I really hate losing things but it's even worse when I search for something then I find it right in front of me (where I 1st started looking)!!!!

Boy, I can certainly relate to this! What bugs me even more is when I am looking for something, go into a different room and 10 minutes later find myself doing some other chore that I noticed had to be taken care of when I walked in there, then I remember why I was in the room in the first place. I am sure this would make a hilarious home video. Meds have helped with this though, it's the main reason I also take the ADD meds on weekends.

Sometimes I find what I'm looking for after the 4th or 5th round of looking for it in the same place. By then I am totally exhausted though. Some things are still lost but also safe and secure because I placed them in a 'safe place' where I could be sure that they would never be accidently thrown away. One day I hope to get organized and I'm going to have a web page dedicated to filing where exactly those 'safe places' are and what they contain. :)

I am lost most of the time. And what gets me is I can never find something I need but let hubby or boogie loose something and I find it right off the bat. This drives me nuts. I too will put things in a safe place because boogie and hubby have stickey fingers and what do ya know I can't find it. At least so far I haven't lost my car titles. I know right where they are at. (I hope :D)
LOL and speaking of going from room to room. I will start searching for something only to remember that I had forgotten to finish another task and then only to forget why I was there to begin with. My computer desk is so cluttered I'm suprise I can still see the key board and screen. And the screen edges are covered with sticky notes. One thing I have found that works pretty good for me as far as remembering to pay bills on time at least or a to do list for the day is to carry a small 4.5 x 3.25 note book in my purse, another one by my computer in bright colors (helps me find it easier) yea right..lol, I can jot things down and then the only thing I have to look for is the page I wrote it on. I also date it, it helps to find it faster.

Ok..I'm off to see if I can find my way out of the woods yet..cuz I'm still losted..lol :D

I also use the 3x5 and 4x7 cards, they are awesome and not too much for my eyes to pull in in about 2 seconds. My pda also has an alarm that goes off on my pc and the handheld. I like to use it for work, though home is justifiable also. I think thats where my OCD started to really come out was I was always losing things. I am notorious for putting something in such a safe place I cant find it. So, I have taken to systems. I have two or three secret places for things, One if for things at home that are family things, Then I have my own accounts, my mother and sisters houses each have one place I keep things. Thats it. No more hiding where ever I find a crack in the wall. God only knows how many workmen have opened up walls in someof my old apartments to find my diaries, money, love notes etc. I also became frustrated at work because we have all these terrific instruments, the right tools for certain jobs, but I had people placing them where ever. I spoke with the whole office about how i felt, stating that, "Having something does us no good if we cant find it. We might as well not have it at all." I was astonished to see how many times I had replaced items I had lost , only to find the original later. Wasted money, which is a mortal sin to me. Or, because of the mess, something I enjoyed or spent money on, got ruined while being lost. My OCD went nuts and I am trying very hard to deal with others lack of organization. If I could just find my shcimatics....

This is too funny. Yes, I do these things too. I don't know if I've every REALLY lost anything...well, other than driving off after leaving something (including my wallet once) on the roof of my car. Usually I will find it sooner or later.....or the minute the locksmith leaves with my $100. My computer desk is a mess too...and my room!.....you can't even walk in it. I tend to force myself to clean only those things I must share...things I consider "mine" get left till the last.

Okay here's what drives me nuts...losing the same few things over and over....such as computer disk....with my term paper on it...meaning to make copies of it and then don't...OR my keys...meaning to make copies of THEM and don't....

I don't lose the truly important things any more.... probably because I've developed some coping mechanisms. For example, I always keep my keys in my left pocket, and my wallet in my right. If I throw the pants into the laundry, everything goes on my nightstand. The computer has helped me keep from losing papers, since now I use mostly electronic versions of things. What I do lose, however, are important files and records like tax receipts, W-2 info, etc.... everything just seems to end up in a big pile on my desk somehow, and then when tax time rolls around, I have to dig through... and I am sure this has cost me money over time, since I've probably forgotten some deductible expenses, and I *know* I have forgotten expenses on my T&E/Expense reports for work.

Okay, today I was supposed to go to my daughter's school to pass out books from their book orders. I had everything together and ready to go...got distracted and left without the orders! Didn't realize it until I got ALL the way to her school so had to drive ALL the way back home to get them...meanwhile, time is running out. Everything got done, but not without much frustration.

Tomorrow is an important day and there are some things I need to bring to work. I have actually hidden my car keys in the stuff I need to bring so that I cannot leave without it. This is rediculous.

and you also wrote about it (i.e. a reminder note - see above). I find that if I put my keys on my desk, and write myself a note (next to my keys) that it helps.

The other thing I do if I have to take things with me somewhere is put a tote bag or briefcase with everything in it right next to the door, so I can't go past it without tripping on it. Then if it's like a bunch of things I have to bring, I can add them one by one as I remember them to the bag, and then when it's time to go just walk out the door and grab the tote on the way by.

Originally posted by unreal33
What I do lose, however, are important files and records like tax receipts, W-2 info, etc.... everything just seems to end up in a big pile on my desk somehow, and then when tax time rolls around, I have to dig through... and I am sure this has cost me money over time, since I've probably forgotten some deductible expenses, and I *know* I have forgotten expenses on my T&E/Expense reports for work.

I use a scanner to scan important documents in as a .JPG, then I make sure to give it a descriptive filename.

