Is There a Hoarder In Your Life?
by: Jennifer
Despite having a population of over 250 million people, Indonesia only has around 800 psychiatrists and just 48 hospitals for the mentally ill. With a lack of support for conditions like hoarding, which is recognized as being a serious mental health condition, this can leave Indonesians exposed to dangerous living conditions and valuable support is usually left to families. It can be very stressful coping with a loved one’s hoarding and dealing with the emotions surrounding a person’s welfare so finding ways to declutter for improved sleep or help them overcome emotional attachment can lead to better well being. If you’re concerned about someone you love who is a hoarder, and feel isolated through lack of expert care, read on to understand more about health issues relating to their condition.
Characteristics of a hoarder
When someone is a hoarder they will find it difficult to discard or part with their personal possessions which is usually based upon a deep seated emotional problem. Hoarders can collect large quantities of anything from newspapers and magazines to clothing, food and even animals. Symptoms of trauma and mental health range from mild to severe and can result in major anxiety when it comes to making decisions. Additionally, when items pile up in such large volumes, they create a severe difficulty in movement within rooms resulting in potential dangers, particularly in a workplace where clutter and chaos cause higher safety risks and make a space less manageable.
Effects of hoarding
Hoarders are more likely to live without necessary comforts in order to make more room for their piled up items and usually prefer to live with broken items rather than fix them. Part of this is based upon an item being of sentimental value that cannot be replaced due to a sense of loss. Often hoarding can be brought on by other disorders such as obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) or a form of depression, both of which are difficult to cope with.
How to help a hoarder
Family members and friends of a hoarder are likely to feel frustrated by the anger or resentment that can frequently be directed at them because of a hoarder's lack of recognition of their dysfunctionalism, so it’s important to be honest about talking their mental health. The burden of caring for a person with mental health issues in Indonesia usually falls on families and can even lead to divorce and financial problems in many cases. If you want to help, earn their trust and focus on them as a person by showing your support by helping them achieve realistic goals.
While you can’t force a person to improve their mental welfare, you can help them find ways to cope with their hoarding disorder and make them want to have a better life. Please see this Betterhelp.com for further information.
