BURIED ALIVE...

4/25/2017 (Permalink)

BURIED ALIVE

Each hoarding situation is different:

The way they started hoarding, the items they collect, the reasoning behind it, the conditions it is in. You typically do not receive a phone call from the person themselves needing help, more than likely a water damage happened, or fire and you stumble across their situation.

Because each situation is different we handle each case on a case by case scenario. A hoarder home is one of the most difficult types of jobs to handle. Not only do we need to make sure that the contents are packed and boxed in order for us to do our job (handle the water damage/fire) but we also have to be mindful that these contents more than likely holds significant value to our customer.

How does one get into the situation where their home is completely full of contents and they are to the extreme buried alive?

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Hoarding is the persistent difficulty discarding or parting with possessions, regardless of their actual value. The behavior usually has deleterious effects—emotional, physical, social, financial, and even legal—for a hoarder and family members.

For those who hoard, the quantity of their collected items sets them apart from other people. Commonly hoarded items may be newspapers, magazines, paper and plastic bags, cardboard boxes, photographs, household supplies, food, and clothing.

 Hoarding can be related to compulsive buying (such as never passing up a bargain), the compulsive acquisition of free items (such as collecting flyers), or the compulsive search for perfect or unique items (which may not appear to others as unique, such as an old container).

SYMPTOMS AND BEHAVIOR

Someone who hoards may exhibit the following:

• Inability to throw away possessions
• Severe anxiety when attempting to discard items
• Great difficulty categorizing or organizing possessions
• Indecision about what to keep or where to put things
• Distress, such as feeling overwhelmed or embarrassed by possessions
• Suspicion of other people touching items
• Obsessive thoughts and actions: fear of running out of an item or of needing it in the future; checking the trash for accidentally discarded objects
• Functional impairments, including loss of living space, social isolation, family or marital discord, financial difficulties, health hazards

I know that embarrassment can keep people from seeking help but REGARDLESS OF THE REASONING WE ARE HERE TO HELP.

If you know of someone in this situation this website is a very informative website and can help :

https://www.adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/obsessive-compulsive-disorder-ocd/hoarding-basics 

SERVPRO of North Arlington, SERVPRO of South Arlington, SERVPRO of Grand Prairie is trained in assisting you in getting your life/home back on track.

972-602-1112~ 817-557-1447~ 817-557-1505