Hoarders: TEXAS Hoarders - Mega-Marathon! | A&E

thank you [Music] I'm Carmen and I'm a retired data management specialist [Music] I now consider myself to be a hoarder I've moved into my home almost 20 years it's about 3 200 square feet the way things are in here right now I do not feel like I'm at home I don't feel like I'm in a place where I belong I don't feel like a human being in this house most of my horde consists of holiday decorations and seasonal decorations I definitely have a lot but I love them all if I didn't love them I wouldn't have them in the family room you'll find some garbage you'll find some clothes both clean and not clean you'll find used drink cups I currently sleep in a chair I do have beds upstairs that I could sleep in but my lymphedema is bad going up the stairs is difficult so I'd prefer to sleep in the chair walking into the kitchen you see a filthy kitchen you will see a sink wall that has dirty dishes and take out stuff that needs to be thrown away emptied and thrown away um we have a problem with the plumbing so there are no working bathrooms in the house using the bathroom I have a system set up where the paper products are collected and thrown out at the end of the day it is absolutely horrible moralizing awful and disgusting to live like this and Carmen is my mom [Music] the last time I was at my mother's house was several years ago the condition of the home then was extreme it was certainly cluttered and there were lots of boxes and there was disorganization I am concerned that the house will be obviously much worse I have concerns for her safety in the home and I have concerns about just the standard of living that she's now accepted for herself as normal and it's not normal [Music] I got a call from my first love Mike we got together when I was 12. he was 15. we met a church and we were together for about eight months I knew that was the guy that God created for me I just knew it he calls me out of the blue 40 years later and we saw each other and it was it it was over we're doing this we're finally getting it together foreign [Music] [Music] my mom has really dealt with Mike's death um by purchasing things and staying at home she has closed herself off to her friends to the family in lots of ways time stopped when Mike died and it hasn't started again 11 months after Michael's death I had a problem with my neck and I ended up disabled my job of over 20 years is gone and I am without the only thing I have where I can go and not think about what's going on in the house that Michael is gone and then I'm forced to be here in the stuff and I'm not physically able to do anything with the stuff and that's driving me insane I can't find my good jewelry including my wedding ring which is a sapphire set in two diamonds and it's just getting worse around me and I want to fix it and I can't even make the decisions necessary to fix it I died I just died good morning good morning we are excited to be here excited to help Carmen yes good I'm glad you're excited I am Carolina Harvey professional organizer and productivity expert so Carmen this is your daughter Melissa correct right we have Melissa here and her husband Eric welcome and Robin Michael's sister right and Scott your brother Robin correct yes welcome it's great to have you guys here we have a huge team to help you we have The Stand Up Guys we have the organizers and we have Dr zazio to help you out so Carmen do you give us permission to start in from the front entryway you can start wherever you want all right I like it that's perfect is everybody ready yeah all right let's do this come on come on this one's a little heavy let me just give you that one we'll call it [Music] oh goodness Michael's obituaries that's when we had his memorial service so we're going to keep or donate at this point because there's probably not a lot of trash here right Linens keep Linens you want to keep all the Linens yep how about we pull them all out first and see here no I'm keeping them all and keep them all I know what they are how many tables do you have two so you want to keep all of them there's none that you're willing to donate I want to keep them all so if we run into more linens are you going to get rid of some of those not if they're new no you said you want to keep these as well yep okay there is going to be a point where you're not going to have enough space to store all the Linens that you keep and if I have to make another Choice I'll make it they're for Easter can we donate those no so you want to keep these also okay video DVD collection yeah I'm keeping that I've kind of been watching on the sidelines you can tell you're getting a little bit elevated yeah we already knew that the new stuff was going to be tough for you so don't mistake Carolina's pushing you for this idea that we want you to get rid of everything at the end of the day we just want to make sure you have room for everything so Dr salzio when there's always a reason how do we move forward so this is where Mom struggles she sees value in all the stuff she purchased once again what we have to get back to is where are we going to put all this stuff just work with us and know that we have your best interest at heart and we are thinking about the big picture okay we don't want to put everything back in bins and boxes that you can't get to not go push you I'm going to really encourage you all right okay and know that every day is going to be just like today we're going to walk you through every step no surprises no sneaky business it's all going to be just like we've done here okay foreign [Music] concerned that when the real volume starts to come out of the house the challenge becomes completely different because there's always going to be a reason why it should stay I want you to take back your life you think I don't want my life back Melissa do you not think I want I want a life the hardest thing of all is the future I planned with my husband is over when Mike died I died I know that you're not gonna need the same person and I don't know what life on the other side of this looks like but this is a den of grief and sadness and anger and shame and wretchedness you are so buried I don't know how to make you stop grieving I haven't that's the whole point mom you have grieved you've just grieved in the most destructive way possible maybe so that's true but I don't know how I'm in this place well I want to let go of the old welcome the new and I want to move on with a life it's hard Eric uh Robin and Scott can I see you guys in the house really quickly please okay so let's have an honest conversation as a family sure okay the reality of the situation is all of the has to come back into the house because there's no place else for it to go so none of the problem is solved with the hugs and kisses and the we understand and it's not that we don't love her and it's not that we don't understand but it is that we have a goal and an objective to accomplish that is the reason there are eight people standing out there with nothing to do because nobody wants to hold her accountable to make the hard decision and I get it I don't want to do it either if I have to be the bad guy and be the only one to say come to do that I know it's not fair for you to do that I'm willing to do that I've been said that's just the beginning so stop that you need to take a deep breath that's true okay unless I'm hearing what you're saying you know your mom better than anybody okay I hear what you're saying so how about this how about if we all go back in again and say look because you're not able to make any you're still you're still struggling we're going to extend today and try to make another run and another push to