I need to see my stuff but it is too messy
I have ADHD and find it much easier for me to see what is in my cabinets (clothes, pantry, toiletries) as opposed to putting them in drawers. I fold and stack my t-shirts, jeans, sweaters, etc., but it is unsightly and disorganized looking.
I also have a hard time keeping up with housekeeping tasks, no matter how hard I try.
Any suggestions??
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NBM, so have I.
It's intensely frustrating, especially after many, many years for me. Leaving items out where I may see them culminates in piles of papers and clothes and etc. from which little can be found. Items that are beneath or behind other items simply aren't visible to me.
My intentions are a place for everything and everything in it's place, but seemingly endless surveillance of this stuff seldom sparks to putting things away. When it does, then I make a large effort to accomplish all that I can, and there isn't much stuff in my space.
Thanks for your post.
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I’m the exact same way! I was diagnosed with ADD when I was 15, I am 47 now, so I have a lot of experience. Ha! I find it a lot easier to hang up all of my clothes. I do put shorts in drawers, but the rest of it goes on a hanger! It helped me so much.
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What @TMC said - a place for everything is definitely step one. If you have something in your hand and you know exactly where it's supposed to go, you won't even have to think about it.
Have you considered arranging your items by color too? Whether you fold or hang clothes, even product bottles etc., maybe organizing by color will help your brain just match the color instead of trying to work out what specific items go where. Hope that makes sense and helps!
P.S. I don't necessarily mean rainbow, unless you have lots of color! For example, I literally only wear black, white and shades of grey. So my closet is organized by gradients white to black (left to right). And sub sections of Pants, shirts, dresses.
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While only SLIGHTLY less messy, I have found that clear containers that contain my things with labels can help corral things. Even though you can still see the piles of things, it can "feel" more organized just because it's in a container. I also LIVE for shelf risers and lazy susans and other cabinet organizers that make sure all of my elements are visible at once. If nothing is hiding behind another bottle I won't forget about it! I also declutter really often — the fewer things I have the less I have to keep track of!
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I have a similar issue (if I can't see it, I forget about it) and that's why I really like to use the KonMari method for folding clothes (I believe it's called the KonMari Fold.) You can see every single folded clothing item you own when it's organized correctly, so even though my clothes are behind a drawer, when I open up my t-shirt drawer, I can see every t-shirt I have. Plus it keeps me accountable to continue to fold my clothes after doing a load of laundry, rather than stuffing the t-shirts in my drawer and hoping for the best lol.
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There's an organizing/clutter content creator who has ADHD and talks about different kinds of organizing personalities, including one that needs everything visible. Here's a good starter video:
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I'm a professional organizer and I recently worked with a client whose 21-year-old son has ADHD. We decided to go with open-front, stackable bins for his clothes vs. a dresser. He loves it and has been able to easily maintain the system. We labeled the front of the bins with simple instructions like "black t's, work shirts, etc." This is not what we used- but just to give you an idea, here's a photo.
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Love all of the above advice! Have you read the book How to Keep House While Drowning? It's a quick read (and a quick audiobook), and I think it offers lots of good advice for how to think about/approach household tasks. The main point is that cleaning/household tasks are "morally neutral" — ie, they do not make you a good or bad person. Reframing my thinking really helped me!
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Hi nbm!
I am diagnosed ADHD, also. I understand the struggle with not knowing where anything is and forgetting about the existence of objects! What has helped me is noticing where my "drop zones" are --where you leave things naturally day-to-day. Leave dirty laundry on the bathroom floor? Get a little laundry basket! Where do you leave your shoes in the house? Give em a little basket or shelf. On surfaces with many things, it helps to get trays for things to sit on. It helps the objects feel like they are intentional and belong there, but also gives them a clear home!
For doing housekeeping tasks, that's still a learning process, but something that has really helped has been having friends over regularly, but that is also because I'm an extrovert and I need the human connection.(Game night once a week, just to come by, etc.). Giving myself deadlines/ time constrains helps a lot, too. When do you have the most energy in the day? Set aside 5, 10, or 15 minutes (whatever is least overwhelming) to complete a task. Usually, I find, that after my 15 minutes timer goes off I have gained the motivation I lacked at the beginning. It helps me finish a task.
