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Clutter, Pack Rats and Hoarders

“Someday I might need it!”

"That old TV (computer, toaster, printer) is still good!”

“You never know – it might come back in style.”

“Don’t touch my stuff!”

“I haven’t finished the newspaper yet.”

“I can’t get rid of that. That’s my senior prom dress!”

Let’s face it. Many of us refuse to get rid of an awful lot of stuff, even when we admit that it would be better if we did. Instead, we amass piles. We collect junk. Our closets are overflowing. We have an abundance of clutter. We’re embarrassed our place is a mess.

Sure, we think about getting more organized. But what do we do? Do we roll up our sleeves and finally let go of some of our junk. Do we whittle our piles down to nothing? Do we organize our closets so that we can truly find what we want when we want it?

Some of us do. But unfortunately too many of us do just the opposite. We keep those yellowing newspapers, as they may contain an item of interest. We hold on to those magazines because one day we will get around to reading them. No sense getting rid of those gift boxes; they’re sure to come in handy one day. And so will those aluminum foil
pans and other junk we’ve collected..

What about those pants that don’t fit? Don’t give them away! Those are your skinny clothes. Some day you’ll lose those 20 pounds! Then, triumphantly you’ll be able to wear them once again! And what about your children’s baby clothes? How could you dispose of those precious items?

Though you may recognize yourself in the above description, some of you may be defending your cluttered lifestyle. After all, in our highly disposable society, isn’t it a virtue to see a treasure where others see trash? Is it truly a problem if you tend to hold on to what others let go of?

As with many behaviors in life, whether it’s a problem or not, depends upon the degree. Mild clutter, a bit of a pack rat, a limited accumulation is one thing. But once it gets beyond a certain point, this syndrome becomes serious stuff – compulsive hoarding!

Compulsive hoarding becomes a mental health problem when it results in chaos for you or those you live with. Stuff, literally all over the place, leads to stumbling, tumbling, health and fire hazards. In its extreme, it can reach a point where you cannot have friends in your home, nor a cleaning crew to assist you, nor repair people to fix what’s broken, because one's home cannot be entered -- literally.

Though much is still unknown about compulsive hoarding, some things are obvious.

Hoarders tend to:

Have enormous anxiety about throwing things away.
Think of inanimate things as symbolic of themselves; as a result, disposing of them becomes highly charged.
Compulsively acquire things by buying, saving, or getting stuff for free.
Defend their disorganization and clutter.
Attach emotional significance to items that others view as junk.
Organize their stuff according to visual or spatial cues rather than categories. (Thus, they may place silverware in the middle of the room, because that’s where it’s visible, rather than have a drawer for such items.)

If after reading this article, you feel that your cluttering, acquiring or saving things is becoming out of control, please do not take this lightly. These traits become worse as we get older, unless you directly acknowledge and address the problem.

On the other hand, don’t go overboard in the other direction. No need to become a neatfreak. A mess is okay. But a mess needs to be cleaned up, if for no other reason than to make room for the next day’s mess. A mess piled on top of another mess which is on top of still another mess will lead to no good.

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