A hoarder: someone who can’t stop collecting things but can’t bear to throw anything away. This one-off film takes a closer look at the debilitating condition and four extreme sufferers as they confront or are confronted with their hoarding.
Compulsive Hoarding is a growing phenomenon and a recognised manifestation of OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). It has only recently become the focus of research because the very nature of the condition keeps suffers shrouded in secrecy and shame.
Sufferers can be men or women, young or old; although most are only diagnosed at their most extreme, at the age of 50.
Many compulsive hoarders live claustrophobic, lonely existences, often in a vicious circle of deprived circumstances with their ever-accumulating piles of rubbish preventing them from even eating, sleeping and keeping themselves clean. The mess often becomes so dominant that it leads them to cut ties with family and friends, resulting in both their self-esteem and their social life suffering.
Released 2007. Director: Lucy Leveugle. TV documentary.
