Environment Hoarding

[raskolnikov]

I have a friend who is a chronic hoarder. His house is so full of that it is half way to the ceiling with stuff. One room is pretty much full to capacity and he only has tiny walkways in the house. He cannot use his dining room table as there is stuff piled on there. Scary thing is that he knows where every little thing is. He won't invite people around to his house because he is embarrassed by it. His family refuse to go there. Yet he cannot throw anything away. He almost got violent with somebody one day because they tried to clean up a bit. I find this really strange as I am a minimalist. If I don't think I need something I'll get rid of it. I have read that it is a psychological disorder, yet this guy comes across as the most level-headed guys you would ever want to meet. So, has anyone else had experiences with hoarding or got any insights as to why people hoard?

 

[mantis]

Sounds like a good idea for a reality TV show.

 

[Xtreme]

I am a hoarder of the new generation, my main bedroom is choc full of video games, video game accessories and dvds. I need to get a new book shelf to put all of the dvds and video games i have stacked up everywhere. The video game accessories (eg: full rock band - band kit, guitar hero guitars) make it an obstacle course in order to get into my bed.

On the flipside to this, i used to be a newspaper hoarder, i had 10-15 years worth of random articles + lift outs as well as many full edition newspapers. I realized how stupid it was to keep so many newspapers that i never go back to. I binned the majority, however i still keep the really important ones like Hawthorns grand final appearances, Sydney 2000 olympics etc.

 

[zimma]

My dad is a massive hoarder, can be walk into his garage and at last check he still has every single newspaper from the first gulf war in the cupboard. Oh and he rescued all the floppy disks I tried to throw out, and the old pcs, crt tvs, vcrs...

 

[FIGJAM]

I have had to inspect an apartment for work where a hoarder had filled the place up with torn cardboard and squashed PET bottles. Some sort of OCD issue aparently.

She dropped off the key to work as she was too embarrassed to be there. She was well presented and seemed sane, albeit nervous about us having to go inside the dwelling.

When I got there I could barely open the door, and the 60 sq.m. apartment was about 4 feet high in the stuff wall to wall. You could barely get to the bathroom, let alone use it.

It's the only time I've come across it in thousands of inspections as a property professional, but I'd imagine there are some peculiar and surprising things happening behind closed doors that people are unaware of.

Fortunately the lady got help after I went there.

 

[DREAM TEAM BUFF]

Sounds like a good idea for a reality TV show.

They have a show like that on GEM

 

[Tulip]

My dad's a hoarder, mum's a minimalist. Interesting debates when they want to clean the house.

I'm a hoarder by personality. I used to keep everything that had any significance to me whatsoever until i cottoned onto how bad and pointless it is. Hard to kick a habit, so every year I have a day where I emotionally distance myself from the habit and have a huge clean out. A lot of it does have to do with laziness too.

 

[mantis]

They have a show like that on GEM

SWOOSH.

 

[Ed_Gein]

My dad is a massive hoarder, can be walk into his garage and at last check he still has every single newspaper from the first gulf war in the cupboard. Oh and he rescued all the floppy disks I tried to throw out, and the old pcs, crt tvs, vcrs...

My dad is a bit the same. I remember i bought these guitar picks off eBay, and when i got them i was disappointed to find out that the images had just been screenprinted onto cheap ones you could buy at a shop. I threw them out, next thing you know i found them in my dad's bedroom cabinet as 'decorations'. lol.

Sounds like a good idea for a reality TV show.

There is a TV show here in the UK about hoarders, where a whole team of people go around to the house to empty it out. Some of the houses are unbelievable. Pretty much all like the person in the OP's story, it was funny and sad at the same time to watch them continually tell people not to throw things they're carting back to a skip out the front. The presenter would ask them why they wanted to hang onto it and the common response would normally be, "I might need it." and it ended up being random shit like a busted umbrella or 10 year old calender etc...

 

[jerry springer]

Ive done a few months working with ambo's mainly working around Sydney's north shore. I was staggered by the amount of hoarders in the area.predominately older people,in houses that looked beautiful from the outside,but the inside was not suitable for animal IMO.

 

[Caesar]

I wouldn't say I am a hoarder, but I have a tendency to hang onto stuff that I don't strictly need for sentimental reasons. Our family is not very prolific - most generations have one or two kids. As a result, family heirlooms are not widely dispersed.

My parents live in a very modern house that is far too big for them, sort of oddly littered with ill-fitting antiques that have been in our family for several generations. There is all sorts of stuff that they never use (or is so fragile that it is not practical to use on a regular basis) that they can't bring themselves to get rid of.

My own place is small and my decorating tastes tend towards the minimalist, but I just know that I am going to end up in a similar house when they pass on.

