Hoarding disorder

[Monty]

In hoarding disorder, people persistently have such difficulty discarding or parting with possessions that objects accumulate and clutter living areas enough to make them unusable.

Unlike collectors, people accumulate things in a disorganized way and have difficulty parting with things of little value.
Doctors diagnose the disorder when people accumulate too many possessions, have great difficulty parting with these possessions, and are significantly distressed or are less able to function because of the hoarding.
Certain antidepressants and cognitive-behavioral therapy may help.

Hoarding symptoms often begin during adolescence. The disorder may be mild at first but may gradually worsen as people age, causing substantial problems by the time people are in their mid-30s. About 2 to 6% people are thought to have this disorder.

[Dave Paprocki]

Hoarding disorder is characterized by persistent difficulty discarding or parting with possessions, regardless of their actual value. This difficulty results in the accumulation of possessions that congest and clutter living areas to the point that the intended use of the areas is substantially compromised.
Hoarding disorder often begins at a mild level during adolescence and gradually worsens with age, causing clinically significant impairment by the mid-30s. At any given point in time, an estimated 2 to 6% of people have this disorder.