are you a slave to your stuff? a pack rat? help me

I feel for you, I really do. I was recently part of a cross-country move, and I had great hopes that we would cut down on the volume of stuff-- but it takes a HUGE commitment to stop being a packrat. The odd thing is, I was raised by a minimalist neatfreak, and yet I have been in two long-term relationships with chronic packrats. The bad news is that you're not going to be able to "just stop." At least not unless you get to the bottom of the psychology involved in your relationship with "stuff." And that can take several years. I don't know you, of course, but generally ONE of the ways packrats can "let go" of some stuff is to focus on giving that stuff a "happy home." The packrats I have known have been very generous people, and will GLADLY give their stuff away-- it's when it comes to TRASHING stuff that there's a problem. It's unlikely that your life will look like one of those people on "Clean Sweep," but there are some avenues you should consider, to reduce the volume. One way the size of our moving load was reduced was by not moving ANYthing that didn't get "sorted" first. In other words, no just "tossing it in a box to deal with later." If you have 14 toaster ovens, choose the best one, heck, even if you choose a couple of "backups" you're still way ahead. The main goal is not to move anything that needs to be "fixed" before it's any good to you. I know that won't be 100% possible, but it's a goal to strive for. I don't know where you live (your profile just says "Canada"), but if you're in or near a larger city, the process will be easier. A LOT of stuff was "redistributed" through eBay sales (the better bits; in the end actually paid for almost half the price of the move), and through freecycle.org, and the "free stuff" area of craigslist. I know both the latter have a presence in Canada. I also painted a large "MOVING! FREE STUFF!" sign which would be out at the street on Saturday mornings when people in the neighborhood would be having garage sales. All in all, we probably let loose the equivalent of 200 moving boxes through a combination of these. Also, make it a rule that you are not allowed to bring ANYTHING "new" into the house until after the move. No "garage sale therapy" of ANY kind, whatsoever, no matter "how good a deal" it is. Period. Finally, if you have stuff around the place of a "my friend Debbie would really LOVE this" nature, now is the time to GIVE it to Debbie, even if it is NOT Christmas, or her birthday. This can be especially helpful with "family stuff"-- all those things you're "saving for Aunt Frances." GET them to Aunt Frances. As a "sidebar note," we ended up with 430 moving boxes being driven from Texas to Washington state. By typical moving company estimates, that's the equivalent of 2.5 "families of four in a 4000 square foot house." But we "kicked out" approximately 1.5 "families of four in a 4000 square foot house" that did NOT get moved. Decluttering doesn't have to happen all at once. Make a pact with yourself that you'll go through ALL the stuff AGAIN, when you unpack it-- with a really critical eye. Good luck!

hey, its me. im going through something similar right now. I have too much crap, stuff that i even forget that i have til i find it, but even then i still cant dispose of it. I've been trying to get organized for months now but im just so overwhelmed with the amount of crap thats in this very small house. im thinking of going one room at a time starting with the boys and working my way to the basement. Now if only i could get motivated. I love my stuff even though its used or old, whatever...if you get any ideas on the organized thing how 'bout letting me know...luv ya

I know it’s wonderful to have stuff, but that’s really what it is, stuff. Try to use this rule of thumb, if you haven’t used it in six months or longer, it’s time to go. Items that you are keeping like that saw, most likely won’t be made into something so it’s time to let that go. I find that now that I have less stuff in our new home, I feel better. I make it a point not to buy “things” as I don’t want our place to feel cluttered. And believe me, it’s a lot easier to dust when you don’t have to move knickknacks. I’ve added a link to a site that you might find interesting as it talks about decluttering.

I have seen this subject on the Oprah show. They had that guy from Clean Sweep on the show. He says it is not just about keeping tons of stuff. He says it is a mental thing that makes you keep all of these things. So the first thing you have to do is get to the bottom of what is going on with you. When you figure that out you will want to get rid of all the stuff you have been keeping. Good luck.

OH my.. yes, it is something I've been trying to fight for quite some years now, but it seems like a lost battle :) YOu sound just like me, or maybe I sound just like you hehe I seem to have trouble trowing things out. I have been working at it for a while now, and I am slowly letting go of some of my treasures. But I still find myself making excuses for not throwing out this or that. Every once in a while I get really upset with all the junk , throw some stuff out and organize all the rest, but soon it's back to what it was before grrrr:)

LOL, I am a packrat too. I thought I was worst but you seem to top of it. I keep stuff which are useful (which I end up stacking but not using, ofcourse). Recently I had a brainstorm and cleaned the whole house. I gave away all the unncessary things (and ended up trashing other people's houses lol). Now I have promised myself not to buy anything which I wouldn't use immediately. I have stopped thinking of future use.