get rid of stuff okay okay with with that in in that respect should should we hit it at well then fine we're leaving then no no no okay okay so I'm just I understand the kids love thing I do but I also understand ways to motivate her to go forward not through threats that's right she'll then threaten you back and call your bluff we'll get there I promise I've been there a couple times with her and then after that point then it all comes out it all comes out let's go back out tell her that we're not going to shut down for the day that we're gonna give it another push and I want all of you out there to observe her and if she's not showing an increase in Improvement then you guys need to swoop it okay does that sound okay okay thank you all right let's hit it okay Melissa's tried the loving approach but as the day continued she just couldn't do it anymore and interestingly enough they're both in similar positions Melissa fearful that her mom is not going to get this house in order Carmen fearful of letting go of their stop so we'll just have to see what happens Okay so we've set up the space so that you can look at all the different categories your household supplies your craft supplies your papers Furniture dog supplies I wanted you to see the volume of what you have okay so we're gonna do a push right all hands on deck you ready to do this yeah all right let's go [Music] okay what about all your little pink baskets this is supposed to go inside the furniture in this spare bedroom upstairs I need those we're keeping those light bulbs we're keeping those are the new curtains for the breakfast is this is that a keep box yes we'll put those in my little box on the side [Music] that's for the laundry mat okay so that one we keep open that one up just a double check it desperate times sometimes call for desperate measures hi Dad I want to tell you we love you very much very much we've been through a lot of problems together and we have been able to solve all of them and move on but you're confronted with a problem right now it seems like it's a river it's raging River and it's just too big to cross we wish we could be there with you however you have love runs that you're surrounded by I want the very best for you your mother and I view this event as an opportunity of a lifetime for you and I am asking you with all of our laws really Carmen tooth get rid of this stuff so you can lead a good life thank you Dad it it means a lot to me that you were willing to talk to me and I I hear what you're saying yes and it was better coming from you there's a new life for you okay Dad we're gonna help you live it thank you Grandpa we love and appreciate you we'll call you soon what did that mean for you I'm dead as a Christian man he's a good man and I know he loves me and it was nice to hear him say those things it gives me a little bit more help these items are a hindrance and a burden and prevent her from living the life that she deserves and I think she really needed to hear her father say that to her and tell her that she deserved to have better and to do better and that she could do better and he would love and support her through that you ready to get started yes yep all right let's do it let's do it keep uh donate a well-oiled machine here yeah a little further go leave so these are donated okay bye bye all right can I have another donate box please thank you the shampoo donate I am not keeping any of these things we're in the bedroom and everything seems to be going just fine and then all of a sudden out of the blue I there's too many people here I'm starting to get panicky I'm gonna have to have a chair okay do you feel like you're gonna have a panic attack yeah okay I need to get her out of here take her back through that way get her out I know Carmen's anxiety level is heightened so I'm gonna have to keep a close eye on her because the last thing that I need her to do is to have a panic attack and shut everything down deep breath there you go now just breathe normal you just making sure blood pressure is good what is it blood pressure is 130 over 82. well that's the best it's been you know what [Music] 72. the past few days have been really overwhelming we've been pushing her really hard she's just getting worn down and she needs to rest I think that we need to come up with a plan B for your bedroom because that is a massive job I need her okay but hang on a second So the plan is Melissa you're going to be in charge of the bedroom okay she has indicated that all of Michael's clothes can go is that correct I know there's a couple of things yeah with the exception of a few items sure and the sports memorabilia stuff okay I'll start that does that sound okay yes let's do that okay okay this is a donate donate donate [Music] donate donate you can get rid of that anything important we're in the final push today I'm excited to keep going and get the house ready for Carmen and the family but we still have every room to touch the bedroom the bathroom the kitchen the living room the dining room and our Collectibles room we need all hands on deck [Music] get rid of it sold okay it's not old but you can donate it because I don't like it keeping this no no okay it's not fixable okay thank you [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] foreign those front doors and looking into an entry that was clear and a dining room where we could have family gatherings and have those experiences that are so important to her and to our family it's just it's such a great experience and it's such a great feeling I'm thrilled yeah yes speechless to be able to come back into my dining room and enjoy it this is phenomenal to me it's beautiful it is lovely you're happy very okay I couldn't be happier good truly we are going to continue on the tour and while we're here we don't want to ignore the elephant in the room which is right behind you so do a little about face there so you wanted to keep a hundred percent of your holiday decor and it's staring at you I'm glad that it's all in one place yeah and that it's all in front of me to make me see how much I actually have the volume you have yeah because that's insane [Laughter] um so okay but you recognize it that's really good you recognize it's too much yes good over the last four days we filled three dumpsters of trash we filled one dumpster with donations and we opened over a thousand boxes and the majority of it went back into the house and back into the garage you still have a lot of stuff to go through and I know your family said they're willing to support you and look through it with you so I hope that still will happen so that you can pare down I can manage this I can stick with this and I'm gonna have help [Music] in Carmen's case Aftercare is going to be an essential process in order for her to continue her grief process and not revert back to hoarding behaviors she feels very confident that that's not going to happen but the reality is the percentage of people that do revert back to hoarding behaviors is over 90 percent so she really is still at risk even though she's feeling very confident this process comes full circle and we were looking for all of the treasures and it was always a needle in a haystack foreign I was over the moon to get my ring back on my finger where it belongs back on my ring thank you you're welcome it feels right to be wearing it and I missed it a whole bunch so I was really grateful I'm just all just overwhelmed for every every start over it's been the most incredible experience of my life it really has it's been so positive I'm not going to let you down I'm not I'm going to do you proud okay it's not by any means about us and it's about you and your relationship with