Do you ever wonder if your friend or family member has fallen victim to hoarding? Or worse, yourself! It can be hard to recognize and address the situation if you do not know much on the topic. Here at the Restoration Now!, our water, fire and mold restoration specialists want to inform you how to identify a person with hoarding tendencies when you see one. We’re sure that many of you have seen an episode or two of the show Hoarders. However, it doesn’t always offer enough background to pinpoint someone with the problem. It is indeed a problem beyond just being messy or unorganized. It is living in a way a person is not meant to live, in mounds of trash. Hoarding can cause disastrous structural damage to a home as well as serious and sometimes fatal health hazards if the problem is not addressed in time.

How to recognize a hoarder

Hoarders suffer from a form of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). They feel rooted to their possessions and if these possessions are taken away they experience extreme anxiety and depression. They feel so at lost that they cannot cope or function. The following are warning signs of a hoarder.

• Chaotic living quarters. This means that the house is so cluttered, one can barely move in it, let alone live there.
• Huge amounts of stuff that may not make sense to anyone else to keep because they think they need it “just in case.”
• The refusal to part with any of these unneeded objects and if forced, violence could occur.

Clean-up time

At Restoration Now! Omaha, we recognize that clean-up can be a difficult time for both parties involved. Be prepared for setbacks to happen either during the process or after. A change of mind can happen in a flash. Recovery is a long and hard process and will not happen in just a day.

• Be attentive to their feelings when talking to them about their possessions. A professional may need to be involved in the process at some point, in order to help get the person get back on track. The disorder causes them to be irrational and unreasonable. They may not understand they have a problem at first until it is pointed out to them.
• When a hoarder begins to accept their condition and shed themselves of possessions, be extremely careful when beginning clean-up. Wear gloves and if the person takes any injection medications, watch for discarded needles. Also, all the trash could be housing bugs and small animals that could be carrying diseases. If it is unknown of what could be in the space, call our clean-up professionals at Restoration Now! Omaha, we are willing to help at any step of the way.
• However, just cleaning their spaces will not Restoration Now! the problem from happening again. They still should seek professional psychological help as well.
• The direness of the situation remains as our Restoration Now! have already been called this year to clean up the aftermaths of fires due to hoarding. The piles of stuff and trash acts as kindling and causes fires to be unRestoration Now!pable.

Call Restoration Now! Omaha Today

If you know someone that falls under these warnings, contact  Restoration Now! Omaha’s clean-up professionals  today for any concerns and questions about potential needs. Our number is (402) 502-7277. Don’t wait until it is too late to fix the problem.