--Original published at MaddiesCollegeBlog

For my final spotlight post, I decided to choose option 2, which discusses the recent controversy of reality television shows like Hoarders, My Strange Addiction, True Life, etc. and if they are exploiting those who suffer from these types of illnesses, or it is actually beneficial.

Over the years, there has been a significant increase in entertainment shows focusing on  television shows that showcase mental illnesses for some-sort of amusement for those who watch. Most television shows that do this, do not accurately portray what having a mental illness is truly like and put them down for their actions. Those who are diagnosed with a mental illness are very mistreated by the media, and deserve better treatment in general. In my opinion, I feel that it is very unethical to project these people’s lives as if it is an entertainment act for the world to see. Those who suffer from a mental illness have lost a lot, dealt with an immense amount of pain, and are just trying to live their life normally. Television shows like Hoarders or My Strange Addiction are not benefiting people with mental illnesses, I believe that it is only a temporary solution to their mental illness, and once the camera’s stop rolling and the psychologists stop visiting – it all comes back again. I have watched numerous episodes of these types of shows and have watched the amount of distress and misery they encounter, yet the shows apparently aim to “help” improve the hoarder’s living atmosphere, relationships, and overall health.

For my first approach at this issue, I decided to look at the side that viewed it in a helpful way, the first article that I found was an article that was written in 2014 by a website that  discusses ways to improve your everyday health and then specific disorders like anxiety, depression, mood disorders, etc. The website had started off with an introduction similar to mine, just stating that their has been recent attention given to the particular show, and does it accurately portray what actually having the mental illness is like. They asked this question to 3 people, all who are licensed psychologists, RN’s, and hold a management position. Both the second and third interviewers claim that the show does accurately represent what the illness is like. They both claimed that a major pro to these shows is that the more popular it becomes, the more awareness about the mental illness is dispersed into the world for everyone to see. People who watch the show that are affected by it, can know that there is help out there and that they are not alone.

I felt that this website was pretty credible because it was a website specifically for the treatment of mental health disorders & everyday health. All three of the interviewers had background with hoarding and are familiar with the field. Especially the two who felt that the show could be positive in some ways, one was an RN and the other was a professional organizer. Since they are familiar with this type of mental illness along with other common knowledge about general good health, I am willing to trust this source.

For my second article, I discovered an article written on a website called “Psychology Today”, which was written by Seth Myers. The article was titled “Mental Illness On Reality TV: Helpful or Harmful?” Mainly, the article discusses how it is a good thing when a show can accurately display what a mental illness is doing to a person and their relationships. It is also good for mental illness to be televised because people who also suffer will see it and can relate to it, they can reach out to them or get help for themselves, seeing this can inspire them to get help for themselves or make new connections. Another way that it Is beneficial is that people usually use TV or other social media in general to show/share their dark thoughts and by what they watch or write about can be a cry for help and if the right person see’s it, they can take action to get that person the help they need. Myers claims that overall it is a beneficial thing to have television shows and social media portray mental illness for one main reason of kick-starting them to realize what is happening, get into professional care or treatment and get it done now.

I thought that this website seemed very credible and trustworthy. Not only did it have a lot of information to read about, but it also had a lot of examples of different TV shows and good examples of why it Is beneficial. This article was also written by a licensed psychologist who specializes in the Department of Mental Health so, he is very familiar and has a high amount of knowledge within all mental illnesses.

For my third article, I switched views and now am looking at the side that believes it is not beneficial to display mental illness for entertainment. An article I found, written by a reporter for the Huffington Post, stated that after her research with the topic; shows like Hoarders should be shut down. She begins with a description of a specific episode where a married couple for 31 years, the wife has a serious hoarding disorder and admits that, but claims that she “just doesn’t feel like clearing it all out.” The author of the article claims that by portraying people like this couple, it shows the bad side and creates the stigma about mental illness, and is not really raising awareness for the disorder, but more so putting it to shame. She then goes on to discuss a recent report that was conducted by The British Psychological Society, their overall claim was that television shows and social media should stop using mental health disorders to shock and entertain  the public, it is something serious and should not be taken in a joking or light manner in any way. The first researcher of the study, Randy Frost, mainly said that people who show up to someones house and start to force and push this person to let them throw out their possessions is a way to clean the house and satisfy the viewers, but in reality, only works for so long. It doesn’t stop that person from feeling the compulsions to hoard. In order to help a person not feel attached to every possession they encounter, they need to receive long-term cognitive behavioral therapy first. Without this, the house is just going to pile up again in a matter of months. According to American Psychological Association, it is hard to pin point a specific number of many individuals are affected by hoarding everyday, but research in the past has suggested that 2-5% of the population has dealt with it to some degree. Since the disorder can sometimes be so detrimental to an individual or families lifestyle, it should not be broadcasted for everyone to see. It Is also very likely that a person who suffers from hoarding also is affected by multiple other mental health disorders like, PTSD, anxiety, depression, ADHD, or possibly on the autism spectrum disorder.

I felt that this article was very credible because the author used a lot of outside resources to bring an immense amount of information into her own article. All the research she did to write this, was all provided by experts in the hoarding field. Psychologists, authors of people who wrote books on this illness. In my opinion, these sources were all very credible, which made it easier to believe that her viewpoint was correct.