your family absolutely I'm so blessed with family you really are and you've demonstrated that through all your hard work so I want to say welcome home thank you very welcome thank you very much [Music] [Music] my name is Kathleen and I'm a teacher yes I'm a hoarder I save clothes that everybody in the family's outgrown materials to use for art projects at school the toilet paper roll hey you can make something out of that you can make multiple things out of that I just feel guilty about throwing something away in the trash that could be recycled bottles of shampoo plastic bags a lot of paper my name is Melissa I'm 16 years old and Kathleen is my mom her hoarding really really affects me I couldn't walk around without stepping on something and it's really hard place to focus when I'm trying to work it's gotten to the point where we don't have a working refrigerator I think our microwave might work but we don't really have anything to put in there I barely eat at home [Music] when my dad passed away my mom's hoarding God like a million times worse than it was before I think my hoarding did accelerate after my husband's death somebody wasn't there to nag me about it that probably made it worse because it was just me I don't think that my dad would approve the way we're living now foreign I'm 52 years old and Kathleen is my sister [Music] last time I was in her home and I discovered how bad things really were I told Kathleen I would not sit back and continue to let Melissa live under these circumstances I'm an attorney and I do have the resources to take Melissa out of the house it does hurt my feelings to think that my sister Paula would try to take my daughter out of the house I Feel Like a Villain for exposing her but I've done all this trying to prevent a situation such as child protective services coming in [Music] good morning everybody good morning my name is Geralyn Thomas and I'm a certified professional organizer specializing in chronic disorganization all right Kathleen I know you're nervous and happy apprehensive about what we're going to do today feeling a little very stressed out I think one of the biggest challenges working with Kathleen is going to come between Kathleen and her sister her sister definitely wants to control the situation and call the shots Paula I can't help noticing you're already really immersive what are you thinking oh I just you know guilt done something before now my name is Mark pfeffer I'm a licensed psychotherapist and specialist in the treatment of people with anxiety disorders including compulsive hoarding when you approach these things you think Coulda Shoulda Woulda you've been very instrumental in making all this happen problem so I hope part of you within that Guild could also be proud of yourself [Music] April of 07. that's wrong what [Music] I'm gonna throw it away toss throat keep never been opened happy birthday candles I mean it's never been open you can be used throw it away thank you it's just it's just a bottle was that from your high school this Shelf has nothing on it anymore we have three empty shelves we're about to have four and a full trash bag s oh my God this situation I was living in was very serious I I didn't realize how bad it was until we uncovered a lot of things I don't know what that is I had no idea what was under all that stuff is it worse than you were thinking yes okay first of all there was a snail that automatically I almost gagged the health hazards are just too numerous to count she has spoiled food grass black mold everything that should not be in a person's kitchen it's in there Marco what are you looking at gross it was clean completely this entire kitchen by okay Marco and my daughter three years ago and in three years now we have mold the smell is just incredible smell like cheese smells like something is dead in here really yeah it just smells strong okay maybe a rat got in the kitchen definitely surprised me it's a lot worse than I thought it was I want you to look at the expression on your daughter's face and then your son's face and use his motivation to never let this happen again I was paying attention to the look under the mask there was extreme disappointment and anger it was a symphony of emotion that I won't soon forget this is completely unhealthy and I hate living like this sorry I don't know how it came to this [Music] do you know what we're doing in here do you know the goal of this uh my family wants to get in my room they think I'm hiding some deep dark secret and they don't believe that I'm not okay and I told them there's nothing nasty in here nothing wet nothing moldy there's a lot of school stuff I honestly don't know why she didn't want people in that room she sleeps in there she couldn't even get to her bed there was not a path I think it's the worst room in the house what was that one that is not trash when was the last time you used it yeah that is not trash so many of the very expensive those are all over the house where are you gonna put that for Kathleen the room that she is storing most of her emotional Laden objects is in her bedroom so the reason why I feel it's important to finish the job in that room is so she could realize that she can let go of those items or donate them and the world won't come to an end these every single thing in this house oh and I'll just say this is sad for a minute [Music] everything we are seeing in this house is everything you have ever hoarded period you don't have a storage facility not anymore I couldn't afford it I actually was shredding what I thought were legal documents and all of a sudden I found a document for a storage unit but you do not have a storage facility no and you weren't still paying on it till 2007. no well how come I found bills for 2007. 2007 2007 I have one so once again this little trust factor between us has been broken this crap is showing your children you don't care about their college you don't care about their future you don't care about them now but you sure as God care about having storage units in two different states to put this crap in that's the message you're giving to your children and to me and once again lying to me okay I've said enough I got very upset because once again she has spent money that she doesn't have on a storage unit for her hoarding and yet these children have gone without Kathleen do you know why your sister's so angry you're hearing a few of the things she's saying today yes and what are you hearing her say I need to get rid of my crap it was really necessary for Kathleen and Paula to have this blow up this morning so we could show Kathleen what Paula was feeling over some issues that I think has been going on in the family for many years it's on you right now today to make decisions about that storage to make decisions about being honest and the most important person to be honest with is you you hear me yeah so let's work together and take care of it get back to work Merry Christmas in August these are donate donate those can go trash trash and more trash all of this foreign [Music] I'm excited to have my room and it looks like I've been able to have friends over really soon I'm so excited for you is great this is exactly what I wanted for there's still work that needs to be done but no I wanted her to have her spice oh this is a long time coming I couldn't resist I haven't oh my God I kept telling myself and other people that I could do it by myself and obviously I couldn't because it went on for years and years and years and years and years this is the person who lit this whole idea on fire do you feel appreciated I definitely do I don't think she's gonna be as quick to try to cover up her ax because being caught I mean it's