If you missed Oprah on November 15th and 16th you missed an AMAZING show. The topic was hoarding. Peter Walsh from Clean Sweep helped a hoarder who lived in a house with 75 tons of garbage. It was incredible to see the transformation. However I feel the need to stress the amount of time, people and effort involved in making such a drastic change in the life of a hoarder. This project took 8 weeks, 100 people and 2500 man hours to get rid of all the clutter in the home. They sold most of the things that were found in the home and made roughly $13,000.00 on the items they sold.

While watching Oprah you are so mesmerized by the transformation. I can only imagine what viewers may be thinking. Especially if they are hoarders or know someone who is. All too often we want that quick fix. But it’s important to know that hoarding is a very serious matter and needs to be addressed appropriately. An organizer and a therapist and the support of the family involved is just a start to making a change in the right direction. Projects like the one on Oprah can take several months, even years and LOTS of support and therapy.

I am grateful that hoarding has been given the attention it deserves on a show like Oprah. So many people are unaware of the consequences and the severity of the problem. Not only is it a psycological issue but it causes serious health problems as well. The hoarder on Oprah had mold infesting every couch in her home. And she had serious rot in areas of her home where food was left for over 12 years. 

I encourage anyone who needs assistance with hoarding or knows someone who does to go to www.nsgcd.org or www.napo.net or to . I will be more than happy to put you in the right direction.

For those who missed the episode you can get a recap here.

If you haven’t heard, TSA is asking individuals to SimpliFLY their luggage when traveling. This is a new system to organize what you pack and layer your items in your luggage. They claim it will make your travels easier and quicker. Here’s what they say you should do to SimpliFLY your overall security experience:

1. Pack an organized carry-on bag using layers – a layer of clothes, then electronics, more clothes, and then other items like toiletries. This will help security officers see what’s in your bag.

2. Have your boarding pass and ID ready for inspection when you get to the checkpoint.

3. Remove your coat and shoes and place them in a bin.

4. Place any oversized electronics (laptops, full-size video game consoles, DVD players and video cameras that use cassettes) in a separate bin. iPods and other smaller electronics can stay in your carry-on bag.

5. Follow the 3-1-1 rule for liquids and put your one quart baggie separately in the bin.

6. When in doubt, leave it out.

Click here for more information on SimpliFLY. Hopefully this information comes in handy for your holiday travels this year.