Column: Senior Services to host Hoarding Disorders workshop

We’ve been exposed to it on television shows and through other media channels. We watch and can’t believe that anyone can live in the conditions where homes are filled to capacity; front porches, garages, basements, closets, all stacked and filled to the top, often leaving only narrow pathways winding through stacks of “stuff.”

The person who hoards goes far beyond those persons we once described as “pack rats.”

What some of the awareness on television has done is alert us to a better understanding of the complexity of the issue and its link to mental illness. A recent study found that, although the first signs of hoarding behavior are most common in adolescence, the severity increases with each decade of life and is more prevalent among older adults. As our aging population rapidly increases, so will the number of older adults for whom hoarding is a way of life.

Experts in this area agree that hoarding becomes a “disorder” when there is an inordinate level of acquisition of and failure to discard a large number of possessions; the living space is so cluttered that is no longer usable for its intended purpose, and when there is a functional status consequence, such as a person being unable to walk through a room, bathe, cook or sleep under normal circumstances.

Along with hoarding, other activities often co-exist such as compulsive buying, an accumulation of “free” things (even those things collected from others’ trash); and a motivating factor, such as the “thrill” of purchasing items and thought that they might miss an opportunity for something they may need in the future.

Some evidence suggests that some persons with a hoarding disorder simply have difficulty making decisions, planning and following through with plans. For these individuals, behavioral therapy can be beneficial. Another group is believed to suffer from Diogenes Syndrome, a disorder often characterized by extreme self-neglect, domestic squalor, social withdrawal, apathy and compulsive hoarding of garbage, as well as being associated with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), schizophrenia, dementia and mood disorders.

All of us have the right to self-determine the way we live, but what happens when the hoarding becomes so severe that it puts that person and anyone living around them, at risk for their safety. Further consequences include the potential for a person’s eviction, health concerns and fire risks.

Social dysfunction can also include the hoarder never allowing anyone to enter his/her home and adult children who do not know how to handle the situation, feeling the family member is on a downward spiral and out of control. Family members may feel ashamed, overwhelmed and even disgusted. Many times, they believe the problem will be solved with a dumpster and a dump truck. But this doesn’t address the underlying psychological problem, and the clean-up is just a temporary means to a resumption of the behavior.

Clermont Senior Services will host Hoarding Disorders from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, June 11, in the Elderly Workshop at the Union Township Lifelong Learning Center, located at the Union Township Civic Center. Carilyn L. White, a licensed registered nurse will discuss Diogenes Syndrome, self-neglect and hoarding disorders, the associated health risks, mental issues and the consequences that can occur with each disorder. To assure a seat, please call the center at 947-7333.

Cindy Gramke is the executive director/CEO of Clermont Senior Services. Ideas and comments can be directed to Cindy at cgramke@clermontseniors.com or contact the agency at 724-1255.