So, A&E has this new show on called "Hoarders", and it comes on the heels of it's very popular show "Intervention", a reality show based on severe addicts, their interventions, and their treatments. Last time we had cable/television, I was pregnant in Nashville and got into this show along with most of the Bravo shows we still watch, and this pregnancy is no different. Maybe it's the hormones, but the emotional whirlpool of "Intervention" was perfect for mood swings, anxiety ridden evenings of baby worries, and general dark thoughts ....ok that's enough about the small dark side of being pregnant ;) let's get back to "Hoarders".....
This is about people who like to keep things that are not necessary, buy things they don't need, live in squalor, sleep on piles on their own trash, and don't have great social lives depending on how extreme their hoarding habit has become. Some are aware of their problem and try hard, along with caring family members, to fix their issues and then work on their huge household of trash while letting a therapist assist them. Some hoarders, though are unaware of the stench of their home, their lack of hygene, and the fact that they haven't seen their own carpet since 1989. It's fascinating. I always empathize with compulsive behaviors, because I know how common they are among us all, and I don't watch these people like they are jokes. There is nothing funny about a woman who would rather run after a garbage truck or donation van because her son tried to get rid of her junk than face the truth of her own messy obsession. These people don't live in reality, they don't have people over to visit, and most are very defensive of their homes, justifying to all that someday they'll clean up or that they are fine with it. Most don't have a place to sit and eat, a spot on the bed to sleep on, or ovens that aren't functional because they are filled with stuff. Most of the hoarders have issues over grief, loneliness, or feelings of panic when they are made to get rid of their junk. They don't see their stuff as "junk" but as a symbol of comfort, sort of like comming home to a favorite dog- these people like to see their collections as their friendly "Trash Heap" (that's a Fraggle Rock reference btw). This isn't like your roomates who may have kept a bowl of half eaten Ramen noodles by their bed for a few days, surrounded by beer cans, books and dirty clothes. These people simply go into denial after the garbage gets to be too large for them to take care of...and the slippery slope to hoarding begins. Maybe it's telling that in our society that pushes the need for more stuff, that this is such a big problem. Also telling is that family members who are older, and perhaps widowed or divorced seem to be most affected. Their adult children may not be aware of the problem, living far away and assuming nothing is wrong with their slightly messy and neurotic parent. Maybe the lesson of this is that our time needs to be filled with loved ones, memory making, and relationship building rather than shopping for things that do nothing but gather dust and fill our empty spaces. I have the opposite problem, being a compulsive neat freak, always putting away all the toys before I can sprawl out on our floors to do yoga, and can give it about half a day before I have to pick a glass someone sat down and didn't put in the dishwasher. I drive myself nuts but it makes me very happy at the end of the day so I put up with myself (the men in the house are blissfully unaware of this compulsion or at least act like it). Someday, maybe my husband will send over an interventionist to deal with my neurosis, after that fifth time I've cleaned the dog (in a day) or washed the dishes....until then I remain at this end of the spectrum. Next time your garage starts to fill up with years -old newspapers, old toys, broken stuff that will never get used, clothes you meant to donate...just keep it out there. It's when your bathroom gets filled with 10 years of National Geographics, your bed is covered with unopened Tupperware and ferrets are running around wild in your living room under tunnels of cereal boxes that you may find yourself on "Hoarders."
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Love both these shows! Always like to see how people became that way (of course some behaviors are partly genetic too). Have you seen the show "Obsessed" about the OCD people? Interesting one too! One girl pulled out most of her hair, and was pursuing a modeling career, so she wore wigs, but the agents wanted to see real hair. Most usually get better with therapy.
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