I have had a couple of workouts since the last post, but I didn't post them here. Still not working out as much as I'd like. I've gotten busier at work, so it's harder for me to workout during the day. As of tomorrow morning I am waking up early and working out first. The only reason I have had the momentum and the courage to face my latest obstacles is because of consistent exercise. Working out intensely and frequently really helps calm the flames of anxiety down to a manageable level. I don't want to lose that momentum now.

Since my last post, I have been reading more from Buried in Treasures: Help for Compulsive Acquiring, Saving, and Hoarding. IT's a helpful resource in understanding my perfectionism and how that perfectionism leads to avoidance behavior and overall paralysis. I decided to attack the problem full-on and I have focused my effort on not only clearing my spaces, but keeping them clear (which is the greater challenge). I have gotten rid of over 300 books, four boxes of clothes, and about 15 bags of trash. And I'm only getting started.

One strategy from the book that I have found immensely helpful is the idea of only dividing the things you're trying to clean up into 3-4 piles instead of trying to "organize" everything as I put it away. You saw my office in the previous post. That mess built up because of "not knowing where to put things" or "not having the time to really organize everything right now." I let go of the idea that I should do it all right the first time or never do it at all. I put all my work stuff together (still a big jumbled rat's nest of cables), had boxes for trash, a box for ebay and a box for donation. It was a LOT easier to only divide things up into just those categories while frequently telling myself that I would organize my work stuff later, after I had finished with my macro organization in the rest of the house. Before, I got way too involved in micro-organizing everything, so the job just felt overwhelming. Just having 3 or 4 categories really helped overcome the overwhelm feeling.

So I've kept you waiting for the photos. Here are the rooms after I cleaned them with no help from anyone else, which is a very important part of the process, I might add. Having help reduces the amount of responsibility you take for making the decisions about what to do with the "stuff." Not having someone else to rely on forces me to make the decisions, and face the anxiety, myself. So far so good.

Ok, ok! The pictures:



First thing I attacked was my bedroom. Got rid of over 300 books (what you see is what I kept, so yeah, I have a book thing going on).


Here's the office/workspace now. So much more comfortable! I actually look forward to going in there in the morning and closing the door. I can really focus on my work now and I enjoy it! Can you believe that?


One more view of the office.

These photos were taken about a week ago. I am happy to report that both my office and my bedroom still look like this. New personal record for cleanliness!

The new cleanliness hasn't been without problems or anxiety, however. I'll write more about that in my next post.... And I promise, I will work out between now and then, and I will post about it!