I know everyone always says this, but honestly, write a to-do list. I get stuck in a spiral of all the things I need to do in my head. Write them out. Don't worry about doing them in order or having to do everything. Just writing it out can help your mind become less overwhelmed. Pick the thing that you most WANT to do first, ideally that doesn't take much time to complete. Whenever I complete a task, I give myself a reward like a 2-3 minute break (any longer I'll lose my momentum), it also allows me to reflect on my progress!
I hope this is helpful! I'm sorry it's long.
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For office supplies/little notes and things, I love this organizer!
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Thank you for creating this lovely site on home style & design! My first visit has offered me great ideas and solutions (!). It's great to share the passion we feel for the challenges & pleasures of our living environments 💕.
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So glad you are enjoying it here, @Joaniegret! I love seeing everyone's shared passion for design and home living here too 💛
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My husband has ADHD, and over the years we have created organizational systems for him that work pretty well.
The first tip (that others have mentioned as well) is labeling. Keeping clothing organized was a big problem for him all of his life until I started labeling drawers and adding dividers. I also fold his t-shirts and jeans the Marie Kondo way, stacked on end so that everything can be viewed at a glance- no more rifling through piles and tipping them over/unfolding them.
Granted, he has help because I do all of the laundry and organizing (because I really like to), but having things labeled that he can see has helped him keep things neater and makes it easier for him to find what he wants.
The second tip is to ruthlessly cull anything that's not being used. It's so much easier to find (and put away) the stuff you need when it's not cluttered up with things you don't want or use.
The third tip I have is to make sure everything has a place. It's still easy to misplace things if they don't have a home, but it is helpful when they do.
Lastly, don't worry about having things organized "correctly"- put things where you use them, in whatever way works for you. Having utensils in a cabinet versus a drawer sounds great if it works for you. Don't worry about what anyone else thinks, or how anyone else organizes. If it works, your life will be easier. That's all!
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Just a note: I have a large chrome shelving pantry in the dining area of my kitchen. Everything has been visible for years. I finally bought a pretty shower curtain with a calming beach view to visually reduce the cluttered look.
The kitchen tools I use the most hang on the wall behind my stove. While this is not for everyone, it worked well for me when I wasn't as mobile.
Having an organization system helps my husband help me keep things in an orderly fashion.
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I found a junk drawer organizer on Amazon that works like a fishing tackle box. There are three levels that open up when the drawer is open and fold up so the drawer can close. This was the best tool to keep the drawer organized and still allow me to see everything therein.
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I feel like everyone has covered the organizing stuff here pretty well, so I'm going to give a tip I've used myself that's saved me some time lately — invest in stuff that makes life easier for you.
I hate vacuuming because I have to take out the long, messy cord and keep plugging and unplugging it – so I bought a lightweight cordless vacuum. If you can afford it, just buy a Roomba or a generic robot vacuum. I don't like scrubbing to get messes out, so I got a jar of Pink Stuff and Magic Erasers and now I don't have to do that.
I was keeping myself from buying stuff because of the cost, but the fact that I actually end up doing household tasks now is worth the investment.
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I also have adhd and am getting better about keeping things tidy. I embraced the fact that it all had to be out and I kept it visually pleasing but didn’t love the cluttered look. I have decluttered down to the basics and can now have a home for most things near where I use them and easily put away. I had to get all the stuff I thought I needed out to make room for what I really do need. I still have decorative baskets to serve as a catch all in all rooms.
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My advice for clothing is to NOT stack things. It looks good for a day or two, but soon the stacks get messy and fall over, and you always have to redo them.
Instead of stacking, use shoeboxes on shelves or inside drawers. You can fold T-shirts, jeans, etc., to stand up on edge inside the shoeboxes. This is a Marie Kondo trick — you can see all the items at a glance, but they're contained so you can remove any one without a stack falling over.
