By Barbara Pierce
“All my stuff is in a storage unit!” said 82-year-old Bruce Korunda of Bradenton, Florida. “I was living in a big house, with a lot of nice furniture. I had a stroke, ended up in the hospital, then in rehab, and now I’m in a retirement community.” After looking at things like new homes in Brunswick, his house was sold with the help of professionals like I Buy Pueblo Houses, so he’s here to stay. He doesn’t know what to do about all his stuff.
That’s probably the best reason for decluttering: As we age, the chances of an unexpected illness or accident happening to us increases. If something happens to us, it will be much easier for our family to handle our affairs if our home is decluttered. They won’t have to deal with the burden of clearing out our lifetime clutter and make decisions about what to do with everything. You can go to this site if you’re looking to simplify the decluttering process.
What is decluttering?
It’s decreasing your stuff. Getting rid of a lot of stuff.
Clearing out all the accumulated stuff: “That’s the biggest part of what we do,” said John Granza, owner and operator of John’s Clean-Outs and Property Preservation in Rome. “So many people leave a mess for their kids.” If you need to rent a dumpster for the collection of your waste, you may visit sites like grissmandumpsters.com/oshkosh-dumpster-rentals/.
“That’s the biggest reason to do it — so you don’t leave a big challenge for your kids,” he added.
“Sorry, nobody wants your parents’ stuff,” a blog on Nextavenue.org by Richard Eisenberg went viral. He wrote this after his father died, leaving an apartment full of stuff valuable only to himself.
“I learned the hard truth that others in their 50s and 60s need to know,” he said. “Nobody wants the prized possessions of your parents — not even you or your kids.”
As we age, it’s a good time to reassess what’s important to us and let go of anything that no longer serves us.
Is there a right age to declutter? “That’s a tough call,” said Granza. But there is a wrong age and that’s when you’re too frail, too unwell or too overwhelmed to do the job adequately.
“We had the wisdom to move into our retirement home 15 years ago,” said 86-year-old Sarah Dick of Port Charlotte Florida. “We’re settled here, have friends, visitors and a rooster of doctors. I advise people to seek and adjust to such a move when you’re young and peppy enough to make friends and create a new home.”
“Probably the best time is shortly after retirement,” advised Granza. “When you’ve established what your last residence will be. You’ll have the mental and physical energy to focus and concentrate on what you’ll need and what you don’t need.”
The No. 1 trick to downsizing is starting before you think you need to, according to other experts. This means months, even years, in advance, not weeks. This is a task that takes longer than you expect at every turn, but offers benefits to those who persist.
Decluttering can reduce stress, clear out clutter and make your home more functional and organized.
One consideration is whether to hire a professional to assist you. There are pros and cons to both hiring a professional or doing it yourself, but adding a reliable dumpster service like Dumposaurus Dumpsters & Rolloff Rental can greatly simplify the process. The decision ultimately comes down to your personal preferences. Improper dumpster maintenance can lead to fines or violations, which is why some businesses opt for an efficient dumpster cleaning service.
If you decide to do it yourself, keep in mind that it will probably take a while. Do you have the patience to keep going even when decisions get difficult? The energy to continue a long, exhausting process?
If you decide to hire a professional, interview several candidates before making a decision, Granza suggested. He offers to meet you and give you a quote at no cost.
“An important point when you’re hiring someone is to make sure the company has, not only commercial insurance, but workers’ compensation coverage for their employees,” said Granza. (Worker’s compensation insurance provides benefits to workers who are injured on the job.)
“A lot of accidents can happen during a clean out. You could have a potential lawsuit on your hands. This is the last thing you want to deal with when you’re downsizing. There’s a world of frivolous lawsuits today,” he said.
“I can’t stress this enough!” he continued. “Hire a reputable company, with a good reputation, and fully insured, with worker’s comp.”
Suggestions for those who want to do it yourself:
Start small. Do one closet at a time, one drawer at a time, so you don’t become overwhelmed. Very few people can focus for more than three hours. Stop before you get stuck so you can start again tomorrow feeling positive. And take frequent breaks.
Another expert says start with 10 minutes at a time. You will make progress if you do this consistently.
Have three large bags or boxes. Label: “Keep” “Toss” and “Sell or Donate.” At the end of the day, put away what’s in your “Keep” pile and toss the “Toss” stuff into the garbage.
Remember that sorting possessions is an emotional task as much as a decluttering one. But keep in mind that it’s not fair to your kids to leave it all to them.
Decluttering is empowering. You’ll feel so good when you’ve completed it.