KonMari 2017 - The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

2 sacks of DHs clothing went out this morning! He wasn't having the best of days yesterday so whilst he was laying on the bed relaxing, I took everything out the wardrobe, one by one and asked stay or go. Job done in less than 10 minutes but had I waited for him to do it, I'd still be waiting next millennium!

Bags went straight into the car and were dropped in at the CS this morning.

Found you all!! been away far too long in RL.....nothing bad just getting on with RL I can now, now that the burden of clutter has been lifted - not all but most. I am not daunted by it and nor do I create it anymore. Knickers still folded. Tea towels still rolled and socks in regimental order - the rest is just 'organised better' and not added to. I am not a KM convert as such - I did find her book really irritating and never got to the end of it - it went to CS But it was a useful stepping stone and all the exploits on here kept me going and amused . Now I find jobs are done as needed and not 'roundtoits' and so I can get on with other things. I have missed reading posts on here but I am not going back to catch up......

I just wanted to post on here how I got to where I am now. Might be a bit of a ramble so scroll on by if you dont want to read.

Two years ago I set my self a target - to get the house organise and decluttered by a certain date. I certainly did get a lot done but not to where I wanted to be by that date. In hindsight it was an impossible target I had set myself but only for reasons that have revealed themselves slowly over the last 2 years. At the same time I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder which had probably been lurking for years - 15, 20, 25 years who knows?? But had always been put down to lifestyle/age/weight/job. Eventually an enlightened GP tested me for one thing that hadnt been tested - Bingo!! This was just the start - I immediately became an expert in my condition - as I could not accept that the treatment was going to make me well or get me to a place where I wanted to be i.e to where I was before I became symptomatic...........took me 12 months research to find the right treatment and 12 months on from that I can say I am beginning to feel like a different person...errr...no... the person I once was:D Frightening in a way. What I had feared was a mental illness, I honestly thought I was going mad which manifested itself with 'hoarding' behaviour in that it controlled me - but I always knew this wasnt the case despite un holy family rows about clutter:( It was in fact a creeping, insidious, physical illness often treated badly and frequently misdiagnosed. The biggest changes have been clarity of thought and energy - lots of energy. It was the lack of these that things just heaped up as I tried to bring up a family,lead an active life, and hold down a stressful job which I loved.

Once I started feeling well again I think I went into overdrive for a while and tried to make up for lost years - my unconscious effort to make it up to the family but I have learnt now its just best to make the most of what I have and I think the 'making up' part will fall into place. There is a net flow out of the door of clutter,things,stuff out of the door. I have learnt to deal with paperwork and reduce it coming into the house ( OH needs to learn now !) and I have learnt how to deal with Justin and sentimentality. I have lost weight without effort, can contemplate social gatherings out of my comfort zone,can do physical activity without taking days to get over it or turning it down and I actually enjoy work again despite the stress of it - working with colleagues half my age who 'cant cope':eek: I have rekindled some interests and may even contemplate that PhD again.......although that will be funding dependent and not constrained lack of 'head space' this time :rotfl:

I still hate waste in any form!! What is left in the house that has no business in being here will be disposed of responsibly - given away, recycled,donated or sold. I hold very strong views about it ( hence not getting on with KM). I am in no rush as I have got rid of so much since finding this thread that the house is clear - stuff no longer piled on surfaces or burgeoning cupboards. I had friends round last night and it wasnt the dreaded 2 day task of a clear up and clean - whizzed round the house putting things back in place and everything looked clean and tidy within the hour. We have a spare room which I am tackling this weekend and 3 sheds/out houses which have a lot of stuff in but the attic is almost empty, the conservatory is a conservatory where we can sit and not a dumping ground we have taken away 2 sheds which were stuffed..........yep lots gone and very little to landfill:j I have saved the money from what I have sold so far and this will go to a new bathroom. Some debts have been paid off and I have enough on my Nect@r card from Oxf@m sales to use towards Christmas this year - or maybe I will use air miles