Especially important with those receipts that are printed on thermal paper like Home Depot uses--they go fuzzy after a few months, more like days if you leave them in the car..

In my senior year of high school I wrote under my name..

I lost it ! .....Years later I realized it looked like I meant my virginity!!! ...lol...

It was meant as, I was always saying.." I lost it"....

:rolleyes:

What makes me litterally insane is when I can't find something and I remember when I had it I put it in a certain spot so I wouldn't forget where it was.
I will never win this battle
I'm going to give up all worldly possessions so I don't have to deal with this any longer. This is probably the last you'll hear from me.
I'm gonna build a house out of the dead wood in my deck and dig a hole in the ground. I start a diet of various bugs, squirel, and cherries (we have a tree). good bye cruel world.

I have often put something in an unusual spot , thinking that it will jog my memory if it's out of the ordinary, but that hasn't helped because I forget where the spot is and because it's unusual it's the last place I would think to look for it. LOL

Ok..Ok...Ok....I've got a good one !!!!

I do make a habit of putting certain things in the same place every time so I KNOW where they are (like shoes,keys,pens) But when others(my kids) take those things and don't put them back where they found them...................

It's grounds for murder....lol.... :D


I truely feel some kind of torcher if I have to look for something and it's not in plain sight to be found....I've lost my temper, big time and I've scream (at no one really, just out of frustration) till my throat was sore and I'm in tears.... I dont do that any more, I know now I can ask for help and my husband and my kids are always very wiling to help me....

Me too Paula...not being able to find something when I KNOW I put it in a certain place, drives me insane. By the way, I received a brand new cell phone for graduation and I'm terrified of losing it:)

I had a cellphone at my last job. I was never worried about losing it (although I did misplace it a few times).

I was more worried about controlling the urge to fling it out the window of my car when it rang at a bad time. (Generally, if I was in the car and driving, that's a bad time...)

Hi, newbie janine here,
I wanted to share one of my favorite lost things stories;
I used to live in a remote area, we had no electricity, so depended on gas lanterns and such. One night I got out of bed to go to the outhouse, I needed a flashlight for this purpose, and I wandered all around the house looking for this flashlight, it seemed like a long time, I was getting frustrated and swearing to myself.
I finnally noticed I was holding it the whole time using it's beam of light in hopes to find it. I must have picked it up where It was supposed to be, near the bed. Well thats how spaced I can be.
I wanted to also add that I kind of like my ADD because while I am looking for lost things I am recovering other lost things and putting stuff away that may have been future lost things. So I think it has it's rewards. Also I enjoy being entertained and ADD provides constant ever-changing entertainment. Janine

Thats like looking for my glasses

I will leave it to your imagination as to where I find them




Originally posted by janine
Hi, newbie janine here,
I wanted to share one of my favorite lost things stories;
I used to live in a remote area, we had no electricity, so depended on gas lanterns and such. One night I got out of bed to go to the outhouse, I needed a flashlight for this purpose, and I wandered all around the house looking for this flashlight, it seemed like a long time, I was getting frustrated and swearing to myself.
I finnally noticed I was holding it the whole time using it's beam of light in hopes to find it. I must have picked it up where It was supposed to be, near the bed. Well thats how spaced I can be.
I wanted to also add that I kind of like my ADD because while I am looking for lost things I am recovering other lost things and putting stuff away that may have been future lost things. So I think it has it's rewards. Also I enjoy being entertained and ADD provides constant ever-changing entertainment. Janine

cobweb I've been there also....lol...

Paula

I've adapted to the point where things like my wallet, keys, wedding ring, glasses, cell phone etc. are only removed from my body at the end of the day and I always place them in the exact same location. This helps big time.

When I first got married I was always taking my ring off to wash my hands. I would end up forgetting to put it back on every time. That's when I decided that I can't take it off anymore except when at home and it goes in the exact same spot every night.

Originally posted by InattentiveType
I've adapted to the point where things like my wallet, keys, wedding ring, glasses, cell phone etc. are only removed from my body at the end of the day and I always place them in the exact same location. This helps big time.


I've managed to avoid losing my keys and wallet for almost 8 years by doing the same thing.

I wish I could say the same for tools. I can't count how many screwdrivers I've misplaced over the years. Hell, sometimes I misplace them when I'm working on something. (I absent-mindedly set it down somewhere).

tools are the biggie around here! I bought me a huge tool box that rolls around, it's not solving the problem. My 7 year old is a tool kid he looses his and mine. I keep a screw driver by the washer, the pool pump, on the outside window ledge. And the other dozen are currently misplaced. I was thrilled when I found my favorite swiss multi tool in my violin case pocket after 6 months of grieving over it. That is why I have three now. 40 years later I accept I need a lot of tools.

Good news flash!
I haven't lost my wallet in a llloooong time now! (maybe 10 years) And I only got one of them!

janine

A female who knows the value of tools

I love it

Originally posted by Garry Lawton
Thats like looking for my glasses

I will leave it to your imagination as to where I find them

Oh, I've gone through that many times myself... of course, I also do the opposite, trying to take my glasses off when I'm not even wearing them...

I recently left my day planner book/calendar at an Adult ADD meeting - took me the better part of a week to figure out where I left it - and then call them to see if they had it! Thank goodness they did! I was SO relieved to have it back.

I'm still missing my favorite black jacket I wear to work - it's casual/dressy. I'm really bummed - no idea where it went, or where I left it. :(