Nope! I REVEL in my clutter and memories. I am the family keeper of history and everyone dumps their stuff they don't want to throw away but dare not keep either, and then out it trots when the next generation come along. For instance, I still had my brother's football rattle which he used as a fan, and twenty years later it was handed back to his daughter, alas to cheer on a different team and annoy her Dad lol. I tend to favour clear plastic boxes with lids so that you can see what is in them, and I buy them whenever I escape my partner and put more of my treasured relics away. Why not make yourself a list of all those things you want to do something crafty with and take on one project at a time and work through them, write the book or blog about it and have your revenge on all those people who said it was junk? There's an enjoyable thought for you :-)

Purging your stuff is very hard, I know and it seems like the more you purge, the more you have. I keep throwing out so much stuff. Yet when I look around, it doesn't look like I have thrown anything out. This week, I am going to do my kitchen, dining room and living room and the next person who leaves stuff lying around in any of those rooms is going to lose fingers. Next week will be the bedrooms, then the next month will be the family room and storage. And when I turn around..it will end up being exactly as it is now. It is a mystery!

You have pack rat issues like I do :)) I hate it but I love to collect stuff. When I was little I collected so much I about wrote a book about my 101 collections including such things as home magazines, and rocks. *L* I'd say just start somewhere small. Know someday isnt gonna come. They say make a rule. Put stuff in a box and if you dont touch it after say 30 days give it away or trash it. Always go through your mail over the trash dont let it pile up. Just work even 15 mint a day on a pile of stuff and you should be okay. When we were moving last November we ended up having to bring at least 4 boxes (unknown location now in the garage) from that house to this because we couldnt go through it all. But we went through tons. And ME a person who collects lots even got rid of lots and lots of bags of stuff. Just do what you gotta do. I took pictures of some objects that were too big or bad to keep. Some I tried to sell at our moving sell. The others I trashed. I have the pictures and thats all I needed. Including several clothing items, and such. Work hard, be brave. Its not gonna be easy. There are some books on pack rats you should check them out. I know "Clutters last Stand" is supposed to be good. Good luck!

I dont really hold on to things or get attached to them. I am of the disposition that many things are going to go away, so the main thing I try to build up on is the stuff I place in my mind. While I dont want to build a great heap of books or a film collection.. I do want to build the number of books and films that I have watched. That way even if I never read that book again, I learned something from it and can use the knowledge in the future.. even if the book is no where to be found.. That plus, Im always scared that my house is going to go up in flames.. If I dont get attached to stuff, then Ill never miss it!

I used to love my junk but then after I lived in so many places I had to move and always had to get rid of my junk. One time I made a decision to not accumulate junk anymore. Now twice a year I go through my stuff and get rid of things that I don't use anymore. It helps me have a nicer place and less hassle to clean it. Take a decision to go through your stuff every other time and get rid of the things that you don't use. They say if you have not used something for a year there is a big chance that you will never use it again or at least you don't need it that much. Better idea: why don't you sell your stuff on ebay, craiglist or garage sale? That way you will not feel guilty because you will get some money for it. I think if you do that you will enjoy having the money and you will get into the habit of getting rid of your junk for fun.

even I am addict to reading good things. I just share it with my friends who will not have knowledge of the subject. I keep rotating my books/magazines with all my friends. once I have circulated the knowledge at any point of time even if I forget what I had read I can share it with my friends. Once the circulation is over I sell them. how`s the idea?

My husband and I go round and round about the stuff in this house. He bought this house before we met and lived in it for about four years with just him. He had so little stuff that when I walked in, my first impression was that he had just moved in and his stuff hadn't arrived yet! Then me and my two girls moved in, and then he and I had a son together after we got married. Now the place is crammed to the rafters and we're really feeling overwhelmed in this little place. The amazing thing is that we throw out stuff by the Jeep load, and still never seem to have any more room! I think it's because once I see an empty space, I have this urge to fill it and go buy something. Good luck with the purging and moving. May you be more successful at it than most of us packrats!

Oh my goodness! You must be my long lost twin! I have been trying to fight the packrat syndrome for years, especially more so since my younger daughter was born, and has shown signs of being a packrat herself, worse than me. Some stuff, I will sell on Ebay, especially if it's brand new and I never opened it. I've even sold a bunch of stuff that I accumulated from my old job that I don't need anymore. Other things, I have given to Goodwill. I have craft items that I bought years ago, that I've never used. I'll hold onto them thinking that someday, I'll get around to doing something crafty. That time still hasn't come. I have had a couple of yardsales, but they weren't too successful. I'm still fighting this packrat syndrome, and have noticed that even my daughter has improved a bit with her packrat syndrome. Someday, I hope to be victorious!

I can be a packrat at times too. I will usually clean out everything when I have had enough, but I should never have made the mess in the first place. I try to keep things with the intention of using it later on, but then I never do and it ends up in the trash a few months later. I would say as long as you continue to go through it and dispose of the things that are not so important anymore, it is okay to keep some things.