You came back :)!

Family stress is hard.

I think a lot of us struggle with our energy level. The mess is tiring just by it's very existence.

I think you just do what you can do at the time. If you keep picking at it, it will start shrinking, and sometimes the progress is energizing.

You did fly lady, so you are familiar with the "just give it a few minutes" approach - commit fifteen minutes, attack one small thing, and you may find you have the energy to keep going. And if not, at least you did the one thing.

Come on over to daily chat and we'll cheer your thing.

Thank you for the warm welcome. I've been stymied this week by blended family crisis and lots of emotional upheaval that went along with it. I wish the crisis didn't take such a huge physical and emotional toll on me, but it did. I am blessed to be in a new marriage that offers me the healing space and opportunity needed to tackle many of my past issues, even if it brings up new problems and challenges of its own.

Probably a stupid question, but even when I find myself emotionally ready to tackle some of my house issues, my physical energy often lags. How have others overcome this? Does the physical drain caused by emotional exhaustion eventually come to an end?

I look forward to the support offered by this group and hope that I can render the same for others in the future.

Welcome, Cluttermouse! Love the name! Glad you are here! as noted by SubC, our most active thread is What are You Doing Today! We discuss our hopes, dreams, problems, issues, next steps, backslides, everything you can imagine. We'll nudge you if you want it, enjoy a cup of tea, commiserate and cheer. I think you'll like it. Great group. Please join us--would love to hear more from you! And anyone else who is reading this.

I've also found it helpful to read thru the various posts. Comforting and inspiring.

HI cluttermouse! I like your name.

come over to the daily chat and join in the very long "what are you doing today" thread.

I have only been there a few weeks, but everyone has welcomed me warmly and there is great support!

Hello. Like many, I'm new to this site, but not new to hoarding, excessive clutter, and what I might call "life disorganizaion." Like many, my life started to unravel slowly until about 5 years ago when I was hit with the first of many major life transitions. Feeling like I will never catch-up, I often find myself overwhelmed wondering where I should even start. My spirit regularly shifts from a hopeful determination to pessimistic futility. Willing to publicly embrace my hoarding tendencies for the first time, I hope this site and all its resources will be just what I need to overcome a lifetime of clutter and related coping behaviors.

Years ago, I participated in an online forum hosted by The Flylady. In addition to similar threads (cleaning q&a, weekly goals, daily challenges, etc), there was also a thread (if that's the right term) where someone could maintain a running journal discussing their goals, accomplishments, etc. While members also posted on the daily tasks and related threads, this allowed a member to chart their progress over time. Other members could cheer them on and learn from their stories. Is there any place on these message boards for something like that? The success thread is a wonderful idea, but I'm not there yet and if possible, I'd like to be able to contemporaneously share my story, my struggle, and my mini-successes with the hope that maybe, just maybe my journey might help motivate another.