Your garage is so packed it's difficult to squeeze your car in. The laundry basket is overflowing and has been for the past month. You're having trouble keeping up with the daily newspaper and have started a growing pile of unread papers by the recliner in the living room. And you're afraid to call me to help you.
At some point, with most every client I work with, usually while knee-deep in boxes and general household "stuff," I will hear the question, "Do you think I'm a hoarder?"
And for every case I have worked with--every case where the client him or herself contacted me--the answer is "No." Here's why:
Hoarders don't call me.
A spouse of a hoarder might call. A child of a hoarder might too. But as a general rule, hoarders themselves do not seek out the services of a professional home organizer.
Hoarders do not see their problem until it has grown to such an extent that authorities threaten to condemn their home, cite them for littering, nail an eviction notice to their front door, or remove their children (through child protective services) or themselves (through adult protective services) from their home.
It takes an outside agency or close family member or friend to see the mess first.
Hoarding is no longer believed to be the natural result of the behaviors of a lazy, good-for-nothing slob. Thanks to a growing body of psychological research, hoarding has finally been labeled a mental disorder, for which treatment is becoming more available and viable.
So don't worry; if you call me on your own accord, you are most likely NOT a hoarder.
