Hoarding disorder is a condition that can lead to harmful and unsafe living circumstances. A hoarder might accumulate many items in their home and have trouble giving items away. Fortunately, there are a number of ways to help a loved one through a hoarding addiction and assist with their housekeeping. Below, learn how to effectively approach your loved one with sensitivity and compassion.

Don’t Enable Hoarding Habits

While you can’t prevent one’s hoarding behavior, you also don’t want to reinforce bad habits. Just as you wouldn’t enable someone with a gambling addiction by driving them to a casino, you don’t want to make hoarding easier for your loved one. Avoid gifting items that your loved one tends to hoard and don’t offer to keep their items at your house if they run out of space.

Help Organize Their Belongings Without Removing Them

While some believe that removing items on a hoarder’s behalf will help them clear out and start fresh, this can actually backfire by causing emotional turmoil. Instead, you can offer to assist with housekeeping, such as by helping your loved one organize and sort through items. Through this process, they may come to appreciate having more space and will not feel threatened.

Acknowledge & Commend Their Progress

If your loved one exhibits progress in regards to their hoarding addition, let them know that their efforts are recognized and appreciated. For instance, if they willingly remove some clutter and put it with the trash, reinforce this as a step in the right direction. This encouragement can go a long way in improving your loved one’s addiction and enable them to form positive associations with cleaning.

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