Pathological hoarding: description of symptoms, causes and advice from psychologists

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Pathological hoarding is one of those problems that affect not only the individual himself, but also his immediate environment. Being close to such a person is categorically unpleasant, because he behaves ugly, sometimes overstepping the permissible limits. Such behavior immediately catches the eye, and not only relatives. There is nothing sadder than when a person arranges a whole warehouse out of his house and prefers not to notice that he is overstepping all reasonable boundaries. It is worth distinguishing this disorder from shopaholism.

In the latter case, a person is ready to spend money thoughtlessly, sometimes not understanding why he needs it. What is pathological hoarding and how to deal with it, this article will tell. It is necessary to have a good understanding of the problem in order tobe able to overcome it. Unfortunately, not all people are able to realize negative changes in their lives.

Description of symptoms

Diogenes Syndrome, or pathological hoarding, can be considered a certain mental disorder. At the same time, a person loses the ability to sensibly evaluate his actions, make thoughtful decisions. The individual begins to collect things, but does not use them, but simply clutters up the apartment. He cannot stop, understand that he is acting absurdly. Even if relatives and friends keep talking about the impossibility of living like this anymore. If you ask him, then he will not be able to clearly explain why he does this. You need to be a very wise person to independently get to the bottom of the true causes of what is happening. Often there is a syndrome of pathological hoarding in the elderly. The fact is that in old age there are many psychological changes. All the problems that have accumulated over a lifetime are getting bigger, sometimes inflating to unimaginable proportions.

Various grievances, fears, fears and doubts only increase. A person often ceases to distinguish lies from truth, baselessly accuses his relatives. The symptoms of pathological hoarding make it possible to judge how much the individual has gone astray. In many cases, the situation can still be improved, and sometimes it is hardly possible to do so.

Obsession with things

Endless storage of various items in your home is becoming an unhe althy trend. A person can start collecting simplyuseless trash: sachets, jars, medicine packaging. All this indicates that complete chaos is going on in his soul. Sometimes older people suffer from the fact that they start picking up something on the street, they do not even disdain to dig in the garbage container. From the outside it looks pretty terrible and impartial. It seems that in front of you is a neglected and neglected person, to whom no one cares. In fact, such behavior does not always correspond to the truth. The syndrome of pathological hoarding develops depending on the temperament, life orientations and individual values. It is unlikely that anyone will be able to predict this state of affairs in advance.

Emotional instability

Just try to take something away from someone who is obsessed with pathological hoarding! You can make an enemy for the rest of your life, face frank incontinence, anger, rejection. You will immediately get the impression that the person is completely out of control of himself, unable to control his own aggressive attacks. Emotional instability will be expressed in screams, bright discontent, the desire to fill the surrounding space even more.

Such a person is simply not able to think adequately, and even more so, unable to analyze the current situation, to look at what is happening from the outside. In most cases, people not only cannot solve their problems, but they do not even realize that they actually have them. The fact is that inside the psychologicalprotection that does not allow too destructive information to penetrate into consciousness. For this reason, the individual will always justify his actions.

Lack of self-criticism

Pathological hoarding of things is usually accompanied by an inability to take responsibility for the actions taken. It seems to a person that he is doing everything right, but for some reason his relatives and friends do not understand him. This is especially difficult to come to terms with in old age, as people in old age lose the ability to think clearly and reason. It becomes much easier for them to blame others, constantly splashing out their negative attitude on them. Sometimes the individual does not really understand what he is doing. Lack of self-criticism does not contribute to building harmonious relationships with loved ones. In many cases, the situation can be improved by paying attention to it from the very beginning, and not dragging it out until the critical moment.

Inability to think clearly

Pathological hoarding is a condition that is extremely difficult to control. A person suddenly begins to commit rash acts, does outright stupidity. Realizing a mistake is not so easy, because for this you need to have a certain self-control. If an individual turns his house into a trash can, then he is unlikely to be able to change something in his own life. It's not easy to change and even try to face the truth. Most prefer to torture themselves and their relatives.

Reasons for appearance

Everything in our life happens for a reason. Any deviationdue to some depressing circumstances or characteristic changes. It is impossible to ignore what is already becoming quite obvious. It is necessary to consider in more detail the causes of pathological hoarding. Only in this case it will be possible to understand the situation most fully.

