Good work, Ena!!!

Sorry I've been back at work and just a bit stressed and emotional.

Soooo I talked to the complex manager on Thursday and he visited my apt on Friday.

I can stay!!!

He said he's okay for me to resign my lease so I don't have to move. He's setting up time in either Tuesday or Wednesday to get the floor/fridge fixed.

I feel sooooo much better!

Thank you everyone for your thoughts!! 😀

Sending love to Florida.

Big push.
It's almost deadline time.
Focus on the very large things, but be prepared for having to move. Either way staying or going you need to spend time getting the things you care about organized . It sorta depends on your budget sometimes. Wether you can pay a moving company to just move it to storage nearby or close to where you'll move to.

But either way you will be spending alot of time with your items.

I'm still nervous. Yesterday I was wiping down walls and I used a swiffer in the kitchen and bathroom. Today I'll be using a carpet shampooer in the living room. Still a few more days. Fingers crossed.

Ena! HOw is it going?

Thank Renee for the offer to help but I'm in Florida.

I hired a company to help me clean out. They were here today. I think this is the cleanest my apartment has been in two years. I even walked on my floor just not without flip flops on.

There r still somethings on the counter that I couldn't get rid of, the things on the shelves, a box of dvds and a box up in the loft of things I needed to keep.

But all in all I got rid of a lot of things I didn't need, I mean... I needed the that's why I kept them but I need them less than I need to b able to stay in my apt. So many magazines and papers and things I just held onto. They even helped me go thru my boxes that I moved in with that I never unpacked. It was embarrassing. But the end result is wonderful. It was also pricey so I never want to get that far gone again. I couldn't afford to.

In the back of my head I'm super worried that something was trashed that I really needed to keep. But mostly they were very good about asking me about anything questionable. But I'm still worried.

I can use my closet again. It had been packed full from my last time I needed to hide things because I had too much stuff.

I had already stopped all my magazine subscriptions. I need to b better about not keeping junk mail too. And not buying something till I get rid of something else that is definitely something I need to work on.

The company left me their card and said they would follow up with me. They also are going to send me some information about support groups and maybe someone to talk to. Though I did reach out to a therapist already but she doesn't have an opening till mid March.

I really hope this works. If I still have to move I might cry.

I mean I might cry anyway for a bit just because it has been an emotional day.

Hello - checking in to see how it's going! Ena, Getting things out of the house is rewarding-you see more space, more opportunities. It also can be a bit daunting--but kerp moving my forward! Don't let how much needs to be done become a point of paralysis. I know I sleep better when I know i have put in the effort to make my place more livable. Renee, I too would love to help some of my friends here--and I wish they could come here and help me!

Hi everyone,
Ena I'm pulling for you! You're doing well under very stressful circumstances. Where do you live? If I'm close, I'll come help. I'm in California. I'm serious.

I'm in about you stage of the purge. I've got about 1/3 of my kitchen cleaned out. I'm kinda stuck bc I don't want to put clean dishes in cupboards until I get rid of the mice. I have traps but they're pretty wiley about them. Suggestions welcome.

Porter you're an inspiration. Thank you for sharing your progress.

I started my burying myself after a break up 13 years ago. I'm starting to get down through enough layers to find stuff from the relationship. So lots of emotion coming up for me. But being able to use my stove and sink for the first time in years is such an improvement it's amazing! I've missed cooking. I've been eating crap, fast foods or microwave food for years and have gained 90 lbs since the breakup. So as I clean, I'm letting go of my walls and letting go of weight. I'm amazed at how many empty cardboard boxes I have in my house...not flattened, but big square boxes. Crazy!

I called and left a message for a counselor who works with hoarders. That was a big step. Trying to let go of the shame.

Ena keep at it, one baby step at a time. It adds up. Just do one more thing. You'll start to see progress. Hugs
Thank you for being here. Bless you all. Know you're not alone.

I've gotten two bags out everyday.

The bathroom is mostly empty but not clean by any means. And I'm still clearing the kitchen. Tho that is a bit cleaner. The living area is starting to b bagged but still a mess. The loft area is the least cluttered but I've moved my clothes up there so there's that.

I need to bag more. 😕

Ena, I have not hired help, but it is surely an option! Are you getting all of the bags to go out, or only some? Help could definitely address that.

You are doing well. Keep focused on kitchen and bathroom and nice clear paths to all the exits. Then work on living areas.

You have more than a week. You can do a lot.

Help could also come in and deep clean kitchen and bathroom for you right before the inspection.

Spoke to my property manager today.

He was very nice about it but he said he would set up a meeting with me on the 16th and see if there was a marked improvement.

I put together two more bags since I got home but there's still so much to do.

Has anyone ever hired people to help them clean up?

I did take two of the already packed up bags to the trash this morning. But I didn't make any more progress last night. Instead I took a nap around 7 which turned into sleeping straight through the night. 😔

Idk I guess I was kinda depressed I'm going to my leasing office after work today to basically beg them to let me stay.

I have made some progress I just don't know if it's enough.

Fingers crossed

The kitchen progress sounds great!

Don't give up.

And counselors are used to crying. That's one of the things they are there for!

I feel like if I keep posting about my progress then I'll keep up with it.

I have a full counter clean in the kitchen now and I cleaned up the sink and the stove.

Still have some bagged up things that I haven't put out yet.

And I still have a million things to do.

Congrats with getting ur first floor in good order!

I bagged up a few more things today. But there is still so much to do. I don't know if I'll b able to talk to anyone in my leasing office till Tuesday afternoon at the earliest.

