Hoarders: Who? Why? How? (Blog Video 3:39)

Hoarding can be described as a disorder characterized by excessive acquisitions and persistent difficulty in discarding possessions. These possessions can be alive or not. This disorder continues to be a serious problem for many people that you may or may not know are hoarders.

While you may think a hoarder would be somewhat embarrassed by terrible living conditions, that is not always the case. I discovered this when a friend I didn’t know was a hoarder actually invited me inside her one bedroom apartment in the building where we both lived. She displayed no shame at all about her accumulated chaos. 

The entry hall was so packed with stacks of “stuff” that only a narrow passageway remained. This path bordered by mounds of boxes, old clothes (some that she said her mother had saved from her childhood), unopened TV purchases and other clutter was overwhelming.  When two cats came running to greet us, I was in shock. Unsanitary and dangerous living conditions such as these, particularly for older adults, puts them at increased risk for fire, falling, disability, and other health risks.

A systematic study by two reviewers of the literature to determine the possible causes of hoarding suggests that individuals with hoarding behaviors may have a genetic susceptibility or abnormal neural activity in the brain. Traumatic life experiences may also predispose individuals to hoard.

In the following video, the unsanitary conditions at a California home caused the owner to become sick and hospitalized. “Inside Edition,” a television show, features Jim Moret suited up to go inside with the crew assigned to clean the space. A New York woman's hoarding problem extended beyond the walls of her house and into her front yard concerning her neighbors. Animal hoarding is also included in this video.

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback and e-book editions in America and other countries at online and offline booksellers. Frances Shani Parker's Website

Older Adult Hoarders: Health and Help (Research, Video 3:11)

Do you know any older adult hoarders? You might and not even know it. People with this disorder are far more common than you think. You can usually discern that their need to accumulate goes far beyond just having a messy place. While many hoarders are embarrassed about their extreme living conditions, some are not. I discovered this when a friend I didn’t know was a hoarder actually invited me inside her one bedroom apartment. She displayed no embarrassment about the accumulated chaos.

The entry hall was so packed with stacks of “stuff” that only a narrow passageway remained. This path bordered by mounds of boxes, old clothes (some from childhood), and boxes of TV purchases and other clutter was overwhelming.  When two cats came running up to greet us, I was in shock. Unsanitary and dangerous living conditions such as these, particularly for older adults, puts them at increased risk for fire, falling, disability, and other health risks.

According to the Mayo Clinic News Network, hoarding tends to run in families and may increase in old age after profound incidents such as a death. About 75 percent of the time, hoarding occurs in conjunction with other mental health issues such as depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, alcohol dependence, dementia or anxiety. Hoarders in denial may need a team of professionals and loved ones to provide an intervention before they can accept the reality of their condition. Time consuming treatment involves therapy leading to cleaning up the premises and gaining better control in maintenance.

HoardingCleanup.com is a database of qualified hoarding specialists including cleaning companies, therapists, and psychiatrists across the United States (and a few other countries) that are all familiar with the hoarding disorder. You can click on your state for hoarding resources.

This video shares insight regarding an older adult hoarder:

Frances Shani Parker, Author

Becoming Dead Right: A Hospice Volunteer in Urban Nursing Homes is available in paperback and e-book editions in America and other countries at online and offline booksellers.

Hospice and Nursing Homes Blog