Hoarding: What’s It All About?
Perhaps you’ve seen the TV shows focusing on hoarders, with stuff all over the place and days of trying to clean things out. Ever wondered if someone in your life is a hoarder?
To learn more and answer questions you might have, I reached out to Laura Ecker of Declutter Company. Laura is a professional organizer with a Level 2 Hoarding Specialist Certificate through the Institute for Challenging Disorganization. She is my go-to referral for prospective clients who appear to be living with the effects of chronic disorganization, when the expertise of Spirit & Space isn’t aligned with the project. Read to the end of our brief interview for a hopeful take on this challenging condition.
S&S: How do you know if someone is a hoarder?
Laura: Only a mental health professional is qualified to diagnose hoarding disorder. I can only diagnose the home that a person lives in. It's very common for a person without hoarding disorder to live in a hoarded home. Many mental and physical health conditions can be factors.
Some common indicators a home is hoarded include a) the front door won't open all the way because it is obstructed by clutter, b) the occupant has refused to allow visitors for months or years, and c) you can't see the corners or walls of rooms.
S&S: Is hoarding always related to trauma?
Laura: I've worked with over a 100 extremely cluttered homes during the past few years. From my experience, trauma being the main cause of hoarding is true in about twenty percent of those homes.
S&S: What's the best way to help a friend or family member who is a hoarder?
Laura: Do your best to help them clean and straighten without throwing anything away. When they are ready, have them make an appointment with me or another organizer qualified to work with hoarding situations. If they're not ready to call for help, they're not ready to do the work it's going to take to clean it up.
S&S: Does a shopping addiction usually lead to a hoarding situation?
Laura: Compulsive shopping is one of the major causes of hoarding among the people I have worked with.
S&S: What's a good online source for information about hoarding?
Laura: Institute for Challenging Disorganization
S&S: Is hoarding always as bad as they show in that TV show about hoarders?
Laura: The hoarding TV shows are edited, produced, and loosely directed for maximum "drama and dysfunction." I do have some "horror" stories to tell that would rival some TV episodes. However, I also have a lot of incredible clients who have done the work and made lasting changes in their lives and homes.