Clutter, collecting, disorder, and squalor may confuse public perception, and that’s quite likely given the terms overlap. Although each of them does have a core meaning that is distinctly different. We’ll do our best to unravel the confusion, although the popular mind may see things differently.
My Friend Has Hoarding Disorder Because …
Some folk suspect hoarding in clutter, collecting, disorder, squalor and general untidiness, as if all are the same thing. However, this is simply not true, because compulsive hoarding is a combination of these particular features:
- The collection, no matter what description we use, is highly disorganized.
- It has taken over living spaces to the extent they are no longer usable.
- Moving between rooms is a challenge, even some entrances are blocked.
However, if your friend’s home looks like a second-hand shop gone wrong, then this is no proof they are a compulsive hoarder. They may very well be extremely untidy people, but then so we have heard are some famous academics.
More Than a Cluttered Desk © Avery Associates
Unravelling Clutter Collecting Disorder, & Squalor
Clutter the Most Likely Indicator of Hoarding Disorder
The presence of large amounts of clutter is often an indicator of hoarding disorder. This state is most likely to comprise unrelated and / only marginally related objects, dumped on top of each other according to Hoarding website. There are usually a number of such piles in places generally used for other purposes in ‘typical’ homes:
- On kitchen sinks, stoves and counters, making it extremely difficult to use the room for preparing food and washing up.
- Large and small objects, disused household appliances, abandoned vehicles obstructing access to garages.
- Hallways, lobbies, passage ways and staircases partly or completely blocked with stuff preventing free movement.
Such clutter prevents these spaces being used for their intended purpose, and in extreme cases renders a home uninhabitable.
Collecting Items of Value in an Organized Fashion
We continue with our discussion on clutter, collecting, disorder, and squalor by moving on to disciplined collections. By ‘disciplined’ we mean acquiring, storing and displaying items in a coherent fashion. Each item is distinct from the others, yet at the same time the whole combines to form a meaningful set.
Collectors are also proud of their acquisitions. They love to show them off to colleagues and friends, unlike hoarders who often conceal their clutter. It can be said that showing off items is the hallmark of a collector.
Is That Collection a Chattel or a Fixture ©Avery Associates
Collections, to summarise the difference from hoards, are organized, systematic, and often labelled as if on permanent display. They may take up a similar amount of space to hoarding, but they do not block access routes through homes. They may even complement family life.
Squalor Compared to Clutter, Collecting and Disorder
A hoarded home can be a filthy, dirty, squalid place, and it often, almost inevitably is. However, a home can also be unsafe and unsanitary without an accompanying hoard. Squalor often develops in the case of elderly persons with physical disabilities and / or dementia.
While it is true that squalor accompanies compulsive hoarding, it also often occurs on its own. This may be due to the resident becoming disinterested in their own appearance, perhaps as a co-traveller of depression. The situation becomes serious if it involves ageing or deteriorating food. To summarise:
- There is no intention of acquiring, accumulating or collecting anything.
- The situation evolves in an uncontrolled fashion due to inability or neglect.
- The home itself often deteriorates likewise, and may need maintenance.
- The occupant may harm themselves unintentionally, or become infected.
A Disorderly Home is Different From a Hoarded Home
Some people are naturally untidy and disorganized. There is little harm in that, provided it does not endanger other people, including those living in the home. Here are a few ways to help you distinguish between disorder, and clutter collecting and squalor.
Examine the photograph above for signs of compulsive hoarding:
- There is no evident theme for the disorder. The person acquires it haphazardly.
- The clutter, for that is what it is, often ends up in basements and attics.
- But it may also end up in living spaces without preventing normal use.
- Common clutter like this does not usually cause financial or social stress.
Most noticeably, disorganized people are not overly stressed by someone intervening. This contrasts them strongly from collectors and hoarders.
How Avery Associates Assists With Clearing Services
There comes a time when clutter, collecting, disorder, squalor and general neglect demand attention to bring a property back to a safe and hygienic living space again. Avery Associates offers a quick, effective counter-solution to the four situations we describe here.
Contact us, or give us a call for a no obligation quote to clear and tidy a living space to the extent you require. One of our experienced valuers will manage our cleaning team, and retrieve any documents and items of value we find. We will hand these over to the client who appointed us, and await their further instructions.
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