Hoarding disorder is a persistent and complex condition characterized by an inability to discard possessions, resulting in excessive clutter and crowded living spaces. It stems from an intense perceived need to save items and distress when attempting to throw them away.
What Causes Hoarding Disorder?
Researchers have identified several key factors that contribute to hoarding:
Genetics
component. Certain gene variants impacting cognition, memory, and reward systems may increase risk.
Neurological Factors
Cognitive Deficits
Those with hoarding struggle with organization, attention,
Emotional Attachment
People with hoarding form intense sentimental attachments to
possessions, which makes discarding seem cruel. Items become extensions of their identity.
Common symptoms of hoarding
Hoarding leads to significant clutter, along with these symptoms:
Inability to discard possessions due to a strong urge to save them
Living spaces are overrun by clutter, severely limiting normal use
Disorganization makes it hard to find things when needed
Distress when trying to discard or when others touch/move items
Problems with decision-making related to possessions
Limited social activities due to shame about clutter
Smart strategies for treating hoarding
Cognitive-behavioral therapy tailored for hoarding can help: Challenge beliefs about the need to save items through cognitive restructuring
Establish organization systems and improve decision-making abilities
Practice letting go of unneeded items and tolerating distress
Set goals like reducing acquisition and filling trash bags per week
Cultivate skills evaluating the usefulness and value of possessions
Engage social support and declutter together to stay motivated
Use AI tools and apps to identify and categorize clutter for discarding
Certain kinds of psychodynamic therapies also help address the root cause of clinging to redundant possessions. Psychodynamic therapies hold that the pathological symptom might emerge from how attachment to certain objects during childhood might shape the individual’s proclivity towards this disorder in later life.
Combined with medication for co-occurring issues like anxiety or depression, hoarding disorder is manageable. A compassionate stance focused on enhancing life skills and eliminating clutter could prove useful in the long run.