In some cases, hoarding is a condition in itself and often associated with self-neglect. These people are more likely to: live alone.
Many people with hoarding disorder may avoid letting other people enter their homes. This can lead to isolation, which further worsens many mental health issues. Signs and symptoms of hoarding disorder include: Excessive accumulation of items with limited or no space to store them.
Hoarding is a disorder that may be present on its own or as a symptom of another disorder. Those most often associated with hoarding are obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and depression.
Hoarding can be related to difficult experiences and painful feelings. You may find these hard to express, face or resolve. Some people say hoarding helps them cope with other mental health problems, or distracts them from feeling very anxious, upset or afraid.
Individuals who have experienced childhood traumas such as abuse, neglect, or abandonment may also develop hoarding as a coping mechanism. They may view their possessions as a source of security and comfort and may have difficulty letting go of them.
Results: Hoarding symptoms were associated with greater self-reported emotional empathy, specifically emotional contagion, and less self-reported cognitive empathy.
Compulsive hoarding is a progressive and chronic condition that begins early in life. Left untreated, its severity increases with age. Compulsive hoarding should be considered a distinct clinical syndrome, separate from OCD.
People with hoarding disorder have persistent difficulty getting rid of or parting with possessions due to a perceived need to save the items. Attempts to part with possessions create considerable distress and lead to decisions to save them.
Hoarding behaviors can begin as early as the teenage years, although the average age of a person seeking treatment for hoarding is about 50. Hoarders often endure a lifelong struggle with hoarding. They tend to live alone and may have a family member with the problem.
Medicines are used to treat other conditions such as anxiety and depression that often occur along with hoarding disorder. The medicines most commonly used are a type of antidepressant called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).
These behaviors can cause significant embarrassment and shame. As a result, you may not want to let people into your space due to fear of judgment. Hoarding is associated with many other mental health conditions. One of the most prevalent associations with hoarding behavior is its link with depression.
If a person tries to move the possessions without the hoarder's consent, the hoarder can become emotionally upset or angry. This can potentially result in the helpful individual's expulsion from the home.
“In addition, hoarders exhibit a need for control over their possessions, which echoes the efficacy and effectance motivation in psychological ownership. Thus, hoarding may be an extreme form of psychological ownership when viewed through the lens of consumer behavior.”
Hoarding disorder is a mental health problem that a doctor can diagnose. But you might also experience hoarding as part of another mental or physical health problem. If you hoard, you might: Feel the need to get more things, even if you have a lot already.
You can recover from hoarding. It just takes time, patience, and professional help. Hoarders can recover from their symptoms and go on to lead healthy lives over time. If you want to help a hoarder reclaim their life, the key is not to give up.
Again, hoarding may be viewed as selfish—or not—depending on the context. “Many of the items that people are hoarding are 'care' items—diapers, toilet paper, sanitizer—things that enable and represent the ability to give care to others,” says Foster.
Doctors point to several potential causes for a person to become a hoarder. Altered brain connections: Studies showed that abnormal brain development and brain lesions could lead to compulsive behaviors of hoarding. Sometimes, hoarding may begin after brain damage due to surgery, stroke, brain injury or infections.
People with hoarding disorder may feel ashamed about how they live or friends and family may shy away from visiting them at home. This can take a toll on the hoarder's social life, causing them to feel isolated and lonely, and making your support even more important.
Hoarding often runs in families and can frequently accompany other mental health disorders, like depression, social anxiety, bipolar disorder, and impulse control problems. A majority of people with compulsive hoarding can identify another family member who has the problem.
Brain damage
It is suggested that abnormal brain development and brain lesions could lead to compulsive behaviors of hoarding.
This is deeply scaring psychologically and can lead to severe anxiety and depression, eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or substance abuse. We also know that being exposed to trauma and without being able to control our environment leads to hopelessness and helplessness (see Marty Seligman).