More Stuff

I decided I had too much stuff buzzing around in my head for just one post.  Plus the added bonus of some awesome comments that provided more links to get rid of Stuff.

One of the things I touched on is the difference integration made.  Before I went to counseling, I felt confused when I felt guilty throwing anything away.  Why I felt guilty didn't make sense until after I was in counseling for about a year.  By then, I knew I functioned as a multiple personality.  I felt guilty that I was throwing away something that belonged to someone else, which in a sense, I was.  I would put something in a bag to be given away and a few days later I would find it right back where I had taken it from.  This really confused me why someone in my family kept putting things back.  Counseling helped me understand that someone was me.  Well, one of the other mes.  You start to see how being a multiple can be extremely frustrating.  With integration came the blessed release of I put it in a bag to be given away and it stays there.  The stuff is mine to get rid of, as I see fit.  Now occasionally I change my mind, but I know I change my mind and I know I decided not to give the item away.  Integration made a wonderful difference, it helped me to understand what belongs to me.  If I own it, then I can give it away or throw it away.  What I own and what belongs to me are boundary issues that I could not address until after I integrated. 

One of the comments came from Kiki.  She passed on a great website:
http://zenhabits.net/the-beginners-guide-to-zen-habits-a-guided-tour/
This is the start to a website with a lot of information.

The specific area I was looking for was located at:
http://zenhabits.net/zen-mind-how-to-declutter/

I was delighted when I saw that one of the links at the bottom of the page linked to Flylady:
http://www.flylady.net/pages/FLYingLessons_Declutter.asp
I am not the only one with challenges with clutter.

Sometimes I have to remind myself that being an integrated multiple does not make me any less prone to making very 'normal' mistakes and facing 'normal' challenges.  Now that I am integrated, I use different solutions other than switching to a different personality.  I was delighted today when I found something I have looked for almost a year.  You never gonna find something looking in the wrong room.  I also like the fact that I am starting to learn where I put stuff.  Clutter is a 'normal' problem that many people wrestle with what to do with that program from a special event, the gift from a grandmother or a flower dried but still hanging on to a memory.  My camera is going to come in very hand with some items.  Snap the picture and let the object go to a new home of usefulness.