Untidy house = major stress

There_Goes_Trouble

My house is never tidy and I live alone! I've got 2 weeks off now and having a major sort out!

Normally, what works for me is:

LISTS!!!! I write down everything that needs doing in each room then I pick one task depending on the amount of time I have available, and take great joy in crossing it off the list when it's done.
Put on upbeat music and sing along.
Set a timer and do as much as I can before the timer beeps.

And the best piece of advice I was given was to remember that my house didn't get like this in one day, so not to expect to sort it in one day either. Be realistic and you're less likely to feel like a failure when you can't clean, tidy and sort an entire house in one afternoon!!!! Set yourself achievable goals and be pleased when you achieve them. If you've only got half an hour to spare, pick a half hour long task off your list.

pinkpig08

Once you start with the little things - putting things away etc - it wil spur you on to do a bit more, then a bit more. When you sort your ironing pile out, does it all HAVE to be ironed? I don't iron pyjamas or bedding or many of my little girls clothes. It reduces your pile quickly and you feel a bit better about it. The once you've cleared the backlog of washing you'll find you only need to put a load every day or every other day depending on how many people live in your house.

Once the house is straight you'll find it takes less time keeping on top of it. Just a few minutes here and there wiping the surfaces - doing 1 load of ironing keeps it generally clean and tidy. I wipe the sink and loo every day which keeps them lovely and clean.

The main thing is to first find the motivation and then carry on. Good luck

Shelley84

My house is a huge mess and I completely understand how you feel. I sit there looking at it thinking 'this is going to take weeks to sort out' So therefore never get round to doing it.

My main problem is my sons toys - hundreds of them! So I'm going to try this -

4 boxes - 1 for keep, 1 for bin, 1 for car boot, and 1 for stuff that is not complete (bits all over the place)

Then I'm hoping to sort out the keep box by putting the things where they belong, then find all the bits to complete sets etc.

In theory this will stop me making numerous piles on the floor and leaving them there, at least if they are in boxes waiting to be sorted they are not all over the floor!!

jcr16

i have to keep my house tidy as it a small house , and with 5 of us living here i can't be dealing with clutter or mess. but my house is cosy and lived in. so it isn't a show house.

i find best way is just to keep on top of it.

but when the kids are on half term/holidays etc. i'm so busy doing stuff with them the house is in dire need of a blitz once they back at school.

what i do is start at the top and work down. i will stack all washign by the machine. i will keep going until all washed, i been known to fill up my two wash line, plus my mum and my nans,lol. and still use tumbly. and i will just work through each room. removing what doens't belong in there and pulling out furniture, sorting each drawes,change bedding , clean windows etc. take a black bag into each room. then i will hoover the room and finally dust and walk out and shut door. the last room i do is the kitchen. i can take me a whole day from say 9am till school picking up time half 2. but i keep going and don't stop. and i have to say the results speak for themselfs and once done it so easy to keep on top of it.

i generally have a deep clean like this every monday. but i give myself a limit of say 2 hours for whole house as i want to spend time with my youngest. and he will help but can be a bit of a pickle. wouldn't change it for world. but does get frustating when what i just tidied he messed up,lol.

andrealm

MissMotivation wrote: »

It doesn't help that every house I've walked into recently has been immaculate and some of these people have several kids......seriously, how do these people do it??

I always think that when I go into other people's houses, come and see my house, it's never been tidy since dd1 was born 4 years ago. I'm trying to have a major tidy up at the minute to try and get on top of it again. the main issue is loads of clutter that needs to be sorted. I dream of having one of these decluttering companies in but can't afford it.

I'm usually quite good with laundry but have a bit of a backlog of that at the mo, I don't bother with ironing , I just give things a shake and hang them up.

ontheroad_2

MissMotivation wrote: »

Over the last couple of months things have been really busy and stressful both with work and my private life, consequently my housework has become less of a priority and now I keep looking at my house and I just want to cry!

