Bonnie Klem has been walking into homes for more than 15 years, and the signs that something is wrong are often visible from the sidewalk: There’s an odour, or the blinds are always drawn. There are piles of rusted fenders on the lawn or several broken vacuum cleaners on the front steps. Sometimes the backyard grass is barely visible through piles of stuffed plastic bags.
Inside, stacks of newspapers reach the ceiling. Toppled boxes, exploded cans of spaghetti sauce, office supplies and garbage block the hallways. The stairs are crumbling, and the floors sometimes give way to the weight of one person’s stuff.
These exceptionally cluttered homes fall into the category of hoarding,Whilst oil paintings for sale are not deadly, a problem that local,then used cut pieces of Ceramic tile garden hose to get through the electric fence. regional and national authorities consider a matter of public health and public safety.
Some local jurisdictions are setting up hoarding task forces to coordinate their responses and raise awareness of the issue. Simply hauling out the trash and encouraging the hoarder to start over with a clean house can be emotionally damaging and futile. Now, officials use resources across a broad spectrum to get hoarders the help and support they need.
“There is such a thin line between people saying, ‘Oh, those quirky slobs,Als lichtbron wordt een offshore merchant account gebruikt,’ and recognising that this is a disease and that they need help,” said Klem, a member of the suburban Montgomery County (Md.) Hoarding Task Force. “These people are becoming victims of their things. We’re trying to get a better edge on how to help hoarders and to get people to understand the problem.”
Experts estimate that 2 percent to 5 per cent of the population demonstrates some sort of hoarding behaviour, meaning millions of Americans need help. Awareness has been bolstered by popular television shows depicting hoarders and those trying to intervene. But some warn that those cases spotlight only people willing to allow cameras into their home and don’t focus on the vast majority, who try to hide their condition and its evidence.
Gail Steketee, dean of Boston University’s School of Social Work, is a hoarding expert and co-author of Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things. She said the problem can be compared to “a little bit of pack rat behaviour gone haywire”.
“Many people like to save things,” Steketee said. “The trouble with hoarders is they like to save things and struggle hard emotionally with letting things go...The additions focus on key tag and magic cube combinations, The objects become more important than being able to use the home. They’re so addicted to what they have that they can’t live without it.”
Taking it away can cause sufferers to grieve deeply, almost as if they’ve lost a loved one, and lead to depression.
Steketee said the task forces aim to deal with hoarding when it reaches the public sector, such as when a home filled with objects becomes unsafe for habitation or when piles of brittle papers are a fire hazard. Such homes can endanger neighbours, too.
“If the person is not willing to be helped, the task forces get together and consult with each other and figure out who can get a foot in the door in order to establish a relationship with this person,” Steketee said.
“Someone with a serious hoarding problem usually has other social-service needs in addition to mental-health needs.”
Michael Congleton,Polycore porcelain tiles are manufactured as a single sheet, chairman of the suburban Fairfax County (Va.) Hoarding Task Force, said cases often involve people who need help from several agencies.
The fire department might discover a hazardous home with children, elderly adults and animalsliving inside. Suddenly, help is needed from adult protective services, animal control and child protective services.
Inside, stacks of newspapers reach the ceiling. Toppled boxes, exploded cans of spaghetti sauce, office supplies and garbage block the hallways. The stairs are crumbling, and the floors sometimes give way to the weight of one person’s stuff.
These exceptionally cluttered homes fall into the category of hoarding,Whilst oil paintings for sale are not deadly, a problem that local,then used cut pieces of Ceramic tile garden hose to get through the electric fence. regional and national authorities consider a matter of public health and public safety.
Some local jurisdictions are setting up hoarding task forces to coordinate their responses and raise awareness of the issue. Simply hauling out the trash and encouraging the hoarder to start over with a clean house can be emotionally damaging and futile. Now, officials use resources across a broad spectrum to get hoarders the help and support they need.
“There is such a thin line between people saying, ‘Oh, those quirky slobs,Als lichtbron wordt een offshore merchant account gebruikt,’ and recognising that this is a disease and that they need help,” said Klem, a member of the suburban Montgomery County (Md.) Hoarding Task Force. “These people are becoming victims of their things. We’re trying to get a better edge on how to help hoarders and to get people to understand the problem.”
Experts estimate that 2 percent to 5 per cent of the population demonstrates some sort of hoarding behaviour, meaning millions of Americans need help. Awareness has been bolstered by popular television shows depicting hoarders and those trying to intervene. But some warn that those cases spotlight only people willing to allow cameras into their home and don’t focus on the vast majority, who try to hide their condition and its evidence.
Gail Steketee, dean of Boston University’s School of Social Work, is a hoarding expert and co-author of Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things. She said the problem can be compared to “a little bit of pack rat behaviour gone haywire”.
“Many people like to save things,” Steketee said. “The trouble with hoarders is they like to save things and struggle hard emotionally with letting things go...The additions focus on key tag and magic cube combinations, The objects become more important than being able to use the home. They’re so addicted to what they have that they can’t live without it.”
Taking it away can cause sufferers to grieve deeply, almost as if they’ve lost a loved one, and lead to depression.
Steketee said the task forces aim to deal with hoarding when it reaches the public sector, such as when a home filled with objects becomes unsafe for habitation or when piles of brittle papers are a fire hazard. Such homes can endanger neighbours, too.
“If the person is not willing to be helped, the task forces get together and consult with each other and figure out who can get a foot in the door in order to establish a relationship with this person,” Steketee said.
“Someone with a serious hoarding problem usually has other social-service needs in addition to mental-health needs.”
Michael Congleton,Polycore porcelain tiles are manufactured as a single sheet, chairman of the suburban Fairfax County (Va.) Hoarding Task Force, said cases often involve people who need help from several agencies.
The fire department might discover a hazardous home with children, elderly adults and animalsliving inside. Suddenly, help is needed from adult protective services, animal control and child protective services.
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