"Buried Alive"

"Those who hoard bear the weight of their mess plus a mental disorder only now being understood. Treatment programs are just beginning."
-Carey Goldberg, Globe Staff

Go to: http://www.boston.com/yourlife/health/diseases/articles/2007/04/02/buried_alive/ for the full article.

The article "Buried Alive" was published in the Boston Globe on April 2, 2007 and touches upon a weird issue. I say that it's weird because I have never heard of such a condition before. The story profiles a man who refuses to throw anything anyway and has junk piled up in his bedroom. We're not talking about a messy person here. We're talking about someone who has to save everything. It is now believed this condition is a form of obsessive compulsive disorder which affect 1 % to 2% of the population. Not much is known about this mental condition, but mental health experts have labeled it as a legitimate disorder. People who suffer from this disorder are often seen as slobs or lazy, when their intent is genuine. They don't want to be wasteful. I have never heard of such a condition, but I would think that if you're entire bedroom has a two-foot high pile of garbage and junk that there is a bigger problem then a lacking desire to clean.