I can't get on top of anything, i've got piles of washing that need doing, piles of ironing, it just needs a massive clean and tidy and I don't know where to start.

I just feel like crying when I look at it and i've been blocking it out evertime I walk through the door.

I really don't know where to start and everytime I think about it just get more stressed!

okay, are you motivated to start doing it? how about taking a days annual leave to get it out of the way so you're starting from scratch again? can you afford to send your ironing out to get done this once, to help you see the end of the road a bit?

my house looks like a chinese laundry from this time of year all through winter as i can't get the washing on the line to dry much and i don't have a tumble drier. But i'm not by any stretch of the imagination a neat or clean freak, so a quick run around with a cloth/hoover, do the dishes/wipe the kitchen counter once a day and clear up the living room coffee table is just about all i run to. Ironing gets done once a week or when we're running out of clothes :rotfl:.

ontheroad_2

MissMotivation wrote: »

It doesn't help that every house I've walked into recently has been immaculate and some of these people have several kids......seriously, how do these people do it??

I have no idea - but immaculate houses don't impress me, just the thought of all the repetitious housework thats involved in keeping things immaculate gives me shivers (and not in a good way ).

Ex-Spendaholic

Ok, first off lets tackle the laundry.

You mention things have been like this for a couple of months. Am I right in thinking then that some of the offending laundry may be fit for summer wear only?

Do this:

Get a bin bag and put in any summer clothes - put them in the bag. They can be dealt with at another time. No point in stressing over clothes you aren't going to wear for at least 6 months. Put them in the loft or something in the meantime.

From the remaining pile then find the bulky items - wash them first. I do this ie I do a big towel wash as they take up more room in the wash basket and make the problem look bigger than it is. The beauty also is that towels don't need ironed.

So your pile should now be decreasing. Decide what amongst your washing is priority ie needed soon and do it first.

Aim to put on a wash every night before bed and stick it in the dryer/on the line or whatever the next morning and put another wash on.

You'll clear this in no time.

If at the end of all this you have loads of ironing stressing you then considering sending it to an ironing service.


Clutter

Get a series of bags, boxes. I guarantee you that your house isn't as bad as you think it is - it just needs decluttered. Go round room by room and throw out rubbish - bills, magazines, papers etc and sort stuff to other bags ie sell on ebay, give to charity shop etc. Do this for each and every room. When you are finished you may be exhausted but you won't have so much stuff around the place and keeping on top of the cleaning will be easier.


Cleaning

Do it a room at a time. Spend a couple of hours each night after work sorting a room. Do everything in that room - vacuum, dust etc. When you see one room nice and tidy it should inspire you to move to the next one.


I think if you do the above it will help you get back on track. However if you are going to be continually stressed about things then maybe look to see if its worth getting a cleaner. Cutting back on stuff like magazines, expensive toiletries, Starbucks on the way to work etc would soon pay for it.

Good luck.

DVardysShadow

MissMotivation wrote: »

It doesn't help that every house I've walked into recently has been immaculate and some of these people have several kids......seriously, how do these people do it??

And it has not occurred to you that with your Estate Agent hat on, you only get to see houses which are intended to impress?

Don't be so hard on yourself.

BlondeHeadOn

I'm rubbish at housework, but one thing I always try to do is to make sure that I have at least one room that is tidy/clean. Preferably the room that you spend most time in, i.e. the lounge or (possibly, but not for me!) the kitchen. I don't think it matters how you achieve this clean room, but do whatever works - for example, I designate another room in the house as the 'Eeek!' room, and just dump all the washing/rubbish/mess in that room and shut the door!

Then at least you can go into your 'clean' room and feel relaxed, and also this should help you to be inspired or energised to tackle the mess when you have time. It makes being at home much more soothing, which somehow makes it easier for me to tackle the untidy bits - knowing I always have somewhere to escape and relax in.

HTH