Compulsive Hoarding

[Gilligan]

What is your opinion of compulsive hoarding? Is it the same as greed and covetousness that the Bible condemns or is it a mental illness?

I have been watching the TV show "Hoarders" and it is unbelievable. If I walked into some of those houses I would think I died and went to Hell. If you have seen the show and remember Augustine, Carrie, Robin, or Judi, you would know what I mean. All of them were level fives.

[jayne]

It's my personal opinion, not professional, that these people are mentally unstable. Living with millions of cockroaches in your home and never cleaning the bathroom or kitchen to the point where it is dangerous to live there and never taking trash from your home is not greed. It's a mental illness. These people have attached an unrealistic importance to not "losing" anything - not even the filth. One could clean their home spotless, but if they don't receive mental health services, they will return to the same pit. They literally don't "see" what the rest of us see.

In my science classes, I teach that there are some things that living things must do to be technically labeled a living thing. Two of them are releasing energy and releasing waste. The people do not get proper exercise of their bodies or minds and they do not release their waste from their homes. Now I know that these two features are speaking in terms of the organism as a whole and not it's environment, but I think an analogy could apply.

[paidforinfull]

I could be wrong, but it is my opinion that hoarders are often insecure people, and that the 'things' they collect and store all around them give them a sense of security.

[jayne]

I could be wrong, but it is my opinion that hoarders are often insecure people, and that the 'things' they collect and store all around them give them a sense of security.

Oh, I think your are right - if we are talking about doll collecting or record collecting or some other benign collection that just has overrun the house. But the sad people who haven't scrubbed their bathrooms, including the toilet, in 25 years, or haven't washed clothes nor dishes nor thrown away wasteful food products in 10 years, or who think nothing of colonies of ants and roaches and rats living with them are people who are very ill. The ones that make me so very, very sad are the animal hoarders who have 100's of sick and dying and starving animals and think that those who come to rescue the animals are the abusers.

[Diggindeeper]

Its a POOR mentality. People have to have so much STUFF. Too much STUFF. They might need it someday. Ot so they think. They have an 'I'm poor' mentality.

I think there should be some kind of laws that people this unstable, being a health threat and a fire hazard threat to themselves and others, should be institutionalized for counseling. And teaching, and to get them out of that 'poor' mentality.

No wonder Jesus said, "Don't go down into your house to get your 'stuff'. Its all just....STUFF!

[Gilligan]

It's my personal opinion, not professional, that these people are mentally unstable. Living with millions of cockroaches in your home and never cleaning the bathroom or kitchen to the point where it is dangerous to live there and never taking trash from your home is not greed. It's a mental illness. These people have attached an unrealistic importance to not "losing" anything - not even the filth. One could clean their home spotless, but if they don't receive mental health services, they will return to the same pit. They literally don't "see" what the rest of us see.

In my science classes, I teach that there are some things that living things must do to be technically labeled a living thing. Two of them are releasing energy and releasing waste. The people do not get proper exercise of their bodies or minds and they do not release their waste from their homes. Now I know that these two features are speaking in terms of the organism as a whole and not it's environment, but I think an analogy could apply.

I agree with you. I think it HAS to be a mental illness, not greed. I saw part of an update on Augustine and she has reverted back to hoarding. In the cleanout she had 8,000 pounds of garbage removed, but two years later she has started up again. Carrie had 55,000 pounds of garbage removed. As her cleanup was very recent, we'll have to wait to see a follow up on her. I hope she is doing good.

[Reynolds357]

I agree with you. I think it HAS to be a mental illness, not greed. I saw part of an update on Augustine and she has reverted back to hoarding. In the cleanout she had 8,000 pounds of garbage removed, but two years later she has started up again. Carrie had 55,000 pounds of garbage removed. As her cleanup was very recent, we'll have to wait to see a follow up on her. I hope she is doing good.

I am not sure if those two were really hoarders or just too lazy to take out the garbage.

[GitRDunn]

I would say it is a mental disorder. Watching and reading about some of these people, I don't know how you could call it anything else.

[Ta-An]

I'd say it is people who do not trust in the act of being provided for by a Father

[IMINXTC]

I've known at least three hoarders, one so severe that he had carved a crawl space from the door to his bed - he had stuff stacked so tightly that he could not sit up in his bed. It took many truck-loads to clear his room after his decease. Very little of any real value, mostly junk.

One hoarder I could understand spent his childhood travelling the county, living in a car with his family while his dad looked for work during the Great Depression. He never got over his hoarding, though it was a bit milder than that described above.

It can obviously develop into a horrible compulsion - it is a frightening disorder.

Likely one of the reasons I famously, regularly get rid of stuff, even good electronic gizmos. I'll donate them before they stack up.

(I hoard tools, however, and jealously guard them)

[Gilligan]

I am not sure if those two were really hoarders or just too lazy to take out the garbage.

In the case with Carrie, there is an explaination about her behavior, it doesn't excuse it, but it makes it understandable. I hope she heals from her traumas.

Here is a story about her: http://heydontjudgeme.com/2012/01/24...-carrie-james/

CAUTION: Contains some profanity and the story itself is very disturbing.

[Jeanne D]

Does anyone think there's a spiritual side to this as well as an emotional one?

Jeanne

[Gilligan]

Does anyone think there's a spiritual side to this as well as an emotional one?

Jeanne

I believe it is a mental/emotional disorder, but I have wondered if it may have started out as greed or covetousness. If so, is it God "giving them over to what they wanted"? I hope not, because it is so sad.

[jayne]

I believe it is a mental/emotional disorder, but I have wondered if it may have started out as greed or covetousness. If so, is it God "giving them over to what they wanted"? I hope not, because it is so sad.

I believe that there are alot of issues that people have that could be a combinations of sin, mental disorder, spiritual issue, etc.

As far as God "giving them over to what they wanted", I'm not so sure. If it's a relatively clean house like some of those people - just filled to capacity with whatever toy or item that they cannot stop collecting, then they are placing their trust, faith, and hope in those items. They feel "safe" surrounding themselves by those hoards of things. Take those things away and fear runs rampant in their hearts and minds. That could be a spiritual issue. And a mental disorder.

But if it's the grossly unsanitary house that's LITERALLY not fit for swine to live in - then, to me, that's not a spiritual issue, but a total collapse of sanity.

But as I said, I'm not a professional. All I've got is my two cents.

[Gilligan]

So it's probably not God "punishing" them?