The need for security

If a person persistently collects something and at the same time cannot explain to himself why he needs it, it means that he has ceased to feel comfortable in life. He needs to shake himself, to feel a certain joy. The need for security is a common cause of behavioral disturbances. Some people go to such extremes that they begin to impose their opinions on others. In fact, they just want to feel protected from everything in the world, from many different troubles.

Having fun

If there is no other way to experience joy, then a person resorts to such an extraordinary method. Of course, there is too dubious pleasure in that, but it also takes place. When it is impossible to rejoice from ordinary things, you have to find additional incentives for yourself in order not to get upset in vain.

Someone begins to abuse alcohol, and the other person collects all sorts of rubbish, completely unaware that he litters his personal space. Still, the need for pleasure is very strong.

Severe anxiety

Fear grows when we do not know what awaits us next. As a result, the developmentanxiety. A person becomes unbalanced, begins to make various mistakes, to be afraid of difficulties that he would never have folded before. When a person does something unimaginable, it is likely that anxiety just rolls over. No one wants to constantly reproach themselves for inaction, but it never leads to anything good. If your loved one also suffers from abnormal collection of things, then the situation is probably serious. Most can not cope with such a habit, it is akin to a real mania. It takes a lot of time and patience to try to change something.

Great loss

Sometimes in a person's life there are losses that are difficult to come to terms with. No matter how much we cry and reproach others for what happened, it is hardly possible to turn back time and try to fix something. A strong loss is sometimes so disarming that faith in oneself, one's own prospects, is lost. Some people are so desperate that they stop noticing what is really happening to them. Not everyone is able to direct their remaining spiritual strength to something creative: creativity, communication of interests, new activities. After all, this requires the ability to make decisions, to be a brave person.

Striving for comfort

Strange as it may seem, it is the need for change that often makes people withdraw into themselves even more. And then the problems begin to seem terrifying, huge and completely insurmountable. The desire for psychological comfort makes the individual cling to every little thing thatit's time to throw it away.

So many things accumulate, and with them resentment for life, dissatisfaction with relationships with others. Few people are able during this period to look at themselves from the outside and honestly admit that they have gone the wrong way. In most cases, personality is lost, a person ceases to be aware of how he perceives the surrounding reality.

Poverty

This is an infrequent cause, but it also occurs. If someone grew up in extremely cramped conditions, it becomes extremely difficult to form a positive attitude towards the world. Surely, fears and doubts about the decisions just made will be haunted everywhere. Poverty is a negative factor that has the potential to make us wary, distrustful and gloomy.

And there it is not far to collect various junk that can poison the perception of life. Other people live in poverty all their lives, experiencing a lot of negative feelings about this.

Mental disorders

The presence of mental illness can also play a role in the development of hoarding syndrome. The fact is that when an individual is not aware, he is not fully aware of what is happening in his life. This means that it becomes quite difficult to maintain faith in oneself, to enjoy ordinary things and events. Any mental disorders are fraught with completely uncontrollable consequences. People sometimes do not notice how they begin to accumulate a pile of garbage in the house. They clingfor everything else you can hold in your hands.

Advice from a psychologist

Treatment of pathological hoarding must begin with the awareness of the existence of the problem itself. If this is not done in a timely manner, then further steps simply will not make any sense. First you need to recognize the disease, and then take up the treatment. Pathological hoarding is a real mental disorder associated with the inability to realize some significant need in life.

Warmingness

As a rule, people suffering from Plushkin's syndrome lack the love and care of relatives. This does not mean that others are necessarily to blame for what happens to him. It's just that the individual himself brought himself to such a state that he stopped noticing how much he had changed. People in such a state cannot reasonably assess the situation. You need to surround your relative with care and attention.

Revisiting past grievances

It is necessary to try to get rid of claims to others. If you cannot reconsider your life position too quickly, you should not despair. It is better to act gradually, carefully, than to rush and drive yourself into deep feelings. If a close relative suffers from a disorder, then it is necessary to try to help him overcome the disease. But you can't blame or rush him. It is not easy to change your attitude towards your own grievances and disappointments. But this experience teaches a lot, including the ability to overcome fears.

Thus, pathological hoarding is a conditionwhich should never be left to chance. Otherwise, it can develop into a real mania and cause even more harm. Along with the collection of useless things, sometimes there is a pathological hoarding of animals. In this case, not only the sick person suffers, but also defenseless creatures, as well as neighbors. As a rule, complete chaos and unsanitary conditions reign in such apartments. Pets are kept in appalling conditions. Measures must be taken. Such people need the help of a competent specialist, although they most often face only condemnation and ridicule.