My husband and I split up at the beginning of the year and prior to that he took care of the attic. I thought he was very organized about it. I have since learned while investigating that it isn’t organized at all; boxes aren’t labeled, there’s a huge pile of empty boxes, etc. I’m tempted to make him come help with the project but he is more emotionally attached to material objects than I am and it will be harder for me to get rid of things if he is there.

It’s amazing the amount of things we accumulated in just seven years.

For instance, if you really need to declutter your apartment but hidden among the clutter are painful reminders of a failed relationship, well, no wonder you’re procrastinating! If you give yourself permission to set aside a box to corral those more emotionally fraught items, you can power through the rest of the space, tossing trash or setting aside donations. You can go through the box of painful items when you feel more ready, while reclaiming the rest of your space in the meantime.

Unfortunately, some of the ruined items were photos and other memorabilia… but how treasured can a possession really be if it’s been sitting in a cardboard box in the basement for several years? We hadn’t missed them before now, and we probably won’t miss them again in the future. But it’s still a bit emotional seeing them go!

Today, I sorted through cards & letters and got rid of all the ones that gave me pangs of regret, and then I let go of quite a few things that are remnants of false starts I made earlier in life.

It wasn’t easy, and it required a headset and a couple of friends who don’t mind staying on the phone with me, but I got through a big chunk of it, and I feel great!

If that fails, I either sell them or donate them to
charity, knowing that those “things” have gone on to people who will cherish them (they are paying for them, after all).

It never hurts to take pictures of the things, if it makes you feel better about allowing them to leave.

Thinking in these terms has really allowed me to let go of a lot of things.

This is probably the biggest hurdle when cleaning out an attic. So many old items can hold emotional attachments, it may be hard to choose. I think the best way is to see what is still useful, and what is just a full blown memory that can be just as easily derived from a picture. Easier said than done!

http://yinvsyang.com/

Decluttering is truly an ordeal. It never seemed this hard or this long-lasting when I was accumulating the stuff!

@JustTheSort: I like that reminder about sentimental clutter, which I am prone to accumulating, as well as the reminder about Great Aunt So & So’s stuff.

Prioritizing becomes amazingly quick and easy when you have to completely empty out your attic in a matter of hours and there are stacks of soggy boxes standing all over the rest of the house. Our attic was pretty well organized before this happened. Boxes were labeled and stacked neatly and many things were plastic tubs so the contents were not destroyed. Still the whole incident forced us to make speedy decisions about what we really NEEDED to keep.

I certainly wouldn’t recommend this ‘extreme’ approach to everyone (OK, it was awful and I really wouldn’t wish it on anybody) but think of it as motivation. Wouldn’t you rather sift through your possessions at your leisure before you HAVE TO? (Or before your family has to.)

Remember: if you are storing something but you aren’t using it, no one else can use it, either.

On sentimental clutter: If you feel guilty about wanting to get rid of something you feel forced to archive, just keep in mind that someone else out there will probably be thrilled to find that very thing in a thrift shop or at a tag sale!

If you’re not enjoying/appreciating an object, let it find its way to someone who WILL. You’ll get rid of the negative emotions (guilt, annoyance, etc.) associated with the item AND have more space. A word of caution: If something is a potentially ‘important’ family item (Great Aunt So-and-So’s wedding china) you might want to ask around to various relatives to see if anyone else wants it before carting it off to Goodwill.