By Cheryl Ellis, Staff Writer
Compulsive hoarding or collecting may have
developed from not having enough basic supplies during
younger years. The cliché “salad days” may
literally have meant that there were only vegetables
from the garden to eat. A parent who always made
sure there was plenty of food in the house may now not
only have 65 cans of green beans (bought at scratch
and dent warehouses), but stacks of newspaper coupons
that are beyond the expiration date.
Instead of cleaning house in one fell swoop, try
getting the elder to focus on the abundant stores
they have, and how they can help others who are less
fortunate. Some caregivers may have tremendous
stress when it comes to dealing with the situation.
At that point, calling in the “cavalry” of friends
and associates who offer vague help is in order.
“I need you to help by going through Dad’s canned
goods to find out which ones are expired or near
expiration. Can you go with us to donate them
to the local shelter?”
Any problems with compulsive hoarding require
help. The Obsessive Compulsive Foundation has
a website (http://www.ocfoundation.org/hoarding/)
designed to guide caregivers. Support groups
and other information can be found there. From
that point, work on recruiting friends and family to
help you with this issue. In the case of
animal hoarding, the local Humane Society may be of
help. Never, ever give any pet (hoarded or
just a small excess) to anyone you do not know, or
to any shelter that you do not know.
Even caregivers can have some obsessive
compulsive traits develop with the day-to-day
caregiving of an OCD elder. Look through
information to see where you may have borderline
events, too. By working through your own,
smaller issues, you may silently be helping your
loved one.
