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My sister's 'just talk to them' advice about my mom's hoarding backfired hard
Last month I finally took my sister's advice and sat down with my mom about her garage. She kept pushing me to just bring it up gently, no big deal. So I did, said something like 'hey mom, worried about the pile near the water heater.' She didn't get mad or cry like I expected. She just nodded and then next weekend she bought another 40 bins from the dollar store and organized them by color. Now the garage is actually worse because there's a wall of bright yellow plastic blocking the door, and my sister says I did it wrong. Has anyone else had a sibling give advice that made the awkward talk ten times more awkward?
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jamiegreen5d ago
40 bins is wild, but I don't think your sister is totally wrong here. A pile by the water heater is a fire risk, so saying something was the right move. The mistake was more in how it landed, like "worried about the pile" can sound like a chore request to a hoarder, and she turned it into a project. My aunt did the same thing when my cousin mentioned her hallway, came home to shopping bags stacked in neat rows. Your sister's advice wasn't bad, it just skipped the part where you don't lead with the mess itself.
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