The Hoarder in You

I just finished reading The Hoarder in You: How to Live a Happier, Healthier, Uncluttered Life. It was written by Dr. Robin Zasio of the A&E Network's show Hoarders.  It was an excellent read, which I highly recommend to all of you for several reasons: 1) We all have stuff, 2) we all have emotional stuff, and  3) we've had personal experience with hoarding. I strongly  believe that this is one of those "best books" out of which you can seek "words of wisdom." Below are some insights I have gleaned from this book, patterned by President Gordon B. Hinckley's message to the youth in 2000.

Be grateful. We are always told to be grateful for things that we have, but how do we show that gratitude? The book talks about making items useful, storing or displaying them properly, or giving them to somebody else who might have a better use for them.

Be smart. Becoming better stewards, as God would have us be, requires us to learn. Sometimes, clutter overwhelms us simply because we don't know what to do with it. We have plenty of resources to instruct us and help us. Plus, learning how to manage our possessions saves us time and money that we otherwise would have spent searching for a lost item or buying its replacement.

Be clean. There's a reason why it's said: "Cleanliness in next to godliness." Clutter creates anxiety, which tends to make us turn to our natural-man bad habits. Addressing clutter also increases anxiety, but it's an anxiety that has an end. There's also the added health benefits: more room to exercise, breathe easily, prepare fresh food, sanitize surfaces, etc.

Be true. We're all prone to some clutter blindness, whether physical or emotional. We get used to living a certain way and simply ignore the truth, or we lie to ourselves. Striving to be true helps us recognize and avoid Satan's lies.

Be humble. A lot of hoarding problems come from a person's being a perfectionist. There's no perfect place to put something, so the perfectionist ultimately feels defeated. Pride also keeps us from celebrating our successes because we think a little improvement is never enough. Being humble helps us to be patient with ourselves and with others who want to help us.

Be prayerful. Dr. Robin asks her patients to "sit" with their feelings of anxiety. In other words, meditate on the feeling before acting on it, whether that is to avoid the clutter or work on it. Meditating and being prayerful helps us take a feeling, which may happen in a split-second, and pick it apart to reveal and address the untruths that are lying underneath like "I'm a failure," or "I'll never change."

I apologize for the length of this post, but I wanted to share with you all a little of what I learned, just in case you decide to not read the book. I hope this helps all of you, even if it's just in a little way.