DEAR HARRIETTE: I’m obsessive about watching TV. I’ll binge-watch something.
I get up within the morning and activate the TV, and the subsequent factor you realize, half the day is gone, and I can’t account for the time.
I inform myself usually to get a number of chores performed earlier than I activate the TV, however that resolve doesn’t final very lengthy. As soon as the TV is on, my plans appear to dissipate.
I earn a living from home and handle to get my work performed, however solely the naked minimal. I’ve even missed a number of deadlines right here and there as a result of I couldn’t cease watching till a collection ended.
How can I break this behavior?
— TV Addict
DEAR TV ADDICT: You must determine what your priorities are.
Every evening, write out a listing of issues to do the subsequent day. Once you get up, execute your plan. Embody TV time on the record, however maintain it later within the day, after your obligations are accomplished.
Be strict with your self. Don’t activate the TV till the appointed hour — and solely when you’ve got accomplished all your duties upfront. Make TV a reward reasonably than a crutch.
One other vital suggestion: Don’t have a TV within the room the place you’re employed. Take into account {that a} secure zone. Don’t slip up and use your pc or cellphone as a streaming machine.
You must be trustworthy with your self, or you’ll not achieve success.
DEAR HARRIETTE: Ever since I used to be a toddler, my mother by no means preferred to throw something away, whether or not it was previous garments, expired meals, damaged home equipment and even random unsolicited mail.
After I was younger, I assumed it was simply her being quirky or frugal, however as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized it’s rather more than that. Now, at 28 years previous, I’m beginning to see how unhealthy the state of affairs actually is.
Her home is now not livable; each room is full of litter from flooring to ceiling, and it’s onerous to stroll by way of with out stepping over piles of stuff. She nonetheless insists on holding on to every thing, saying that it is perhaps helpful “someday.” The fact is that the majority of it’s rubbish.
It breaks my coronary heart to see her dwelling like this, particularly since she’s now alone in the home.
I’m her solely daughter, and I really feel an immense duty to assist her, however I don’t know the place to start out. Every time I deliver up the thought of cleansing or organizing, she will get defensive and even indignant. She doesn’t appear to acknowledge how harmful this has change into — not only for her bodily well being, but additionally for her psychological well-being.
How can I strategy this with out making her really feel judged or attacked?
— Mother the Hoarder
DEAR MOM THE HOARDER: It’s time to search skilled assist. An intervention from a therapist who focuses on hoarding dysfunction could also be the most effective subsequent step.
Discover a therapist in your space who will come to do a website go to and chat together with your mom.
The journey towards therapeutic is lengthy, and she or he could also be indignant at first, but when you may get her to speak to somebody exterior the household, it might present some assist.