obviously not going to be easy for her she obviously has a problem so we really just gotta seek out help for her and hopefully she can be better and we can keep this house clean I am not resistant to therapy I'm excited about therapy because I know it can only help [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] and I'm from small Texas town my house is the disaster it's got stuff stacked up in it every time you mowed you run into something and you spend about an hour picking everything up I was always going to do something and then you know go to climb on the ladder one day and you can't climb on it you don't got too old when I'm gonna eat I I have a microwave oven or I have a toast driven under a fridge well I was too embarrassed to have anybody in my house you know so I just parked it out there I just come out and get it out of the freezer thaw it out and then cook it I'm Misty and Jan is my mom I haven't been to my mom's house in 17 years you could walk through it but she had boxes everywhere I just got to watching too much TV and you know what it just made you feel good to buy something and hear the UPS truck come up you know what I get today you know lots of times you'd forget what she ordered foreign they follow me if I can make it they can make it they told me she had 10 dogs especially in a house like that this is my bedroom this is where I sleep with my dogs so I don't mind having them up here better than having to put up with lip service from a man I'm Chief Robert Johnson Janet is a citizen of my community we had received a call from a neighbor and he was concerned for her welfare and safety it was a really super hot day and so he called the fire people to come and check on her I was talking on the phones and I had the TV on I didn't hear him knocking they thought they possibly had a deceased person in the residence I came out of the bedroom and I seen two men in the hallway I said what are y'all doing they said third Chief we're here to check on you I'll meet you outside I thought that gonna go out there there's like three cop cars we did generate a report which was forwarded to Adult Protective Services she does not clean this residence up then our code enforcement division could get involved and she could be displaced from her home so I don't clean up they're probably going to make me move out you know and they'll come in and clean it up themselves and then send me the bill [Music] probably one of the worst cases that I've ever seen in my career what we would like to see is the house is cleaned up so that if there is any type of emergency that Emergency Medical Teams can get in there my name is Matt Paxton I'm an extreme cleaning specialist we also have cats on the property how many do you think there are do you know I don't know they broke in the garage the garage door had a hole in it and they got in there and had kittens she has more animals than what you can have by our code and so that number would have to be down to three which kid do you want to keep right that's a tough one what do you thinking Jim nothing but let's change the subject okay so we're back to cleaning house so what are you doing with these dogs are you gonna bring them back or what um we're gonna because you don't know which three I'm keeping so you can't possibly be doing this I need to know are you taking them back and keeping them are you gonna let me run an ad you need to call the chief police to find out yes ma'am please yes ma'am my name is Mark pfeffer I'm a licensed psychotherapist and specialist in the treatment of anxiety and compulsory the dogs represented to Jan her family over the last 20 years really that's all she's had they told me when they picked him up that I could run an ad and sell them you turn you turn to have the adoptions but they had to take possession of them because you could only permitted three by state law Dan is also a very tough cookie so for her to show any emotion tells us how powerful that the feelings must have been for her to let go we'll go to the Pug Rescue or they'll be adopted out because they'll be okay thanks a lot some parts of this stuff is sad you know so could we please continue 57 still good I want that radio stuff has an expiration date on it I don't care what it's got on it it's 2002. it's not gonna hurt it's still got jail in it you know it's expired 2002. look at it it's it's there thank you 10 years old now why are you throwing things at me now if I was throwing something at you you would know it okay because I would probably hit you what I witnessed today was Misty's voice getting louder and louder he stood up there now let's get let's kick didn't win that one but you're registering you're finding your voice I want to finish the conversation because your daughter I told you I'm not talking about it you don't have to talk you listen to me then I want to translate for you what your daughter was saying Mom I don't want you to go back to the way you were I love you the way you are right now wait wait a second wait a second let me finish let me just finish it no sense of humor you can't laugh we're not saying you can't have a sense of humor I'm just saying I don't want you to go back to what this is now well I appreciate it I'm sure you'll be coming up here to check on me regularly at translation I'm the mom I don't like when you say that to me I want you to agree with me she should have the right to disagree with you sometimes entitled to her opinion that's right but she's what she was saying to me she loves you she wants you to have a life that's what she said can we continue that's the best we're going to do for right now and I think she heard you [Music] floors in this house have this poop mache we tried to pick it up piece by piece and it just crumbles the only way to get it out Sawzall [Music] she hadn't been to the beauty parlor in 20 years it's so important to give someone not only a home back but some self-esteem you guys look awesome thank you what have you been doing so far today we've been getting beautified you did the hard work to reconnect you did the hard work to let go of things we took 26 tons of trash out of this house almost 50 000 pounds oh a rock oh my gosh she just dropped all the walls and showed her true emotion oh this is out of sight you said to me there was a lot of nosy people in this neighborhood and turns out you're right everything you're looking at is donated by people from your town it's amazing and I'm most grateful that was unbelievably shocking to her she truly didn't think anyone in the world cared about her wow oh my gosh the outpouring of generosity was almost a prescription for home mental health I've never had anybody be this kind to me Jan really did everything she could to make this crisis go away oh and there's a picture of the pugs oh my gosh thank God the county agreed she can stay in this home she can live here happily she can keep three dogs I'd say this is a success I just don't feel as alone now I feel closer to my daughter we've learned to actually listen to each other I am optimistic about the future [Music] my name is Christina I'm 55 and I'm a psychologist pitiful my house is pitiful cluttered it's it's hard to be in it's not very inviting it's just pitiful I'm Hannah I'm 13 and Christina's my mom getting her on it it's kind of easy for me because I can like jump over things but we try to at least make somewhat of a path for people to get through it's just difficult to walk through the house and I'm always afraid because I fall and trip over things that I'm gonna break my hips or something like that you know I used to not live like this at all but when I got sick it just kind of everything got messed up [Music] my name is Dr