Causes of hoarding

No one knows exactly what causes hoarding, but there are lots of theories. Different people will have different reasons for their own experiences. It's likely to be a combination of factors.

I call my mum a hoarder because she is, I just had no idea that I'd become one too. I thought of my childhood and the shame I felt that my house wasn't like my friends' houses.

Difficult feelings

Hoarding can be related to difficult experiences and painful feelings. You may find these hard to express, face or resolve.

Some people say hoarding helps them cope with other mental health problems. Or that it distracts them from feeling very anxious, upset or afraid.

There can sometimes be a link between hoarding and impulse control. This is when you find it almost impossible to resist certain actions, such as buying items.

Perfectionism and worrying

If you hoard things, you might feel very worried about making mistakes. This is also known as perfectionism.

You might also find it hard to make decisions, plan ahead or work out how to do tasks. These could be possible reasons why some of us are more vulnerable to hoarding.

For example, you might struggle to sort or group your things into types, or to decide what to keep or throw away. The idea of this might seem so difficult or upsetting that it feels easier not to try.

Sometimes I get triggered because I have anxieties about society's expectations of what I should be doing or achieving.

Childhood experiences

Some researchers believe hoarding can relate to childhood experiences of losing things, not owning things, or people not caring for you.

This might include experiences like:

• Money worries or experiencing poverty.
• Having your belongings taken or thrown away by someone.
• Hardship, emotional abuse or neglect. For example, if your basic needs weren't met, or people didn't treat you with warmth or support.

These experiences might make you feel more connected to your belongings. Or make it hard for you to organise them.

My parents were full of stories of their parents' and grandparents' deprivations, it was part of my world view growing up, and I know that chronic disorganisation multiplies the impact of every extra item I have.

Trauma and loss

You might be able to link the start of your hoarding to a traumatic period in your life. This could include:

• Being abused, bullied or harassed, including experiencing racism
• Breaking up with a partner
• Experiencing physical health problems
• Bereavement or losing someone close to you
• Feeling extremely lonely or isolated
• Experiencing long periods of stress, or feeling stressed a lot

For some of us, if we started hoarding before a traumatic period in our lives, these experiences could make our hoarding worse. 

It was like she built a wall of stuff to keep everyone out. Having experienced several traumatic events in her life. No-one could hurt her if she was protected by all of this stuff.

Family history or habits

It's common for those of us who hoard to have family members who share this behaviour, such as a parent or sibling. Some studies suggest that certain genes could make you more vulnerable to hoarding.

But family links are complicated. If you grew up around hoarding, you might have learned some of these habits and behaviours. You could also hoard without having any other family members who do.

If you live with someone who hoards, this may mean you have more clutter in your home overall. You might find it really difficult to make changes because you disagree with each other on what to keep or throw away.

There's more information about living with someone who's hoarding on our page Helping someone who hoards.