Publications - OCD and Hoarding

Learning & Memory Problems Begin Early in OCD, by Janice Wood, Psych Central, Jan 22 2018.

“A new study has found that adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have widespread learning and memory problems...The researchers found that adolescent patients with OCD had impairments in all learning and memory tasks. The study also demonstrated for the first time impaired goal-directed control and lack of cognitive plasticity early in the development of OCD, the researchers report. 'While many studies have focused on adult OCD, we actually know very little about the condition in teenagers,' said Dr. Julia Gottwald, the study’s first author. 'Our study suggests that teens with OCD have problems with memory and the ability to flexibly adjust their actions when the environment changes.' ”

Brain Inflammation Linked to OCD, by Rick Nauert, PhD, Psych Central, Jun 22 2017.

“A new Canadian brain imaging study finds that brain inflammation is more than 30 percent higher in people with obsessive-compulsive disorder OCD than in people without the condition...'Our research showed a strong relationship between brain inflammation and OCD, particularly in the parts of the brain known to function differently in OCD,' said Dr. Jeffrey Meyer, senior author of the study and Head of the Neuroimaging Program in Mood & Anxiety in CAMH’s Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute. 'This finding represents one of the biggest breakthroughs in understanding the biology of OCD, and may lead to the development of new treatments.' ”

Understanding Elderly Hoarding - Signs, Causes, and Help, by Sageminder , Online, 2017.

“Overview of Elderly hoarding  and its associated risk factors, signs/ symtoms, and ways in which to best  help someone who is struggling with horading.  ”

Hoarding Behaviors Worsen With Age, by Anne-Marie Botek, Online , 2017.

“Recent research indicates that hoarding becomes progressively worse with age. Further, there also appears to be relationship between depression and extreme hoarding, which may explain why older adults/elders experience worsening hoarding symptoms, as aging is often accompanied by symptoms congruent with depression. This article explains this association in greater detail and also provides a list of Dos and Don'ts of Treating Hoarding Behavior, specifically in regard to elders.      ”

In Texting Era, Crisis Hotlines Put Help at Youths’ Fingertips, by Leslie Kaufman, New York Times, Feb 4 2014.

“While counseling by phone remains far more prevalent, texting has become such a fundamental way to communicate, particularly among people under 20, that crisis groups have begun to adopt it as an alternative way of providing emergency services and counseling. Texting provides privacy that can be crucial if a person feels threatened by someone near them, counselors say. It also looks more natural if the teenager is in public. ”

Help for Seniors Who Are Drowning in Clutter, by Jim T. Miller, Huffington Post Blog, Oct 15 2013.

“This article provides some common reason as to why older adults/  the elderly engage in hoarding behaviors. Further, brief recommendations are given as to how to help older adults and the elderly  who are struggling with hoarding related behaviors. Lastly,  hoarding related resources are also provided. ”

Hoarding Can be a Deadly Business, by Scott O. Lillenfield and Hal Arkowitz, Scientific American, Sep 1 2013.

“In rare cases, the habit of gathering and retaining things reaches unhealthy extremes, culminating in hoarding disorder, a condition that is poorly understood. According to this volume, “hoarding disorder” is characterized by extreme and enduring difficulties parting with possessions, even if they have no tangible value. ”

Up and Down the Worry Hill: A Children's Book about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and its Treatment, by Aureen Pinto, 2013.

Hoarding: Does Your Aging Parent Have The Disease of Clutter?, by Ann Brenoff, Online, May 27 2012.

“Leading hoarding researcher/ expert, Andy Frost states that many older Americans who experienced deprivation during the Great Depression or WW II are at a higher risk for developing Hoarding. Frost also suggests that aging worsens Hoarding symptoms. He also makes some suggestions as to how children can best help their parent who is struggling with hoarding tendencies.  ”

OCD in children: 'A darkness has overtaken me', by Elizabeth Landau, CNN, Oct 11 2011.

“"For the most part, adults realize that these symptoms [of OCD] don't make any sense. They get that this doesn't make a lot of sense," Szymanski said. "Kids don't necessarily have that perspective." ”

Children of Hoarders on Leaving the Cluttered Nest, by Steven Kurutz, New York Times , May 11 2011.

“Children of hoarders often display a tortured ambivalence toward their parents, perhaps because unlike spouses or friends of hoarders, they had little choice but to live amid the junk. ”

Wariness on Surgery of the Mind, by Benedict Carey, New York Times , Feb 14 2011.

“In recent years, many psychiatrists have come to believe that the last, best chance for some people with severe and intractable mental problems is psychosurgery, an experimental procedure in which doctors operate directly on the brain. ”

Nowhere Near Normal: A Memoir of OCD, by Traci Foust, 2011.

Predicting Treatment Success for Child OCD, by Rick Nauert, Psych Central , Oct 18 2010.

“A new research effort may help clinicians better predict how a child with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) will respond to some of the most commonly used treatment approaches. ”

OCD: New Treatments And Stories From The Trenches, by Jessica Alpert, WBUR , Oct 13 2010.

“In recognition of National OCD Awareness Week, we explore some of the latest treatments for the disorder with a Boston doctor who's one of the country's top OCD specialists, and we speak with one local man who lives with OCD every day. ”