Donna Becker and I'm one of Christina's Physicians when she sweeps the house she stirs up more dust so the longer she's in a house that has many allergens then kind of the worst the asthma gets and she can't breathe and she can't clean the house so you know it just sort of perpetuates itself in a way the house that she's living in now is a danger to her because of the Clutter well it was at night time and she had like I think she dropped her glasses but on the side of the bed and she was getting down to get them but she couldn't get back up and I couldn't breathe and I was starting to turn blue and everything and I just was yelling in a way that I could get my last air out and finally Hana heard me in her room if she hadn't been there to pull me up that I could have died I don't want to live like this it's kind of lonely living like this [Music] my name is Fred and I've known Christina's since May of 2007 we had a very significant relationship [Music] at a number of occasions she wouldn't show up in time because she couldn't find the car keys you know we talk about the future sometimes and he would just say there's no place for me there's no room for me in your house and I met her without the the Clutter I I know I probably would still be with Christina [Music] when I was over there I was in a very difficult situation with my boss there was lots of betrayal in the system [Music] emotionally I just was broken down physically I was broken down [Music] that all my stuff came back from Germany and then the people just dumped it on the floor and I was so sick and so it just stayed like this I asked Christina if she'd always lived like this I was trying to find an answer [Music] I read this it was considered as a possible Theory often a person would be near an auto accident when a death would occur in a hospital under sedation when a death would occur and the deceased individual would take up residence and someone whose defenses were lowered and so I was thinking that maybe we should try to go in hypnosis and find out if there's someone that has come into your life changing your personality causing you to hoard and what I encountered was a small boy who every time I tried to reason with him he would he would retreat but so the more I would press the more angry and upset the little boy would become and finally it just it couldn't go any further because he just shut up so I didn't try it again and we sort of left it there good morning Christina good morning Dr zazio my name is Standalone Robertson I'm a certified professional organizer Mark and I are here and we got a full day of work okay one of the most important rules is no one throws anything on the truck but the 1-800 guys does that mean I can't get in the truck and pull stuff back out my goal is that you won't have to do that because you would have approved everything that goes on the truck so let's get started everybody can do whatever they do before the dump truck leaves I'll probably be standing in the drum truck going okay no this wasn't supposed to go no this wasn't supposed to go [Music] foreign I can tell you the progress is a little bit slower than what I anticipated it's easier if I have another bag to do it into my concern was I didn't know we would go through the trash in such I guess I can get thrown out [Music] people must think this is hilarious somebody going through the trash my name is Dr Robin zazio I'm a licensed clinical psychologist and a specialist in compulsive hoarding tell me something positive I don't see anything positive that wasn't positive tell me something positive what are you doing right now this is easy because I already know it's trash tell me what you're doing I'm throwing it away hey that's your positive for the moment Christina is already physically exhausted she's feeling very very tired but emotionally she's exhausted as well I was hoping you would take a quick Peak no I have to see it she's not looking at the big picture and we have all of this Manpower around and we're all ready to make decisions and she's down on the floor you know picking off Little Bees hey there's another nickel around 10 cents I don't think that's garbage Christina oh how's it going what do you I mean is it all trash no what we'll do is you can point out what isn't trash and I can find out how it got in the trash [Music] because I know that we end up using some of this so shut down right now what's what do you think I don't want to talk with the cameras on you ready for another pile yes I am Hannah is doing amazing she's a very strong little girl she is feeling very hopeful about the future and starting to have some of her dreams come true which include having friends over having a birthday party it looks wonderful in here Hannah you've done a great job Smiles good job but I have a long way to go so we gotta get back to work yes ma'am okay I gotta talk to you about something what we have piles and piles uh trash and donate stuff that you haven't gone through and I want you to take a look and see if we can in the big picture take a chance of just letting me know sorry nope even if it means vacuuming even if it means getting around some of the stuff I'll move some of the stuff around for them to vacuum but I have to look through it it's sort of in the front that somebody would just think it's okay to just come in here and take all my stuff and that I wouldn't be part of it sort of like I'm invisible on the screen if they think that they can just they can just come in and do away with that without talking to me about it I understand what you're saying but I think that's where there's a little flaw in the thinking because you can't keep up with the pace I'm not going to do it okay I'm sorry okay I'm getting starting to get real anxious if you ask me to do it okay no I have to look through it okay let's let's go you sure this is where you want to take okay it's done just if somebody will hold the trash bag open it'll go faster well I can go hanging up she's very fixated on going through every single item in every single box in the living room and while that's the process that we need in the long run I don't think it's the best use of her time currently right now there's not very much in uh in the one truck we have put stuff in there's about less than one quarter of one of our trucks and that's that's not a whole lot okay this goes to Hana okay whoa Christina just take a moment no I I spent too many moments I have to stop okay I don't want to stop I I'm listening I think we need to either slow down because what we've turned into now is like we're throwing things and I know that that's not the direction you want to go I just want to get it done this goes in the bathroom this goes where important papers go this goes in the trash there's a little bit of a shift from yesterday versus today Christina has really focused on the small specific pieces that she wants to sift through I'm just not sure that this is the best use of her time currently with all the help that she has we're putting stuff that I'm going to put in that thing figurines that are gonna go in this piece over here your daughter has identified that she would like to donate these clothes now if you're going to ask me if I'm going to do it without going through it the answer is no okay so you're not gonna nope let her donate her property nope okay I paid for it it's not all her property tell me what that feels like for you I just want to go back with me it's going to be critical that Hana participate in therapy with Christina and they need to develop respect for one another's property the things that Hannah wants to throw out mom needs to let her throw those things out [Music] fantastic I think Hannah did wonderful