Sorry bit of a ramble........but I have been away for a while and just wanted to get some thoughts down! I will keep popping in now and then as I do love reading the stories.:p

P.S. probably what prompted me to come on here today ...........I opened up the last tube of toothpaste from my 'stash'. About 9 years ago I saved a bin bag of unused sealed boxed tubes of Colg@te going into landfill - being thrown from my place of work as there was 'nowhere to store it'. Has kept us, a family of 4, going all that time. I dont have an issue with this kind of 'hoarding'!!............Looked at toothpaste on the supermarket shelf today for the first time in almost 10 years..........sheesh when did cleaning your teeth get so complicated:rotfl::rotfl:

Hi everyone, Aaleigha that's a great start you've made, there's no time limit, but once you see the benefit it keeps you pushing on.
My kondoing lately has been in the garden , all week I've been chopping and moving things, I have filled mine and a neighbours green bin, (she doesn't use hers!) And I have at least another 2 bins full in the garage waiting for the bins to be emptied! !
I have been moving contents of some pots into the borders, hubby would be pleased, he said there were too many! My sister had suggested that I prune off the bottom branches from big shrubs so I could underplant and it's a real improvement , everything seemed to have got massive whilst hubby was ill, but they're now hacked back , it's not doing much good for my tennis elbow though;) will continue when the bin men come!

Good to see you back Igamogam - so pleased you have found how to deal with your health issues and are feeling somewhat more like your old self.
Like you MK is a bit too off the wall for me - stuff is going to out of the house at a slow rate as I too like it to be rehomed responsibly where possible. The loft still has some more stuff to go but at least now we can walk round and I know pretty well what's left. There's some major building work to be done in the near future & I intend to keep any 'incoming' to a minimum.

Aaleigha wrote: »

OK what do you all do when you are so overwhelmed you really cant start

I have far too many clothes to go in the space I have

I cant even tidy what is there to sort what I have

(I do have bipolar and a few other issues) the Bipolar means at manic points I just buy more stuff - latest was 200+ on clothes and make up and a new to me car at over four grand - but I do LOVE that itreally does spark Joy

should I just grab all out of wardrobe and start there to give me space then drawers etc then tackle a pile of cloths and add to the tidied and Koned areas as there is no way I can do it all at once

what did some of you do in this situation please

Aaleigha wrote: »

I did 45 mins and sorted and folded all my tops - I did have two basket fulls now I have vest top and camis sleeved tops and summer cardies all in one basket with space

I have kondoed more than 50% of my tops - now as I wash and iron and put away things I will carefully think if I really love it - and if I do see if there is anything that I have kepted that I dont love as much

Cath and the charity shop are going to do well

was going to ebay some but to be honest for the effort and return I would just rather sort this is just going to snowball (arthritis and mental health permitting)
thank you so so Much MaddieMay and all those who post for your inspiration
H xx

next on the list under and night wear

Hello and welcome, Aaleigha

It can seem overwhelming at first but - like others have said - start somewhere and take it a small chunk at a time. The important thing is categories - micro categories are fantastic when overwhelmed/ unable to do to much because of health/ physical limitations etc. So - instead of clothes, break it down as you've already started - underwear is a fantastic win for most - it looks great when done - and getting rid of uncomfortable knickers and bras is just the best! :D

Each little 'win' tends to inspire you to carry on (another time) and do another little bit - and those previous 'wins' really do tend to stay tidy and organised.

There may well be set backs along the way - and many, many of us have found further along the line that we are later able to get rid of items in previously completed categories - it's not that we become more ruthless, just more attuned to the 'joy sparking' of things and more realistic about what we actually do want and need - and that life will not change for the worse if we get rid of the jacket that we didn't really like but kept because it was expensive/ we've only worn it once/ it was a 'good' make, someone close to us bought it for us/ passed it on to us.

Our homes are not storage facilities. Life is simpler - and far more pleasant - with those items which we actually truly want.

x