Major conference on hoarding disorder kicks off in Edinburgh

The recognition of hoarding and chronic disorganisation as a mental health condition is the subject of a conference in Edinburgh today.

The condition, which results in people collecting so many items in their homes that it limits their quality of life, impacts an estimated 200,000 people in Scotland.

Hoarding disorder became a newly classified mental health condition earlier this year.

Edinburgh based not-for-profit community interest company Life-Pod organised the conference, which is being held at the Corn Exchange.

It will explore how best to organise interventions, and hear from psychologists, Joanna Cherry QC MP and Mike Flynn of the SSPCA, who is expected to outline the impact of clutter on animals.

Life-Pod is the brainchild of hoarding adviser Linda Fay, who said the condition usually co-exists with other conditions such as depression, anxiety, ADHD, brain injury, schizophrenia, autism, and is often triggered by traumatic life events like poverty in the early years.

Previous responses to the condition by services have included forced removal from homes, but Fay hopes new approaches can be less traumatic, recognising there is no cure for hoarding, but that it is a treatable condition that can be managed with the correct support.

Fay told Holyrood: “I hope by raising awareness of the mental health classification of hoarding, and by encouraging related professionals to collaborate better for long-term success, we can help local authorities to develop multi-agency policy and practice guidelines.”

Dave Woods, who suffers from the disorder, said: “You have to do it in your own time, with patience and compassion. But there is hope that it can be done. Just be clear about why you are doing it, and only let go of things when you feel you want to.”