HOARDERS!! I can't stop watching these trainwreck people..

To be honest, I think to a certain degree my Mom falls in this group. I think it's common in older ppl who have lived through times when they were taught to save everything. I am working with her to help her clear it out but it really is slow going. [b]~~AT PEACE WITHIN~~ **STAND STRONG IN YOUR BELIEFS**[/b]

I've seen these shows before, but turned them off. I know people hoard and all.. I to a point am a pack rat, but only cause I have been without and try to keep it until I know I won't use it anymore or get extra to keep on hand cause I know I will use it.. that kind of thing, but to have the unsanitary hoarding going on... I don't know how they themselves can handle that... why hoard germs and filthy? Get rid of that and get something good! How can they handle the smell and knowing the filth they have right under their feet? That isn't hoarding, that is just laziness. I don't know much about it all, but still...hoarding filth and germs and disgustment...that is just stupid no matter what medical term is given to the "why" you do it

my mom would definetly be one of these people if i wasn't on it. i had moved out for a while,and when i came back to take care of my dad.. OMG,was there junk everywhere.stacks of newspapers,brand new clothes piles,unused she got from this skeeze that was trying to hang around my parents(i don't know how they find disabled people to take advantage of).furniture we didn't need.. first thing i did was tell the one woman she wasn't hanging out and stop bringing crap over,then i preceeded to start donating/throwing out stuff.mom had made it dangerous/impossible for my dad to even move his wheelchair around. sometimes other people enable these people to get worse. i finally told people she had all the clothes she needed (i make sure of that),stop giving her more.

I have seen previews but have yet to see the actual show! I am sure there playing it now since I've seen several previews (all rotating though so as to say, I see the same ones) and it does seem to be a good show, and I am sure it's so much to say disgusting but a must watch! I'll have to catch an episode one day, I guess I need to find out when it comes on where I am! EST so if ya know feel free to say. Have a great day!

I think my elderly mother is like one of those people. WE tried to help her clean her home but she gets angry if we touch any of her stuff. I guess we have to wait till she passes before we can truly clean up and get rid of her excess things. I hope those Hoarders on the T.V. show are provided with counselling to help their troubles.

Hi Sissygrl, There used to be a show over here in the UK called 'A Life Of Grime' which would occasionally feature hoarders. They were always my favourite part because I found their homes completely fascinating, even if what was inside it was quite often revolting (there seemed to be a lot of the hoarders who keep urine etc. in bags/boxes!). I often think that I would like a job sorting through that sort of stuff, though not the food remains, I would hate to go through that, but the general stuff like paper and other possessions. It would be amazing just to see what you could find. As for what the underlying cause is I could have told you if I had been here a few years ago! There was a special one off documentary about this ages ago and it was all in that I can't remember it now, bugger lol! These shows never put me in an emotional struggle though, maybe 'Hoarders' does that better than 'A Life Of Grime' did, I think it was more of a factual look at things, rather than an emotional one. All the best Dranz

I have heard of that show, but I'm just not into that kind of thing. I think it's nothing but sensationalism, and a total embarasement to the people involved. I'd hate to think that someone was sitting in thelr living room watching my problems, not because I'm embarassed, but because it's just not their BUSINESS!!!

They say it's a form of mental illness....I have seen a couple of shows too...I can't believe it! But I think once the mess gets so far it looks like its just too much to tackle! I can't imagine living with the smell!

Funny you mention this. I watch very little tv but I did catch an episode of this just last week. It was sad. I have known people that hoard and it is just so sad. I think it reaches a point that it is overwhelming for them. Many of them have been very poor in the past and are living in fear of being at that point again in their lives. They just can't throw anything away...just in case ...who knows..they may need it in the future? My mother was somewhat of a hoarder but not as extreme as what I saw on this show. She would not get rid of things like magazines because someday they might be worth something. She had so so many butter tubs and coffee cans....they are good for storage. Of what, who knows. Although she lived with just my brother, she had enough dishes to cater to a small army. It was just ridiculous. I once, went thru and cleaned out and got rid of some of her clutter. I mean she had bills dating back to when I was a kid..why? I've no clue. I tossed them and organized. She had gone away for the week. I regretted it. She seemed happy but for years after, anytime she was missing something, I got a call asking if by chance I threw it away on her.

I believe you are right in saying this must be a form of obsessive compulsive disorder. Not sure as I don't watch the show myself. I had seen a few episodes of something on animal planet about animal police and apparently some people hoard living things.. like cats. I'm sure, at the base level somewhere hoarding, OCD, and even miserly behavior have psychological roots in common.

yes i have noticed it too that old people tend to hoard some things. like my grandma used to hoard plastic cups, containers, bottles and any empty jar after using food like peanut butter ketchup and etc. i feel sad whenever i remember my grandma. she had difficult life when she was older. mostly because of her behavior that she lived in such a bad and dirty place as she had when she was alive. she does not clean her place and if someone or if me volunteer to clean up the place she would get angry and just say that she just puts the dirt under the rug. of course the excess food she throws into the garbage, thankfully. i had hard time sleeping in her place because of smell and etc. it really stinks but i had to sleep for some time in her place. i could only just sigh on the things or my inability to give her a good life specially she was not in good health on her last years.

Hey Sissy! I have seen shows on hoarders and it really is pathetic and beyond disgusting! It is a very serious and weird illness! It goes beyond OCD! I don't know what they classify it as! It is the most disgusting thing that I have ever seen! These people will cover an entire living space with garbage! I just can't imagine how anyone could possibly let themselves live this way! I saw a woman's apartment so clutterd from floor to ceiling where there was no space for her to walk! And when the person that was helping her to de-clutter came in she was just so overwhelmed! She really didn't know what to get rid of or want to get rid of anything! She didn't want to get rid of empty boxes even! It was so absolutely bizarre! I don't know if even psychiatrists and psychologists can truly understand this disease!

I can't stand watching this though I thought I really wanted to see it. Nearly my entire family had this problem while I was growing up and I can't stand it. Who I really feel for is the people like children that are forced to live with them and are not this way such as myself. It was really difficult and it really is a mental illness.

Yeah, I feel bad for those people and whenever I watch those shows, I keep thinking to myself how they managed to accumulate that much clutter.

I have heard of such people but never met one. I can't imagine living in those conditions, or wanting to hoard stuff. I have a mild case of being a packrat but mostly got over that the past few years and I moved around during and after my divorce, shedding things as I went!

hi sissygrl hatley here. I am in a quandry at times over whether or not to say anything to my best friend. I love her dearly and she is not dirty,nor does she have food all over, but when you walk into her mobile trailor home you are shocked. they have wall to wall things so crammed into the rooms there are hardly any pathways at all. clean mind you but objects that are crammed in shoulder to shoulder so to speak. as if they never threw out or got rid of any furniture or other belongings ever. maybe if she lived in a larger apartment or house it would not seem like hoarding but that is what it has to be. Shes a very clean person so I cannot figure out why she would want so much stuff she cannot even walk to her television . its a shame really.i love her so much and wou ld never want to hurt her in any way.