I am doing better. Tired of that. :( But I still do wish for a more simplistic life and more organization. I have a lot of organizational tools in my home from back when I had money but now I see that back then I cheaped out too much. But can you blame me? If I could make the stuff myself it would be different. Like your desk Jeff. I was impressed. Yours will never be outdated like mine is.
I think basically how to tell if you have Clutter vs. if you have a Hoard is if things fall down when you go to get things. I know that is not concrete as no matter what, sometimes things fall, but if it is a common problem then that means it is not in its proper place and if there is no proper place then ... ya.
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Ever watch those Hoarders shows and feel they go too far??
I have. You don't have to be a hoarder yourself to feel that way and feel bad for those people who are being belittled to get rid of things that mean a lot to them. It is an invasion of privacy issue that affects all of us.
This led to me wanting to post this:
Home items decluttering pros say you’ll regret throwing away
https://www.homesandgardens.com/life-design/home-items-decluttering-pros-say-youll-regret-throwing-away
1. Sentimental items that bring joy
2. Items you need once or twice a year
3. 'Unknown parts' (and we know how hard it can be to get replacement parts once you realize what it was to and need)
4. Paperwork
5. Things that don’t belong to you
6. Items that may be worth money in the future
7. Anything you truly love
8. Heirlooms and photographs
You can read the article for more about each of those but the summary I will quote:
How can I make decluttering easier?
Lauren Saltman, professional organizer from Living.Simplified. says the key to making those tough decluttering decisions is to ask yourself the following questions while decluttering.
Do I love it?
Why do I have it?
How often do I wear or use this?
Does it have value?
Does it fit in my current lifestyle?
Would I buy it again today?
This will make it much easier for you to work out what to keep and what to discard (by donating, selling, recycling or trashing).
As Lauren Saltman points out, living in a decluttered and organized home has many benefits, and keeping these in mind will help motivate you when the house feels upside down. A clutter-free home means you know where all of your items are and allows you to enjoy the peacefulness of your surroundings.