Plus, shoeboxes are free! You can even go to a shoe store and ask for empties; they usually throw them away so are glad to give you extras and will choose pretty ones for you if you ask. It's a win for everyone.
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My super-simple organizer for financial papers: a large basket. After I've opened the statement, checked the receipt, paid the bill, whatever, I "file" the paper in the basket. I do not sort. I do not label a folder. I do not put a lid on the basket. I do not open a drawer. All financial-related papers get dropped into the basket. The basket lives on the floor near where I do mail and paperwork, so it's easy to drop stuff in.
At tax time, all the papers I need are in the basket. I spend a rather pleasant hour or two sorting them into piles by category. After taxes are done, I file the back-up papers in an accordion file with the tax returns. Then I sort through the accordion file from 7 years ago and pull out anything I need to save permanently, but throw out everything else (most of it can go; it isn't needed after 7 years).
As someone who used to tear up the house at tax time looking for all the needed papers (and often not finding them), I can vouch that this method is much easier! You don't need to sort papers by month or by category. Just put them all in 1 place, and make it easy to put them there. When you need them, you'll know exactly where they are.
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I have a red "go bag" that houses everything I need to save permanently: deeds, titles, insurance, marriages, births, deaths, wills, etc., and government papers. House improvements and large ticket items have a permanent file. You could add an envelope for those save-forever items. My filed tax papers have a designated space. I need to go through the seven years or older tax papers and shred them.
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I also have ADHD that has gotten so much worse with menopause! One thing I can't live without is baskets, I use them for everything everywhere. Usually wicker or woven baskets are my favorite but I also use plastic or foldable for areas that need stacking or multiple!
Also shoe organizers than hang on doors. I use them for so many things, I nail them to walls and use them in closets, entryway, bathroom, bedroom and pantry! I like the clear ones but I also use cloth ones that match my decor in areas that I want to look nice. They really are a lifesaver, I label some of them , they are great for bathroom items, makeup and hair stuff, small things like hardware, office supplies, toys, spices, and many other things! I also cut them to fit any area, you don't have to use a whole 12 shoe organizer, you can cut them in half, or one horizontal strip that easily fits anywhere, I will usually have one clear and one fabric that I cut up in different smaller sizes to use around the house. I use them for remotes and chargers, you can make charging stations with them too! They are a great help in my fight with my brain!
I know people suggest lists and certain folding techniques but they don't understand, having adhd, I will make many lists but never look at them, and I can use certain folding methods but once I am going through my day I mess things up easily and don't put things back, it's as frustrating for us adhd people as it is for normals!
Just remember, things like cleaning and organizing are morally neutral things, it doesn't define your character. People are very hard on us and think we are being careless, lazy or disrespectful but they don't understand we care more than they know and have a lot of shame from being told we are not doing everything right our whole lives!
Be easy on yourself and just recite " don't put it down, put it away" while doing things around the house! It is a game changer!
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Hello and happy new year!
I am new to this site. I was diagnosed with ADHD last year and I am 57. I do have to keep everything out, and I follow Clutterbug's vidoes. I am a butterfly. Where I need help is with academic papers! I am a professor and I start teaching in two weeks. My ADHD does make it really hard to get to work and to organize all of my papers for classes in my dining room/home office. It is supposed to be the dining room, but I need to learn how to put things away! I need recommendations on how to organize my papers and to do lists for each class in a way that I can maintain and still see. Thank you!
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Hi Hillary, welcome! Thanks for introducing yourself. You might find this article on organizing and decluttering papers helpful 😊 On the note of to-do lists, one tip I saw recently that I thought was so clever was getting a dry erase board to-do list rather than having it all on paper (which tends to add to the mess). Once you're done with your list, you can simply clean your board off and start over the next day. I want to try this myself with my giant wall calendar that I need to laminate. Let me know if you end up trying it!
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Thank you, Daniela! I will check out that article.
I do have a large white board for family to do's. I love the idea of having my own white board. I just don't know where to put it. It is a great idea.
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