Do you have a hoarder/OCD family member? What can you do about it?

Forums: Hoarding, Ocd, Family Problems, Junk Collecting
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Look familiar?

http://www.everydayminimalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/hoarders-tlc.jpg

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Type: Question • Score: 4 • Views: 2,221 • Replies: 19

[+3] - roger - 12/18/2014[quote="Banana Breath"] [img]http://www.everydayminimalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/hoarders-tlc.jpg[/img] [/quote] That isn't hoarding. I'm just trying to decide which part to...

@Banana Breath,

No...I'm as far away from this as one could ever be...my home is all about 90 degree angles ;-). My husband is even worse... We get along. I can't take a mess. But--I think all it takes is to take a look at someone's car and you know..

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@Banana Breath,

Honestly curious Banana, was there a reason in starting this thread or showing the picture?

Do you really want to discuss OCD, it's causes, symptoms and treatments?

Not all people with OCD are hoaders, and they needn't be lumped into one group.

Or are you specifically addressing hoarding?

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@chai2,

Quote:

Or are you specifically addressing hoarding?

I'm specifically addressing the severe hoarding that pretty much only exists in combination with OCD, not the average grandmother who buys a 12-pack of toilet paper simply because it's on sale. The picture should clarify the scale.

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@Banana Breath,

I have a friend whose mum is a hoarder. I was shocked at first. After a while I realized it was OCD. It's amazing...she attaches meaning to everything. Good thing she doesn't collect perishable items. Still--my friend is embarrassed ....it's tough on those who love hoarders. It's also
tough on hoarders themselves.

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@Banana Breath,

Banana Breath wrote:

That isn't hoarding. I'm just trying to decide which part to clean up first.

1 Reply

@roger,

hahaha

the space in the back room looks like our middle room upstairs when I misplaced a bag of paillettes and had to find it. I was throwing fabric and trim and beads and stuff everywhere. Cleaning that up was not fun.

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@Banana Breath,

Banana Breath wrote:

Quote:
Or are you specifically addressing hoarding?

I'm specifically addressing the severe hoarding that pretty much only exists in combination with OCD, not the average grandmother who buys a 12-pack of toilet paper simply because it's on sale. The picture should clarify the scale.

ok.

Don't know why who or why I was marked down.

I seriously didn't know what it was you wanted to talk about.

So, what do you want to discuss about it?

You posted a picture, and asked if it looked familiar.

Anything else?

1 Reply

Yes, people who are horders would be said to have OCD, but not all (or even most) people who have OCD are hoarders.

Is this about hoarders in particular, or other presentations of OCD, or something else?

Are you just looking for people stories of someone they know, or about themselves, or what?

I'm not trying to be a PITA, I just don't know where this is going, or supposed to go.

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@chai2,

Quote:

You posted a picture, and asked if it looked familiar.
Anything else?

The rest of the question is "what can you do about it?" That is to say, has anyone found a way to reduce the hoarding behavior or more effectively deal with the hoarder.

1 Reply

@Banana Breath,

Banana Breath wrote:

Quote:
You posted a picture, and asked if it looked familiar.
Anything else?

The rest of the question is "what can you do about it?" That is to say, has anyone found a way to reduce the hoarding behavior or more effectively deal with the hoarder.

Ok.

Therapy and particular medications have been found to be helpful with OCD. I'd imagine that would help with hoarding behavior.

Anything else?

1 Reply

@chai2,

Quote:

Ok.
Therapy and particular medications have been found to be helpful with OCD. I'd imagine that would help with hoarding behavior.
Anything else?

The reason I asked if someone had experience with this is that it's easy to "imagine" what might work but in practice it's quite a different story. OCD hoarders almost invariably deny there's a problem, so they typically reject therapy and/or medications. This is particularly true with family members and even more so when the OCD/hoarder is the senior member (parent) thus believing that their opinion is more relevant.

1 Reply

@Banana Breath,

So you're asking if anyone has a suggestion for getting the person to see they have a problem?

It's more like getting them to admit it.

Whether you believe it or not, they do know there is a problem. They are afraid to admit it.

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Family members that suffer from OCD can result in themselves getting hurt and their family members as well. It is important to understand that they are not doing this out of malice or discontent. They are doing this because they have little or no control over what their mind is doing.

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The question would read better if it were called CDO. Same thing, but properly arranged in alphabetical order.

1 Reply

@roger,

lol, it took me a minute.
I actually knew someone who would arrange all the M&M's in a package in color order before eating any.

1 Reply

@Banana Breath,

I tried to arrange them in alphabetic order too. M&M comes before W&W.

1 Reply

@roger,

Do you throw away the nails that have the points on the wrong end?

1 Reply

@Banana Breath,

Are you nuts? You save them for the other side of whatever you're building.

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Do you have a hoarder/OCD family member?

I did

What can you do about it?

IDK, I have never seen anything ever done about it once the hoarder has been at it for awhile. I have seen a lot of family and friends try, always failing.

0 Replies

Do you have a hoarder/OCD family member? What can you do about it?

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