hoarding disorder

noun

: a psychological disorder characterized by the persistent accumulation of a variety of items that are often considered useless or worthless by others and by the inability to discard such items without great distress

Note: The accumulation and clutter of items that occur in hoarding disorder lead to significant obstruction and congestion of living areas.

Many people with hoarding disorder benefit significantly from cognitive behavioral therapy, in which a therapist helps reduce clutter and prevent future hoarding.

—Robert Ashley

The problem with detecting hoarding disorder is the extremely long time-frame in which it manifests. A person may have traits of the disorder early in life, but functional impairment may take a long time to show up.

—Anne Halliwell

Besides dementia, hoarding disorder is the only mental health disorder that increases in severity and prevalence with age …

—Emily Gurnon

Examples of hoarding disorder in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The overall prevalence of hoarding disorder is around 2.6 percent, with higher rates reported for those over 60 years old and those with other psychiatric diagnoses, especially anxiety and depression. —David Faris, Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2024

According to a December 2023 article by Stanford Medicine, one in 40 people in the United States has a hoarding disorder. —David Faris, Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2024

Here's the truth about hoarding disorder – and how to help someone Animal shelter pleads for help after rescue The Animal Protective Association of Missouri, or the APA, also shared news Wednesday about the large cat rescue online and in a news release. —Saleen Martin, USA TODAY, 6 Sep. 2024

There are simply not enough clinicians who know how to treat hoarding disorder. —Claire Bugos, Verywell Health, 15 July 2024

Cognitive behavioral therapy is the current best treatment for hoarding disorder. —Claire Bugos, Verywell Health, 15 July 2024

An estimated 2% to 6% of people suffer from a hoarding disorder, according to the International OCD Foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports people with obsessive-compulsive disorder. —Madeline Holcombe, CNN, 21 June 2024

Hoarding and 'shock value' Treatments for hoarding disorder, naturally, will vary depending on severity. —David Oliver, USA TODAY, 8 Jan. 2024

Various experts have diagnosed him with several other disorders including depression, anxiety, PTSD and complex PTSD, and hoarding disorder. —Lane Sainty, The Arizona Republic, 1 Mar. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1999, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

hoarding disorder

noun

: a psychological disorder characterized by the persistent accumulation of a variety of items that are often considered useless or worthless by others and by the inability to discard such items without great distress regardless of their value

Note: The accumulation and clutter of items that occur in hoarding disorder lead to significant obstruction and congestion of living areas.

The problem with detecting hoarding disorder is the extremely long time-frame in which it manifests. A person may have traits of the disorder early in life, but functional impairment may take a long time to show up.

—Anne Halliwel

Many people with hoarding disorder benefit significantly from cognitive behavioral therapy, in which a therapist helps reduce clutter and prevent future hoarding.

—Robert Ashley

Besides dementia, hoarding disorder is the only mental health disorder that increases in severity and prevalence with age …

—Emily Gurnon