Denver Hoarding Cleanup – Understanding a Hoarder’s Mentality

What You Should Expect from Professional Denver Hoarding Cleanup

Many people didn’t know that Clutter Trucker has been specializing in Denver hoarding cleanup for more than eight years. Hoarding cleanup is not like your normal junk removal, and usually requires a lot more understanding and lots of compassion.

It would be difficult to find anybody these days who is not aware of the obsessive compulsive disorder that is hoarding. Maybe you’ve seen the show ‘Hoarders’, you have a friend or family member who is a hoarder or you may even be a hoarder yourself.

The reality is that hoarding is a very real illness that can have a huge impact on both the hoarder and their families; causing distress, anxiety, and depression. In more severe cases hoarding itself can often be a symptom of another mental illness such as schizophrenia.

There are an estimated 6-15 million people affected by hoarding disorder in the United States. That’s between 2-5% of the entire population. Using this statistic, we can assume that in Denver alone, there could be approximately 13000 hoarders. So as you can imagine, a Denver hoarding clean up company would be in pretty high demand.

As a Denver hoarding cleanup business, it is common to receive calls from families outlining the extremity of the situation. Family members will recount their circumstances about how their loved ones have ended up in this position. Professional hoarding cleanup companies will often find themselves in the role of a counselor as well as their regular cleanup duties. Hoarders often believe that the businesses they contact have some expertise in hoarding disorders, and we should.

Any successful and trusted hoarder clean up operation should have a working knowledge of the psychological aspects behind hoarding. They should keep up-to-date with research, so that when they are on a job, they can deal with any reactions that may come their way. A hoarder will need comfort and support, and their ‘junk’ will need disposing of with care and sensitivity because ultimately the hoarders have an emotional attachment to their possessions.

Surprisingly, many hoarders believe (despite the statistics) that they are the only people in the world with their condition. It is often a source of great embarrassment for them, so it is vital that a hoarding clean up company go in and listen to their worries and anxieties.  Each new hoarding case is unique. A hoarder needs to feel that a clean up crew understands their situation for them to trust those cleaning up. Your priority should be that the process is as efficient and stress-free for the hoarder as possible.

If the hoarder has willingly accepted our assistance to clean up, then one good strategy is to ask what order they want us to remove their items. In some cases, what may look like piles of random clutter to most, is carefully indexed in the mind of the hoarder. Allowing them responsibility for the disposal of these items can help them come to terms with this enormous change in their lives.

Having insider knowledge of how the mind of each client works can be incredibly useful and also, aids in the continuing research of this illness. Share your findings with forums and academics because you never know, it might be something that a clean up crew discovers that can help find a cure or treatment for hoarding disorders.

You might be wondering why a Denver junk removal company is so desperate to see a reduction in hoarding. If we can remove their clutter and get them professional help (when necessary) to prevent it from happening again, it means our clients are happier, and our jobs are more fulfilling.

Learn more info on why we remain Denver’s #1 junk removal and hoarding cleanup company.

About Jennifer Hanzlick

Clutter Trucker is a Denver-based hoarding clean-out company founded by Jennifer Hanzlick. Jennifer leveraged 15 years of corporate experience in to start the company in 2008. Her mission is to help and educate individuals and their loved ones who have hoarding disorder. A featured speaker at Ted X Boulder, Jennifer works directly with community and non-profit organizations to boost public awareness about the condition. To that end, she founded the Colorado Hoarding Task Force in 2015.