I did talk to a councilor over the phone last night. There was a lot of crying involved. Not my best moment.

Ps

After wards and currently . My first floor is perfect , even for entertaining guests. I know someday it may all come back .
But for now I'm keeping on top of it. I do have a clutter issue with my creative outlet, hobby supplies. But overall I longer live with the shame.

I'm a hoarder .
Most of my life has been affected by hoarding.
So we and the others can talk here , but I'm glad you see the need for professional help .

For me , I'm now alone, but when lived with others their tendencies to leave clutter here and there and everywhere left me no choice but to start pulsing it on top of more clutter.
And then I just became a giant mess with barely anyplace to walk.

I'd try to pick up stuff , but I never had the attitude to clear it completely and reset a room by starting over . I think because I wasn't dealing with the objects.

My experience , which is probably not the same as every bodies was recalling space , by gettin more capacity. Like a storage, but then actually clear the storage completely out on a time line. When I moved I found a p,ace that hold all my sentimental , valuable, and useful objects in the basement .
Now my hoard is contained and organized where It doesn't interfere with guests coming into the house.
I don't like to be a minimalist, but I don like the confidence of not feeling ashamed of myself. Which that was how I felt about my hoarding, no one could come over , .

So from time to time I would reclaim the living space. Often doubling clutter in other rooms. It took a very long time to identify myself as hoarder, and be open to discussion about it.
But I did finally see my type of hoarding on a tv show.
I saw myself in family , a husband that couldn't purge his wife's things. And a daughter growing up with the same tendencies.

I felt empowered, but no matter how much I tried I just couldn't clear it all for very long . It always came back.

No longer .
I made the commitment to certain area clear, basically the public common areas.
Kitchen, bathroom, living room. Once I got those back to "normal minimal clutter free . Then I started getting outside help . I made a lot of chili and invited everyone I could think of just help get into a storage.
Used tubs to make a first round of purge.
Then separated the clutter into organized categories,
All the while the home was clear. And it took me many months to try to stick to clean regularly.

Other than my attitude the biggest help was the purge from what's going into storage and what's going to donation and dump.
So it's wasn't a just a matter moving out, it was a matter of moving In. The choice to seperste from a large portion of my hoard. And slowly use the storage as a way to sort it rather than just movingit from place to place.

Using digital camera to let go of many things that were large clutter , but really only holding onto memories.

My wake up call was scary too.
Even though I had identified myself as a hoarder, my wife did not. We slept in different rooms. I would sometimes go change her bedding , but I would harangued by her for it.
But one time after a long time , I had enough , I smelled something rotting in her room, and started clearing about a 3foot deep pile that engulfed her whole room and surrounded her bed. But as took the bedding out I found a disturbing sight. A large dead rat under her pillow.

I share this with you. Only because I'm sureleasing business must see this often enough and just cut the problem lose before a fire claims a life or before bugs and rodents destroy a structure.


So in you're case and very well could be wrong because I'm there to see or advise. Keep taking things outside all the way to the car, storage, dumpster , or donation center.
Start with the bathroom. Then living room, then kitchen.

So if help does become available. The can eat and pee, then talk with you in the living room like it's a staging room.

This was also a wake up call.

I called lifecare through my work insurance and set up some time to talk to someone.

Though I still have told anyone I know, family or friends. That is too much at the moment.

So I started to panic clean the kitchen last night... I put together like eight bags but was only really able to get rid of two.. the others are just sitting here.

I called my leasing office and left a message today since I was at work when they were open. They did not call me back.

I also started looking for another apartment, it's just so much at once.

I got my big things of value out in one day.
Like beds, couches , tvs , dinning room table.

But the hoard was another story. And I didn't want to move my hoard from one place to another.

A chance to start fresh and invite friends into a new place.

Perhaps both.
Wether they let you stay, or give you an extention , it's a good idea to get started now and do about 1-2 hours a day till it plays out.
Other than the financial issues . It mat be time to get started on collecting up things you care about and things of value.

Perhaps find a place to start sorting the important stuff and then purging by either growing away stuff in trash bags, or taking it to a donation center or to a dump.

Make good use of you're heavy trash days .

For me it was overcoming feelings of being overwhelmed. And anxiety . I didnt get all my stuff out , I had only 20days.
I had been preparing though for a long time before.

All I can say is to spend time with the purge , and also seek help from a nearby church or make some calls to help out with moving large things.

I'm just guessing though , because I dont really know the situation. But we check in on theses board very often. Well be happy to talk about. What works for me going room by room. I put my hands something it goes to it's destination.
Otherwise I'm just sliding things around unstacking and restacking. Taking up alot of my energy. So once it's in the donation tub I keep in my car when it gets full then it's trip worthy. You may decide to abandon things in the dwelling. So once you clear a room , you start putting items you wish to leave behind in that room .

Just get started ..

I came home today to notice saying my landlord wasn't going to renew my lease which is up in April.

I've lived in the same place for about 10 years. I've gone through clean phases and cluttered phases. But this last out of cluttered phases has been about two years. I really was trying to work on it. I just didn't fully get there yet. I haven't had anybody in my apartments and almost that long.

I have nowhere else to live I have no family in the state. I also can't afford anywhere else to live. I haven't told anyone of the notice even though I talk to my parents today. They also have no idea how terrible my apartment is right now. I mean my family knows I keep things they just don't know how many things.

Do you think if I talk to the landlord, which is the company not like a person, they might reconsider? I really want to make this stop.