 

[Gough]

I had a flat mate who was a hoarder, he still has his Super Nintendo, and the box he bought it as well as dozens of games and the boxes they came in. I used to throw something of his away every weekend for the three years and I shared a flat with him and he never noticed.

 

[hirdy_is_champ]

I remember watching one of those hoarders shows where they found the carcass of the woman's cat who'd gone missing years previous.

How Clean is Your House is another show in a similar vein. Sometimes its so grotty that I find the autopsy show on SBS less disgusting.

 

[PP34]

My dad's a hoarder, mum's a minimalist. Interesting debates when they want to clean the house.

I'm a hoarder by personality. I used to keep everything that had any significance to me whatsoever until i cottoned onto how bad and pointless it is. Hard to kick a habit, so every year I have a day where I emotionally distance myself from the habit and have a huge clean out. A lot of it does have to do with laziness too.

Yeah my dad loves piling up newspapers, and other junk. Although he finally let go of some stuff early this year when we moved.

My mum throws stuff out all the time.

I'm not sure who's more annoying.

I tend to keep stuff I know I'll be interested in, down the track. That includes magazines, and clippings about sports.

 

[Tulip]

Yeah my dad loves piling up newspapers, and other junk. Although he finally let go of some stuff early this year when we moved.

My mum throws stuff out all the time.

I'm not sure who's more annoying.

I tend to keep stuff I know I'll be interested in, down the track. That includes magazines, and clippings about sports.

I've always found it's better to keep parts of what you want and scrapbook or keep a box. If you like a back page, don't keep the whole paper just cut out the articles you like etc.

 

[Kram]

Did a job for this couple once that had a house that just was just loaded with bric-a-brac stuff I guess you would call it, you would struggle to find a couple of square meters of free space. It was was very clean though and there was actually cool stuff there I'd like at home but you can only have so much...

I lean a bit to keeping too much stuff but on the other side of things but on the other side of things I have a mate that doesn't keep hardly anything around even potentially useful things. Couldn't believe when after not seeing him for a few months his old man binned my guitar that I'd had since a little kid, it was very worn but it wasn't a piece of crap probably worth at least 50 bucks and perfect for a learner.

 

[Kram]

I had a flat mate who was a hoarder, he still has his Super Nintendo, and the box he bought it as well as dozens of games and the boxes they came in. I used to throw something of his away every weekend for the three years and I shared a flat with him and he never noticed.

I don't play computer games much these days but I've considered tracking down one of those to play all my favorites from a kid..

 

[4evablues]

Hoarder of the year...My mum.

The worst. Cant even take my girlfriend over cos of her bad habit. You cant tell her either. Suppose she has some weird connection with her things...I dont get it!

 

[rayven]

I worked with this guy called Rex, He hoarded everything. If he could pinch an ashtray from a pub or found a bit of wood on the street. He'd take it home. He would eventually find uses for everything he hoarded. He ended up in the mental asylum where they tried breaking his habit. Every time he'd get back to the ward he'd have something and the security would forcefully take it from him if he didn't cooperate. then he'd get a really big needle. This went on for months until he died in hospital.

 

[Scotland]

I'm a bit of a subconscious hoarder. Every time I go to do a big clean out I'll find things I didn't know I still had and had no deliberate intention of keeping, but I'm happy to let them go once I find they're there.

I once found 3 pairs of shoes essentially the same. Pair of shoes that had worn out, replacement pair of shoes that had worn out and replacement for the replacement shoes which were still good. No emotional attachment or 'I could use these round the house' type logic (dress shoes), just laziness. 'Into the bin!' </Shaun Micallef>

I like (useful) possessions, but I don't like clutter. If I need a tennis racquet or a hammer or a blender or whatever I'll get one, but I like each item to have a function and a place where it is stored. Having items that are constantly in the way and needing to be moved around drives me nuts.

 

[Shell]

throwing out stuff. Best feeling ever.

Am a very tidy/ neat person by nature too.

We have a hard rubbish collection coming up very soon. Get excited!!!!!

 

[buddyruff]

I'm a minimalist and I believe its the only way to live. As soon as ive read a book, ill put it up for sale. Unless its a textbook, why do you need it?

 

[Tulip]

I'm a minimalist and I believe its the only way to live. As soon as ive read a book, ill put it up for sale. Unless its a textbook, why do you need it?

The only think I don't subscribe to is this. A minimalist cans till have a killer bookshelf. Having said that, I'm a book traditionalist.

 

[SHAKESPEARE]

A family member passed away and they were a hoarder. We had to clean the house before reselling...wowee what a job that was

 

[Smell The Glove]

Anti hoarder here. Anything which is not immediately useful gets turfed. Anything which is valuable is stored in a bank account.