I dream of having to redo a house I’m about to move into. It’s old, the walls are mildewed, and the furniture is old, covered in sheets. I am usually walking through, kind of afraid, telling whoever I am with about all the work that needs to be done. Oftentimes the house has secret rooms and/or bizarre staircases that wind all over the place and lead to nowhere. Please help! –Crissy, 35, Kingsport, TN

Lauri: You are probably trying to move on from something but aren’t being terribly successful at it. The house is old because this is an old issue in your life. The mildew points to something in your life that has been neglected. Did you ever feel neglected in your life? The items covered in sheets represent memories you’ve covered up because you don’t want to deal with them. The secret rooms may be about things you don’t want others to know. The staircases that lead nowhere show you have not been able to progress past these issues.

Crissy replies: I know that I have these issues that need to be dealt with. I actually was neglected a good bit as a child. I do harbor resentment toward my mother. The reason I can’t deal with it is because she is mentally ill and can’t be held responsible for the way things happened in my childhood. I have been in therapy before, but sometimes these issues are just too overwhelming to confront. I guess it is almost emotional laziness on my part. You are amazing!