Problem: I am a packrat and I know it but I have a hard time getting rid of things. My husband complains that we have no more room in our house and he is probably right.
Is there some kind of emotional challenge when you are stuck with your stuff? I think I do not have the heart to get rid of something that could be useful later. However my clothes closet is over stocked and there are probably things in there that I will never use again.
I guess for 2018, I am willing to make some changes, but I just need a place to start.
Discussion: I would guess that the “stuckness” is about a part of your life that is stuck. If you use the word stuck as a way of understanding your life, you might ask: which parts of my life are feeling stuck? Sometimes that allows you to see what you are doing with a little more objectivity.
When you begin to let go of things, you do create a space for new things to come in. I was listening to the morning news and I heard something that made sense to me. The commentator was referring to a way of letting go, by asking the question: does this object or whatever bring me joy. So you might ask if these things that are possibly cluttering your home, bring you joy. If there is no joy in them maybe you can begin to sort and move those things out that no longer bring you joy. There are so many places you could give to, if there are things that someone else could use. Salvation Army seems like a good place to start. If your city has a homeless shelter they could probably use some of your “stuff.” If you have a domestic violence shelter, they can use clothing and many other items that a person would not bring with them if they had to leave their home in a hurry.
If you think in terms of someone getting use out of your things it may make letting go easier.
Big question: does this object bring me joy?
To submit problems, contact Juanita Sanchez, psychotherapist, by email at [email protected] or contact High Plains Journal.
