Sorry for your situation.
The only things I can think to say is to "go slow".
A fast decluttering plan is always stressful even when the person is in the best of health.
Show respect for all the items.
Hoarders tend to identify with their possessions.
Disrespecting the items is like disrespecting them.

Best wishes and good luck,
Tillie

Hi everyone.
I'm writing to get some advice with regard to my father's house. He is a hoarder, and has been for decades. When my husband was an early teen (~10 years ago), his mother moved him out of the family house due to the excessive hoarding. My father continued to live there until last year. He moved in to the new family home when he was undergoing chemotherapy for terminal cancer.

The house has continued to be filled with items that he has continued to collect over the years, to the point where there are now five foot holes, allowing you to get in the front door and down the hall as far as the entry to the kitchen.

His health is rapidly deteriorating, and he wants to sell the house before he passes away. We hope that we would be able to buy the house, as it was built by my parents-in-law, but whether we are able to buy it or not, we need to clear, clean and repair the house.

It is clear that my father has had some drastic changes in his attitudes with regard to the items in his house, but I am also wary about hurting or distressing him while he is so ill. I have read multiple books, websites and articles on hoarding, cleaning hoards and dealing with hoarders, but I was wondering if anyone had any advice, either as a person who hoards or as someone who knows a person who hoards.

Thanks,

Katy