I don't have to use the stick anymore I think my mom and I are gonna get along better now that it's clean I hadn't gone in a room in probably three months now I can go in a room and kiss her good morning and good night did a wonderful job in your room now she's going to be able to breathe better and by breathing better she's going to feel better she'll have more energy and it'll be a lot easier for her to maintain her home just because it's a healthier place to be the typical pattern that happens with compulsive hoarding is I'll get to it later but later never comes I'd be pretty depressed now if there wasn't going to be the Aftercare because I didn't get rid of much stuff and I'd be pulling stuff out trying to find stuff and I would just all just stay on the floor again but I'm really glad that we got accomplished what we got accomplished and I still have a heck of a lot to do [Music] [Music] foreign I'm currently unemployed you cannot see my house right now because it's filled my living room looks like a junkyard I don't know how to clean this it's out of control I'm out of control I don't know what I'm doing anymore I don't know how to break the cycle my name is cherish and Vicky is my mother my mom's house doesn't exist anymore when you walk in it's just a wall of stuff you can take three steps in front of you and go straight up the stairs and into my mother's room and into my brother's room and that's the only navigation through the house my name is Paul and Vicki is my wife my house is a disaster when I get off work I don't want to go home my name is Hurley and Vicky is my mom a relationship with my mom it's a bit Rocky she doesn't feel like we spend enough time together so I go downstairs diving with my mom just coming out this is good we need a stereo stand yes nope please fine I I call it shopping [Music] to me that's how things got piled up and followed up and followed up my brother helping my mother dumpster dive it bothers me a lot racing I do not enjoy dumpster diving with her he wants to go to another school so he could live on campus and not have to deal with this and still get his education the hoarding is the reason he wants to leave he doesn't know how to break it to her it amazes me that my mom has um no no idea that the Clutter causes me a lot of stress I feel like running away from the house [Music] [Applause] [Music] last year she lost my grandfather which is her father there was no saving her at that point she's been an emotional wreck since then I died when my father died I wanted to be with my dad again [Music] my mother doesn't find herself again and get to move around in her home a little bit she's just gonna be an empty shell then then I'm not going to have a mother anymore all the stuff that surrounds me represents trying to get back what I've lost with the family's lost all I know is we can't live like this I can't live like this [Music] good morning everyone good morning we are all here today with one purpose for Vicki my name is Corey Chalmers I'm an extreme hoarding cleanup specialist Vicki the way that this house has been functioning you know not a healthy lifestyle at all okay we need to get this resolved so that you can keep your house you can keep your marriage and you can keep your son Vicky is very scrambled in her thoughts her emotions and everything and when your brain is scrambled and you can't keep trying to fight you know your house is going to be just as cluttered and just as scrambled let's work on making some families basic and for you guys so you can pull this family back together because you're a mess okay all right you guys all ready ready all right let's hit it foreign [Music] you're already getting worked up and we haven't touched the first thing yet okay don't let your anxiety get the best of you before you even know what the true process is like okay okay we haven't challenged you on anything yet we're not going there yet okay let's just sort this stuff into piles and see what we have in about an hour okay okay let's all try can you decide on this one yeah that's key keep you know what just tell cherish she can have this and if she doesn't want it can we throw it away no so if she doesn't want it why do you want it yeah looks like it no it's the Cowardly Lion but in like a baby doll version throw it away no she said if you want to go in and help and help if you're just gonna upset her and just throw everything away then just don't all the way kind of helping me I'm gonna let you all know right now there's not gonna be any more donation junk whatever whatever when I say put it over here and this pile is going to go in that pile that's where it's going to stay why are you irate right now because I'm not gonna play the games we're not playing there and I do realize that no I'm gonna finish and if y'all whatever well you're not listening no you are going to listen to me don't you be mad at these people are trying to help you you be mad at me you know what that's called a rap song CPS no don't you Mom me you can't stop me from doing this you know what I'm calling the water you better get her out of my house cherish now cherish myself if you ever come back Vicky is in a complete rage we have a crisis on hand still her house is not in order and if we leave I've got to make a report to CPS I feel like if all this stuff goes away maybe some of these problems will go away too this is one day the Clutter that we have to deal with but this isn't going to solve your family problems where you going [Music] well with this piece it is ain't no good for me really in the truck I hope she sees me yeah he's not one of these books we don't need these books I don't Henry Paul just started to throw everything on the truck you know without asking Vicky anything I think it's because he's frustrated he's been pretty passive up to this point and he's been letting Vicki run the show and he's starting to realize how much crap they're going to have left to deal with no no because stop right now Paul I mean it stop I'm tired of waiting on you you're gonna throw away my jewelry stuff well you know what that's what yeah we're yagging about it you can do it so I just found my barbecue away but you're just gonna stay right here whatever you know Vicky Vicky we're just we're supporting everything well I'll just get it right back out that's fine you better pay Chase ass dollars no I'll get another one you know what that's enough y'all can go thank you very much thanks for everything go it's over [Music] but I had enough I'm gonna lose it I'm just gonna get ready now you touch my stuff and that's it you might as well go when they work together and they took our instruction everything was going fine but as soon as Paul took it upon himself to throw things on the track without consulting Vicki everything fell apart it's over so it's over Vicky why are you this is but that's him you need to be angry with him yeah I don't want to be in surface no more silver it's not going to be here it's going here's my only talk my concern is you're taking up like four spots okay and people are gonna start coming home well then I will start pulling it right here so it's not happening Stanford yeah to you right that's the answer right are you yelling why why are you no mom you are breaking my heart oh what you're wearing last start crying baby heart why do you want to do that no you're not a grown-up you used to be you've grown down a lot you know what it's over it's it's done okay in that case I'm pretty sure a lot more things in your life are about to be over including me yeah you're gonna kill me again mom you're dead to me am I gonna have to hear that again I'm gonna keep doing what I'm doing I'm gonna get Harley go for it