Anxiety, Hoarders, LifeStyle, Mental Health, My Story, Opinion, People, Uncategorized

I had my first Emotional Breakdown after Decluttering my Hoarded House

A few days ago I had my first emotional breakdown after decluttering my hoarded house.  I felt anxious, depressed and felt alone in the world.  I cried hysterically and called a dear friend from church.  She helped comfort me and gave me great advice.  She’s worked with a lot of addicts.   I am her only hoarder. But the patterns and habits are very similar to addictions.  She explained that this was a good thing because I need to learn a new coping mechanism in place of hoarding.  I explain my heart in this video because I want other hoarders to know that they are not alone.  I also want non-hoarders to understand how we struggle.  Together we can find healing in this mental struggle.

 

Hoarders, LifeStyle, Marriage, My Story, Opinion, People, Uncategorized

How does my Husband feel about my Hoarding?

This is question I get asked a lot:  “How does your Husband feel about your hoarding?” My husband is patient, laid back and supportive in what I do.  Except my hoarding, he hates my hoarding.  He gets very frustrated with it and told me the top four things that frustrate him.  First, he has a difficult time finding things because nothing is organized.  Sometimes he has to purchase something we already have because it will take him “months” to find it again.  And wasting money is not one of his favorite things.  Secondly, he gets very upset tripping over piles of crap.  That one REALLY frustrates him.  Thirdly, he just gets tired at looking at all piles of clutter.  Then he gets upset that it doesn’t bother me! (Until recently when I started this journey) Lastly, he wishes he can help me clean my piles but he cannot.  He can’t because it will always create a fight between us.  I always get overwhelmed and anxious and he just wants to keep cleaning.  So he gave up on helping me clean so I would not get upset from my OCD hoarding panic attacks.   Attached below is my vlog where I give more details about our relationship and the strain it has on our marriage: