Brexit Theory

Due to Brexit a significant rise in the number of problem hoarders could be linked to the huge uncertainties surrounding Brexit, it has been claimed. Darlington’s council has been told that authorities were examining why there had been a surge in issues. This mainly relates to people collecting unmanageable amounts of clutter in their homes.

While the extent of the issue remains to be identified, senior officers stated there is a clear rise in the compulsive collecting. Action was being taken to try and challenge the behaviour. It creates big health and safety risks for the individuals and their neighbours.

Hoarding vs Collecting

Hoarding is not the same as collecting. In general, collectors have a sense of pride about their possessions. They experience joy in displaying and talking about them. They usually keep their collection organised, feel satisfaction when adding to it, and budget their time and money.

Those who hoard usually experience embarrassment about their possessions and feel uncomfortable when others see them. They have clutter, often at the expense of liveable space, feel sad or ashamed after acquiring additional items, and they are often in debt.

Spotting and savouring an item’s so-called uniqueness is linked to one of the information processing problems that accompanies hoarding. The concept is called under-inclusion, and it’s a thought pattern that interferes with the ability to group similar items together – a key part of organising. So, rather than having one category for yarn, the hoarder will see one category for the yellow yarn, pale yellow yarn, saffron yellow yarn, sunflower yellow yarn etc, thus ending up with forty different categories each containing just one object.

To find out more about the theory of Brexit and hoarding, click on the image below…

 

Remember, if you or someone you know is suffering from hoarding, you can contact us at www.facebook.com/CloudsEndCIC for help.

To read more stories like this one, why not take a look at some of our other blog articles here.