can I just say it's so nice sleeping in my bed with only bed stuff on it and not having to walk on things or over them to get to my bed. and waking up to a clear floor (that I vacuumed) or if it has stuff on it it's not rubbish and seeing my wardrobe door open easily (even though it's the one area I need to tackle next).
Hiii! I posted a couple of weeks ago about my dad finally letting me have my support worker help me with my room, and I wanted to do an update because so many of the comments stuck with me.
It’s now been about 2 weeks and we’ve done another 3 x 3-hour sessions, with a big 5 hour session planned today. Honestly, my room probably looks even worse than before right now. Complete chaos. But for the first time in years, it actually feels possible.
One thing I’ve realised is that this was never going to be an overnight fix. Undoing years of habits, overwhelm, emotional attachment, and avoidance takes time.
I also realised something really important: before this, I was trying. I’d try to clean my room on my own and feel like I was getting nowhere, which honestly made me feel worse and made me want to give up. But having support has completely changed things.
Even though my room looks chaotic right now, I actually know I’m making progress in a way I never felt before. Somehow, one hour with my support worker feels like what would’ve taken me 6 hours alone. Not because I was lazy or not trying hard enough, but because having someone there helps me stay focused, make decisions, and not get overwhelmed or emotionally stuck.
Another thing that’s weirdly been a game changer (even though I HATE the process) is taking things out and sorting them instead of trying to clean around everything.
I used to avoid making bigger messes because it felt counterproductive, but having things grouped together has actually made it so much easier to stay focused. When everything is piled randomly, I get distracted constantly and don’t know where to start. But when similar things are together, there’s less visual chaos and fewer random things pulling my attention away.
It definitely makes the room look worse before it looks better, but weirdly it’s the first thing that’s actually made me feel like I’m getting somewhere.
And there have been wins already:
• I can sleep in my bed again
• I can actually walk to my bed again
• We’ve gotten through an insane amount in a short time
• My younger brother said yes when I asked if he wanted help with his room
• My mum asked me to help sort through plastics in the kitchen
• One of my friends even asked if I could help with her room
I still have a really long way to go, and right now it definitely falls into the “it gets worse before it gets better” category. But for the first time in a very long time, I genuinely believe it can get better.
If you’re in the stage where it feels impossible or like you’re trying and getting nowhere, please don’t give up. Sometimes progress looks messy, and sometimes the thing that changes everything is getting the right kind of support 🫶🏻
Hey everyone, I’m struggling to find a healthy balance and would love some perspective.
I graduated uni in December and originally planned to spend a week or two doing a deep declutter of my room before moving on with the rest of my life. I really want to start planning travel, building routines, and just generally moving forward, but I keep feeling like I can’t properly do any of that until my room is completely sorted.
The issue is, I have a job but only get shifts when they come up, so I end up spending most of my days trying to work on my room. At the same time, I need to be developing my folio for creative roles and also start doing driving lessons, but I feel stuck in this loop of “I need to finish my room first” - and then not making real progress on anything else.
I also have autism and ADHD, which makes it harder to find a middle ground. I either hyperfocus on trying to get everything “perfect” or get overwhelmed and avoid it altogether.
It’s starting to feel really overwhelming, like I’m not actually moving forward in any area, just spinning my wheels. I’m also spending way too much time stressing or planning what I should be doing instead of actually doing it.
How do you guys balance getting your space sorted while still living your life and moving forward?