this is your decision I'm not gonna hear how bad I am from you whatever Vicky was totally out of control and unfortunately going and trying to calm her down was not going to be effective I'm not gonna even approach her right now because she's so angry she's not gonna hear anything you do what you're doing because are here Harley needs to help me clean his room if your mom doesn't want to accept the help that that they're giving I don't want to help her anymore juice okay like this is neither do I but I have to for my for my brother so that young man right behind you deserves to have a nice clean room and we just don't want to give up now you know what I mean foreign [Music] to be honest the house looks pretty good right now you know it's emptied out all the stuff was removed but she didn't address the issue she wants to go through it all by herself she wants to load it up on a trailer and take it to her dad's house nothing got resolved nothing got worked through her problem still exists and the house will probably fill up again [Music] the house has been cleared enough so that a report to CPS does not need to be made I hope that she will take the resources that we've provided for her and follow through with aftercare I'm thoroughly disappointed in my mother for giving up again [Music] I don't know if she can do it I don't know if she can do any of this and I don't know if I can try to help her anymore so exhausting [Music] my name is Constance and I live in a small country town they say I'm a hoarder they say I'm a red I'ma say you darn right when you don't have nothing you give me something and I didn't have to work for it I didn't have to say yes ma'am no ma'am been on my knees or get my back hurt then yes I'm keeping it I am Alicia I'm constant's sister the house is horribly dirty it's clothes food everywhere never seen powdered mold before until I went to her house and I was like oh my goodness I'm Darlene and Constance is my sister the trailer that Constance lives in you can't even get in it because she has so much junk and groceries I tell myself I get it to the door and I'm already tired and stuff that's where it's going to stay I'm Angela and Constance is my mother my family said if she was the diamond house they would burn the house down they wouldn't even try to Savage anything out of it because that's how bad it is I want her to know that it's to the point of where I hate to say that she's my sister if my mother does not get help this time I will call the authority to have her removed they want me gone I said well I'm still alive I'm not dead yet if you want me go and dig a hole and I guess I'll jump in is what I feel about it right now I have about 15 chickens and several roosters and 25 guineas I got three thanks they human and they gonna sneak in there as soon as my back is turned Mama's in the house so gotta be something good now so we gonna go on that if you go get the eggs from the hands you have to go wash them and put them up in the refrigerator so they don't spoil well my mother has not grasped that concept yet when she grabs the eggs and just leave them sitting everywhere so it's like an Easter egg hunt and you don't know which eggs are fresh and which ones aren't my name is Inez and Constance is my daughter I would not sell them to anybody matter of fact I stopped getting eggs up there because I know how she's been doing things and I'm not going to get salmon near ports foreign Robertson and I'm a certified professional organizer every surface is filled with perishables we have eggs like this all over the house yes why are they there like how can I understand if you want a hatchet you cannot put it in the refrigerator okay so your goal is that a little baby chicken was going to be born on the side of the table no I put you got together so many to be able to pull your incubator up so you have your incubators yes this is set up it's on top of my bed but it needs to be cleaned out there is so much rotten food in this house it's Apple this is a fruit that are petrified a freezer filled with meat and supplies she's stockpiling for the day that she may not have anything foreign I wonder if she even tried them all we need to give constants a visual of the amount of stuff that she has this is a good thing to see because she's complaining that she doesn't have enough money don't tell me she's gonna have to have one of those like Oprah Winfrey closets that's the idea I'm Dr Melvin green a board-certified psychiatrist specializing in anxiety disorders and hoarding behaviors I could just die and grab and I could I could have the dollars worth of brands and flow tags on it but you're concerned about going hungry make that make sense for me and we expect to represent me trying to be available for any situation that I might go in from now until I die okay but I'm telling you this is five lifetimes miss Connie is really searching for an identity this is a woman who arrested in development somewhere around 15 years old would you consider take those to a consignment shop so that you can get the money and take them out if that's what the case would be no that I asked you a question that take a mile back these are my winter clothes I would be cold take them back these are my work clothes take it back I'm not gonna be able to work these are my summer clothes take them back I'm disappeared next time out let's have a plan now will you trust your sister and your daughter to take from the old things the things that are ratty Teddy soiled those can go is that fair this way okay that's the plan you're not gonna replace that they don't make them no more the sight of miss Connie looking at the junk truck shaking her head feeling pretty disgusted about the whole process it says that she's barely in the game with us I said right now I said I need two more things and I won't buy no more for 10 years it's kind of that sounds like an alcoholic saying they need two more drinks before they don't get sober right this is a woman who is incredibly attached to all of it and it's still focused on getting two corduroor skirts to complete her wardrobe this isn't working anyway because I said I'm going out do I need to go butt naked is that what they're like okay well let's go over and look at the clothes and and find out who trying to make you go go butt naked these are my clothes I need miss Connie to connect the dots here that her living under these circumstances is not safe we got short sleeve long sleeves all here and we haven't been through that last room of clothes why don't you just donate the rest of your clothes and go with these clothes you have here still trying to keep everything you can't keep everything I need my shoes I definitely not going through my shoes [Music] I'm tired this is it's over with as of today we can be agreeable or we have other Alternatives that your daughter wants to do we've been here for two days cleaning out we only got two rooms clean this is ridiculous if you don't feel like you need to clean up and get rid of stuff you are going to nursing home that's it we can't do this anymore [Music] What's it gonna be I'm accepting the help otherwise I would be acting the food okay well then we I'll be back Cindy come help us do what you're physically able to do so that's going yes these three boxes we're gonna let that go yes she said it can go [Music] foreign I want to say this to you I want to honor you not giving up on this letter that's big yeah you're a strong young lady she's lucky to have given birth to you thank you baby I love you I did need to help and I appreciate the help and I was not able but I appreciate you being there for me no for me because I know what it took for this family to stay together despite