The hoarders favourite mantra's

Common phrases heard from hoarders:
1. Don't throw it away!!
2. It's a bargain! People are so stupid
3. It might come in handy... you just don't know!
4. It's worth a lot of money (Answer: no it isn't there are pound shops...99p shops in 2015)
5. It's quality!
6. I need it (Answer: When was the last time you used it)

And common replies of a hoarder when challenged:
1. Shut up! *$£!^%$!!
2. Get out!
3. I paid for it!
4. It's not a mess it's in order (a pile)
5. I'm looking after it
6. Mind your own business...I'm your dad!

And these are usually shouted out followed by expletives. Sound familiar?

 

It's been a long time since I blogged on here as I have been busy and to be honest it has got to the point where I avoid going to the "Hoarder home" though it still impacts on my living which is to be discussed in future posts. Summer for many is a time to visit family and friends and relaxing. How many hoarders this summer will be able to actually find somewhere to sit in their house? (thankfully my dad does have that space available). How many hoarders will be able to actually sit in their clutter free garden? Will there be out of date food lying about in the fridge?

I hope to write more regularly this summer: part of it will be sharing experiences and hopefully provide a springboard of helpful tips for the online community of people living with hoarders.

Enjoy the summer Sun because  that's something you can't hoard and keep into winter (unless you are a solar panel though you could be soaking in vitamin D3- sorry the attempted writer and geek in me there).

Who has been to the doctors about their hoarder relative?

A few years ago my mother reassured us that dad would stop hoarding once we put all his books in the garage of our home  (not his). 2 deaths, one wedding and 2 grandchildren later the living room has spiralled into jenga again but with more unusual objects (and yes the garage is full). My dad has discovered gum tree and got his hand on a uni cycle and last week got another from a charity shop. 

Where the hell is he going to use it ? His garden and house is unsafe, that leaves the public road.
I am thankful for the rain because it means the Sunday car boot sales no longer run but I am worried that now my dad is getting to grips with technology a lot of his hoard will be delivered by courtesy of Royal Mail. I have pretended to not know how Ebay works to discourage my dad form using it.

I'm thinking now is a good time to book him for a GP appointment and hopefully get a referral for CBT counselling. He has given up on work (self employed) anyway. How does one broach the subject to a hoarder about seeing a doctor and how have GP's in the UK responded? A
If I make an appointment about my concerns for my dad what can my GP do?
Any advice would be appreciated.

For the sake of the children?

I have not blogged on here for a while but i have a lot to say today,There have been changes in our family which has actually given our dad an opportunity to strenghen his hoarding habit from worse to dire.  Becoming a granddad or having to borrows some other persons  house for a funeral would motivate a normal and considerate soul to make their home civilised so that people can sit. Any smidegen of a dialogue about the problems a clutter house is met with angry rhetorics about other issues.
Since 2009 we restored the living room to a normal room and twice he has filled it with belongings mostly form carboot sales. This has gone from books to garden and DIY tools and gym equipment. Even random bikes and scooter,

Family deaths and births have not motivated him to take actions. He complains often about the house being dirty but does not acknowledge it is not my mums job to spend 3 hours to move objects so she can vacuum them. I am worried that when my dads grand children come to the house they will be hurt and of course he would acknowledge it is bot his fault (do other hoarders play the blame somebody else game?). Heck at one point there was a treadmill right next to the door with a 3cm gap to get into the room (Health and safety) and what with me being clumsy and visually impairedI nearly fell, my dad told me to look where I was going and not to break his machine! yes teh machine not me. I wish I could have filmed  it and shown him how irrational he has become.... and he says I have no common sense.

Since I  moved out in 2011 I have had no respiratory problems in fact I don't have asthma anymore!
My dad gets a lot of sneezing fits and will never attribute this to his excess belongings. My nephews toys will not be able to fit in his garage of his dad's giyse because granddad has filled it with his useless junk which will decay and cause more problems and waste others time.

Do you really want to declutter? Calling all Shopaholics and Collectors.

As I bloggd previously  I really find watching this programme useful andam  impressed with how they help the participants.

Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners Show

Do you want to be on telly?
 Sometimes hoarders have the intention of starting anew and to get rid of their rclutter  but as it soon dawns on them  it is not just about removing the physical objects,it's also about overcoming psychological obstacles and habits. As I have said in the past, Channel four sensitively deals with this in The Hoarder Next Door as does a the programme Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners. I admit to watching the latter with fascination here people on the other end of the OCD spectrum-obsessive cleaners are invited to make use of their cleaning habit to clean hoarders or those peoples homes where they have let things slide. The results are usually positive and inspirational and at times a valuable personal insightful  journey for both OCD participants.

Well anyway if you absolutely want to have your house cleaned and receive some help from a team of  psychologists and aftercare then why not participate in the next  series. If you have further questions please email me and I shall forward you the details of who you can contact.
 

betty are making a second series of the hit show

Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners

for Channel 4 and we are looking for people to take part.

This primetime features series see a team of compulsive cleaners teach Britain’s most disorganised people some valuable lessons in housekeeping. Transforming their unkempt environments and creating order where there once was chaos.

 

Is your home in need of a serious spring clean? Do you avoid housekeeping at all costs?

Perhaps your living room is bursting with junk and clutter and you’re too embarrassed to have people around?

If you are interested in finding out more, please get in touch by calling

02079070892

or email

clean@betty.co.uk
http://www.betty.co.uk/

1p books!
A few weeks ago my dad had a startled revelation. Everyone has heard of people making money from selling on Amazon and Ebay, well my dad thought this would be a good idea, so I typed in details of his books on to Amazon and to his disgust there were many copies of these science books starting at 1p! In fact every single book had a starting value of 1p and there were many copies. Talk about not being worth the paper they are printed on.So it would actually cost more for packaging and seller fees. A lot of books have ended up in my garage : ( such a reluctant dutiful daughter.
We are considering just sending these books to a paper recycling firm which would hopefully pay us.I hear they usually pay by the tonne....I am sure we would have a tonne.

Even if we did get rid of these books the problems lies in my dad continuing to go for his ritual of visiting Sunday carboot sales to find "bargains".
It is a deep psychological addiction for finding bargains and become over attached to them to the point of being selfish and reducing the quality of ones own life and relationship that creates difficulties in hinders us of being a happy family. And that is priceless.