Hello JO :)

Sorry to hear this.
A great book for you to read is
"Digging Out"
It was written for people like us who have a resistant hoarder I n our lives.
Also, at the top of this page is a link titled
"Help For Families"
The other links there have some good information too.
Now for the bad news...
At her age I really doubt she will ever be "ready" to declutter.
But the good news is that you can force the issue of her having a safer home or face the possibility of being removed for her own good.
Meaning that there must be clear access to all doors & windows in case of fire.
No trip hazards, human or animal waste, rodent and/or insect infestations.
Access around the stove & water heater must always remain clear, etc...

Good luck & best wishes.
Please feel free to join us any time in the "daily chat" thread. :)

Hello All,

I am new to this board. I am here to understand hoarding. My mom is the hoarder. Her personality is one that expects to be taken care of. Someone to cook for her and clean for her and drive her around. I half jokingly say that I've been raising my mom since I was 12 years old. She is a hoarder. The whole house is hoarded. She has her bedroom stuff and there is a path to the bed that is also hoarded. She seems to think that one day someone is gonna come along and want to buy her dilapidated house and she'll make a big profit. My brothers and I have all offered to help her clean up to no avail. I am beginning to think it's either a depression or just her being lazy. For example..I bought her a vacuum over 10 years ago. Just yesterday my brother went over to change out her air filter. He went to use the vacuum and it was clogged solid. She hadn't bothered to change the vacuum bag in over 10 years!
We have all spoken to her about getting help cleaning up. She is very self righteous about it. She will clean up "when I am good and ready" She acts like a stubborn 2 year old. And she is 75.