the odds you trusted and you believe it's a very big deal miss Connie underneath all of the stuff we're finding a trailer that is not structurally sound for her to live in anything could come in here snakes I did not know that floor Hub was there it was home but it was not livable but I was living in here I am worried about where I'm gonna be now I'm gonna look at Alternatives because this space is just not safe [Music] my name is Dave Selman and I'm the owner of StarTex manufactured homes I have the ability to come up with a home that was traded in I would be willing to bring that home out here and set it up okay so Davis brought us this amazing news that he has another home Constance new home is on its way here she has no idea that we're doing anything I'm really excited about it I will be interested to see how she reacts to this I think it's going to blow her mind I think this is coming for you that's how it coming in what do you think about them getting it in this place and be wonderful wonderful two bedrooms okay [Laughter] believe me [Music] oh my goodness [Music] [Applause] I love it yeah [Laughter] look at the bathroom [Music] [Applause] Connie's had a lot of wins in my opinion this is a woman who is quite fatalistic when we started out with this to see her make this huge Turning Point it gives me chills [Music] I'm Jan and I'm an artist I pretty much spend the day making jewelry and playing on the internet but not very good at um taking care of myself I live out of my bedroom I don't come out in the front of the house at all stream it's just a mountain of cat crap you have to step up to get in because the cat crap is so hot I am Georgia and I'm Jan's daughter the last time I was there there was piles of trash I'm Pam and Jan is my sister the reason I quit going to her home was because of the smell of her home couldn't take it the man from the city said I need to inspect your apartment he was in there for about five minutes and came out and said I can't let you go back in there so I didn't want to leave and he was like no you can't stay here foreign I love her to death but she can't live with me indefinitely I can't afford to have her stay with me I can't it's psychologically have her stay with me it's too stressful she's not happy at all that she's having to have me in her apartment you know and I understand it's a terrible burden for her she doesn't need this foreign I'm Dorothy brenninger professional organizing expert today I'm going in with whole family so that they can get an understanding of what this house really looks like foreign I never dreamed it was this bad and I'm sorry what are you sorry about that I could help her more what do you feel that you could have done I could have pushed her and I'm sorry to you buy really crappy water Pooler buy stupid bacteria bye Ray what's really interesting is that she is avoiding doing any of the work family members in there shoveling dusting you know getting stuff off the walls and Jan outside having a cigarette my name is Dr Robin salzio I'm a licensed clinical psychologist and I specialize in compulsive hoarding she just wants to be a spectator she has so much shame and so much embarrassment over what's happened she just doesn't want to deal with it Jan it's your responsibility take care of this situation okay I realize this is painful but I'm going to ask you to go back in this is your responsibility part of getting healthy is being a part of this process not asking everybody else to do this can you go back in yeah [Music] I remember you moved the litter box in here and then it became my fault because I didn't clean it every day I mean you always made me feel like it was my fault because she was my cat first you know if we hadn't gotten the cat in the first place this never would have happened well I didn't mean to make you feel like you were responsible for all these cats I know you didn't mean to but you did I predicted that once this house started to get in order that a lot of the emotional issues in this family were going to come up and that's exactly what happened this is such an important dialogue right now because she feels in some way responsible for what's happened isn't that what you're saying Georgia you know this used to be where I lived too it was like after a while there wasn't anywhere else to throw anything and I feel bad I'm like well I contributed to this mess but then I guess on the other hand what else did I could I do what can you say to her it was rough growing up especially towards the end when you very wisely chose to leave I'm sorry darling this has been really really really a lot to ask way to go Jan you're just really chucking it look at this I'm tossing these oh please can you see she's wildly committed to this Jan was on her feet the whole time she went the distance she got rid of five tons worth of stuff not a single thing is left in this house completely biohazardly cleaned we have been able to accomplish everything as a doctor my job is not just to help somebody with their mental health it's to help them look at their whole mind body and spirit so with Jan I thought I needed to take it a step further we are in a van and You Must Be Wondering Why are you curious well I mean I there's not a lot I could do I'm in the car so [Music] you're finishing as they're coming in we're asking you to do the impossible and we'll want it fast I'm so glad I've got full-on professionals one room gets clean one room gets painted one room clean the next one gets painted so how are you feeling are you nervous yet hello hi this is Jan and welcome to Montage Dan has been living in filth for years she doesn't believe that she deserves better so what I wanted her to see is that she does deserve better and by taking her in getting her hair cut getting it washed getting some makeup on she could see what a truly beautiful person she is and hopefully that will spark an interest in her continuing to take care of herself Jan you look amazing [Music] I like it looks good looks really good on a journey to heal the mind the body and the Soul okay so I'm all wound up it's time for Jan to get a really wonderful space back oh my gosh walk in babe walk in is it live right behind you no it's not locked [Music] how beautiful Jan knew that we might try to clean up oh my goodness but she never expected all of this oh [Music] place to live there's relief there's gratitude I love you it's pretty amazing as we walked from room to room Jan cried more and more there's a bathroom where you get up and you go use the toilet and flush it oh wow oh my gosh this is so pretty there was a complete transformation with Jan by taking care of herself and seeing that she is worthy of being taken care of I believe the future for Jan is very bright it's been a big shift in how she sees herself I want to see her come back here and start piecing herself back together so I mean I have a hope it's amazing and and I am so grateful I can live again I can be a person again a fan of Hoarders And subscribe to a e for more videos and click the links around me to watch more

Channel: A&E

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Keywords: a&e, aetv, a&e tv, ae, a&e television, a&e shows, a and e, a+e, a&e full episodes, hoarders, hoarders show, hoarders full episodes, hoarders clips, hoarders family secrets, watch hoarders, hoarding, addiction, intervention, hoarding intervention, before and after, before after, compulsive hoarding, hoarders scenes, hoarders episodes, hoarders episode clips, hoarders before and after, TEXAS Hoarders, Mega-Marathon, marathon, TEXAS Hoarders - Mega-Marathon!, hoarders marathon, hoard

Id: HYZMqaCTHKU

Length: 99min 39sec (5979 seconds)

Published: Fri Jul 08 2022