Originally Posted by LovingIzabella
I do not blame the family members but there comes a point where one must step in and do what is right for the other.
The bad thing is that the hoarder most often does not realize that they have a problem and "doing what's right" is very stressful for the hoarder. Without their participation and willingness to go through the ordeal, if someone just goes in and "cleans up" or throws out the rubbish, that will only result in more hoarding. It is a mental illness and it takes serious long-term support to help these people.
It pains me to watch them agonize over scraps of garbage and their inability to recognize it as such. To the hoarder, even the garbage can have paralyzing meaning.