When I was 38, I was diagnosed with ADD (attention deficit disorder), and that finally answered why I had struggled all my life to get organized. But while the diagnosis explained the source of my chronic disorganization, and my doctor prescribed some ADD medication, none of that helped much when faced with the concrete, day to day struggle to "get my act together". I was more functional, but still couldn't manage to get my apartment organized (and not from lack of trying, believe me!) I purchased a book online about chronic disorganization, and within a week of having received it, I had lost it in my ever growing piles of clutter... How ironic is that?
Clearly, none of my attempts to get organized were succeeding. I felt discouraged and ashamed.
Then when I turned 40, I decided to take practical steps to improve my life. Someone asked me what my ultimate dreams were, and "having a nice, peaceful, clutter-free apartment" was in the top 5. To a "normal person", that would be almost laughable, and they would think I wasn't very ambitious, right? I thought about it and it occurred to me that this was not such an impossible dream. But I knew I needed help. I thought: "If you want to buy a house, you can hire a real estate agent. If you want to get a beautiful garden, you can hire a gardener. So if you want your home to be organized and clutter-free, surely there must be someone you can hire to help!" I searched online for a professional organizer, but found that most of their services were oriented towards people with big houses and big budgets to get their place completely reorganized and redecorated. That's not what I needed. I needed someone who would work with me not only at getting my place organized but also teaching me how to do it. And I needed someone who would be patient, reassuring, and most of all, non-judgmental. When your place is a mess, it's incredibly intimidating to let a complete stranger in, entering your home but also your privacy, and allow them to go through your stuff. I'm sure it's that way for most people, but it's ten times worse for chronically disorganized people like me. Yet I was determined. This was my gift to myself, celebrating my 40th birthday by improving my life in a lasting and meaningful way. I found a wonderful professional organizer with a lot of experience helping chronically disorganized people, Alanna Murphy, who came to my home and introduced me to her colleague Tamara Liebmann, organizer and all-around angel. Alanna and Tamara did a session with me, and already after one afternoon, my life had been transformed. They explained why I had some of my weird habits (such as piling things on top of a dresser when I could simply put them in the half-empty drawers. Turns out people with ADD need to see things to remember them, so we leave stuff lying around. Of course after a while there's too much stuff so we can't find anything, and we develop "clutter blindness" -not seeing the clutter until there's too much piled up and it falls on the floor.) I had felt almost painfully vulnerable before Alanna and Tamara arrived, but they were so warm it didn't take long to be comfortable with them even as we were going through my stuff. And although I was exhausted after our session, I was also greatly encouraged by the progress we'd made. I hired Tamara to continue the work with me since she had mentioned she wanted to learn more about ADD and chronic disorganization, and I was happy to share about that with her as we worked. She has been helping me periodically ever since (I'm better at keeping my place tidy now but once in a while, usually during hectic and stressful periods, things start piling up again and I know I have to nip that in the bud otherwise the "clutter monster" starts to grow and spread again...)
For me, Tamara Liebmann is a godsend, and if you are struggling to get organized, she will be for you as well. If you find that clutter and disorganization have become such a source of stress in your life that you're dangerously close to giving up on the dream of having a nice, peaceful, clutter-free home, don't despair! Tamara can help you. Not only is she a brilliant, efficient, resourceful organizer with the most impressive toolbox I've ever seen (the woman can fix just about anything, and she takes so much pleasure coming up with ingenious ideas and tackling the problem hands-on, you'll actually have fun through the process!), but she is also a warm, caring, encouraging person who will fill your heart with positivity. She doesn't judge, she is always respectful, and she takes her clients -and their home- as they are. And then she makes them better!
Thank you Tamara for your precious help. I am truly and eternally grateful!
M. Gieling
