Volunteers help clear hoarder’s cluttered house - The Star Metro Perak

2 Jan 2018 by Manjit Kaur

Low (right) along with some volunteers helping Lee (standing left), clean up recyclable items inside her house.

SIXTY-EIGHT-year-old Lee Chin Lan was all smiles when a group of volunteers cleaned her house, which had been overflowing with with recyclable items.

It was be a fresh start for the year for Lee because not only was part of her house cleaned, Lee, fondly known as “Ah Mooi”, also received RM152 for a total of 266kg of recyclables bought by recycling organisation Koperasi Alam Hijau Perak Bhd (Kohijau).

Lee said she was very happy that her house was cleaned, and she promised not to collect anymore recyclable items to store in her house.

“I am hoping that once my house is fully cleaned, I will be able to bring my 43-year-old daughter who has been in the Ulu Kinta Hospital Bahagia since 2001.

Ipoh Barat MCA Youth chief Aldrich Low Guo Nan had previously brought the public’s attention to Lee’s plight, and on Dec 10 The Star reported that the senior citizen had been collecting and selling recyclables to make ends meet for the past 10 years.

According to Lee, her two daily meals consist of potato soup because that is all that she can afford. Her husband left her 40 years ago, and she has been staying alone, with no support.

Enough recyclable items to fill a small lorry were cleared from Lee’s home in Bercham.

Lee used to work as a cleaner, while her daughter used to study and work part-time when she was mentally fit.

After her plight was highlighted in the media, several non-governmental organisations such as Kohijau, Ipoh City Watch, Lions Club of Silver State, Rukun Tetangga Bercham and Bercham Residents Representative Committee volunteered to clean up her house on New Year’s Eve.

Plastic bottles, cardboard, and metal items were among the things collected from Lee’s house.

Kohijau chairman Associate Prof Dr Richard Ng said a full lorry load of recyclable items was collected from Lee’s living room.

“We need to come back and collect more items, as the bedrooms, I was told have more items ‘stocked’ up. There are many people like Lee, who has appears to have a habit of hoarding and refusing to let go of things even though it is necessary to get rid of items no longed needed,” he said, adding that he gave another RM100 to the woman as a personal donation.

Low, who is also a city councillor said after Lee’s plight was highlighted many people contacted him to offer help.

“A furniture company from Kuala Lumpur is willing to furnish her home with proper furniture, and individuals from as far as Penang came to visit her to provide cash and food items.

“However we need to make sure her house is properly cleaned first, before we can accept any furniture and so forth,” he added.

https://www.thestar.com.my/metro/metro-news/2018/01/02/clean-start-to-the-year-volunteers-help-clear-senior-citizens-cluttered-house/

One in every 50 people could be hoarders - The Star Metro Perak

METRO NEWS Tuesday, 9 Jan 2018  by Manjit Kaur

Ng (second from right) during a door-to-door campaign on dengue prevention, urging people not to keep unwanted items in their house

ONE in every 50 people are likely to be hoarders, a recycling organisation expert said.

Koperasi Alam Hijau Perak Bhd (Kohijau) chairman Associate Prof Dr Richard Ng said during their door-to-door dengue campaign, the Kohijau members have seen many cases of hoarders.

Ng, who is also the Ipoh City Watch president said, according to statistics, almost one in every 50 people is a hoarder, or display tendencies to be a compulsive hoarder.

“Local authorities need to step-in after identifying a person who is a suspected hoarder because of the danger they pose to themselves and others,” he said.

He said a supportive environment is required to encourage family members who are hoarders to seek help and treat them.

“Hoarders do not like people to take their possessions or clean up their environment unless they see a benefit from doing it.

“Therefore the Kohijau-iCycle recycling reward point system is a method that can help the society embrace the 3R (reduce, reuse,recycle) culture, and prevent them from hoarding as the system encourages people from discarding their unwanted items and be rewarded for it,” he added.

Ng added that the hoarding usually runs in a family largely because of psychological problems.

He said many hoarders are perfectionists and have fear of making the wrong decisions about what to keep and what to discard, thus they keep everything.

He added that compulsive hoarding in its worst forms could cause fires, unsanitary conditions (infestations of rats and cockroaches), and other health and safety hazards.

“If we observe people who hoards, they tend to hold onto a large number of items that most people consider useless or worthless.

“Some examples will be old catalogues, magazines, newspapers, worn out cooking utensils, clothes, items which are broken and trash.

“However their homes are cluttered to the point where it might even be inaccessible,” he said, adding that the mess is at a point where it causes illness, distress and impairment.

Ng said hoarders would not allow visitors, such as family and friends into their house, and sometimes repairs works are not done as they might feel embarrassed by their clutter.

He said arguments are common with hoarders and their family members regarding the clutter.

“Such hoarders can be treated through cognitive behaviour therapy which may help them change their behaviour,” he added.

Dr Ng said hoarding is an act of compulsive purchasing, acquiring, searching and saving items that have little or no value.

He said the behaviour usually has harmful effects – emotional, physical, social, financial and ever legal - for a hoarder and family members.

It is found that many people with hoarding disorder also experience other mental health disorders such as depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and hyperactivity, which may develop along with other mental illnesses such as dementia and schizophrenia.

“The compulsion to hoard often starts during childhood or their teenage years, but it usually becomes more severe in their adulthood” he added.

https://www.thestar.com.my/metro/metro-news/2018/01/09/compulsive-behaviour-issues-expert-says-one-in-every-50-people-could-be-hoarders-but-assures-conditi/