For my fourth and final article, I found an article titled “Hoarding: Why Forced Clean outs are Unsuccessful”, written by Erin Doland. He started discussing how on Memorial Day, A&E (known for the broadcasting channel for the show Hoarders) had run a day-long marathon on their first season of the show, Hoarders. Once the re-run season was finished, they released a new episode called “Where are they now?” that showed 5 people for the original season one year later, 4 out of the 5 people had returned to their old habit of hoarding. He discussed that he could not even fully watch the episode because it was just a reminder of how the show is aimed to entertain the public, rather than actually attempt to help those who are in desperate need. He believes that the show dehumanized the participants and does not display how they truly do attempt to help them. Donland said that after reading the book titled,” Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things” by Randy Frost and Gail Steketee, hoarding specialist, they have known that the forced clean out of that person’s home is considered a trauma for them. When a random clean-up crew come and touch, move, throughout these possessions for this individual it becomes a traumatic experience and results in panic attacks and depression. Frost and Steketee stated that they knew several cases of which many hoarders who have committed suicide after a forced clean out. Doland ended his article with a brief statement saying that he does think it brings attention to the disorder, but not in a positive way, they do not approach these people in a compassionate or truly helpful way, which then leads to larger problems and most likely another cluttered house in the future.

At first, I thought this was going to be a skeptical source, but after reading through it I found very credible information, especially because most of the information was coming from a very well-known book that was written by two hoarding experts, so they have great amount of knowledge on this subject.

After doing the research on the pro’s and con’s of these shows, I feel that it has strengthened my hate for these types of series. I found that it was much easier to find articles that discussed why it is not beneficial to keep these shows on air rather than why we should. This made me believe even more that these shows are not ethical in any way, and should not be aired on television or posted on social media. I believe that there is a universal agreement that it is beneficial for a small amount of time but, in the end it does not give a permanent solution nor does it cure the addiction for that person. These types of shows do also bring awareness to the disorders, and can potentially serve as an outlet to receive help, but I feel as if it is not in the correct manner. Individuals who suffer from mental illness’ like hoarding and other addictions need more than just a push to make a change. They need family support, long-term therapy, and a will to do it for themselves and on their own. When random people barge into their home and start touching and throwing out their belongings is not an adequate way to help anyone, if anything it is going to pro-long the situation.

Positive Articles:

https://www.everydayhealth.com/anxiety-disorders/experts-does-tv-accurately-portray-hoarding.aspx

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/insight-is-2020/201504/mental-illness-reality-tv-helpful-or-harmful

Negative articles:

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/17/hoarding-reality-shows_n_7605804.html

https://unclutterer.com/2010/06/03/hoarding-why-forced-cleanouts-are-unsuccessful/

--Original published at Melissa's Blog

Filming people with mental illnesses has become a growing trend on reality TV networks. Very few networks accurately portray mental disorders, while most expose the world to false information. Another controversy regards how people with mental health disorders are treated on the shows. The people with the mental disorder should be the priority, however, some TV shows treat them unethically and cause additional stress, just to please the audience. Two highly debatable shows are Hoarders and Hoarding: Buried Alive, which aim to improve hoarders living conditions and relationships.

One supporter of the hoarding shows is Terrence Shulman, an attorney for 22 years and a licensed certified social worker and addictions therapist. Additionally, Shulman is credible because he is the founder and director of The Shulman Center for Compulsive Theft, Spending and Hoarding, is the author of several books about shoplifting, theft, and hoarding, created the support group C.A.S.A. (Cleptomaniacs And Shoplifters Anonymous), and is in recovery for addictive-compulsive shoplifting and stealing. In a Huffington Post interview, Shulman stated the hoarding TV shows are overall positive and effective. He thinks the shows are accurate representations of this mental health disorder because real people are being filmed. He mentions the shows have raised awareness for hoarding disorders. He also said the TV series informs the public of the causes of hoarding and how it should be treated.

Furthermore, many followers argue the shows are ethical because a practicing psychologist and professional organizer help the person with the compulsive-hoarding disorder. Dorothy Breininger, also known as Dorothy the Organizer, appeared on several hoarding episodes with psychologist Dr. Michael A. Tompkins. According to Dorothy’s website, Dr. Tompkins believes hoarders excessively buy and collect, are extremely attached to their items, have unhealthy, cluttered living conditions, and are significantly distressed or have an ailment. Dorothy supports the HARM Reduction Technique Dr. Tompkins uses on the show, which focuses on reducing the risks associated with hoarding and improving quality of life. Tompkins prefers the HARM Reduction method, rather than treatment, which has the goal of completely stopping the hoarding behaviors, because most hoarders rarely seek help and often refuse treatment. Although hoarders frequently resent treatment, they still need assistance because they are living in dangerous environments. Additionally, Tompkins argues HARM reduction is more effective than treatment because it involves hoarders’ families and communities, who are also at risk. Lastly, Tompkins emphasizes forcing treatment on resistant hoarders can lead to dislike and mistrust.

Dorothy is credible because she is the best-selling author of five books, appears in several TV shows and magazines, owns three companies, is a former national board member and Los Angeles President of the National Association of Professional Organizers, is actively involved in the Institute of Challenging Disorganization, and is a renowned international organization speaker. Dr. Tompkins has impressive credentials: he is a behavioral and cognitive psychologist, the co-director of the San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy, an assistant clinical professor at the University of California, a founding member of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy, a trainer and consultant for the Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior, and the author or co-author of several scholarly articles, chapters and books. Dr. Tompkins’s credentials and experience strengthens his argument to use HARM Reduction to combat hoarding, rather than treatment.

Contrary, Anna Almendrala’s article, “Hoarding Reality Shows Might Do More Harm Than Good,” disputes televising this mental disorder. Almendrala believes a majority of the audience are uneducated about hoarding disorders and watch the shows to enjoy a home makeover. She is supported by the British Psychological Society’s belief that the purpose of these shows is to entertain the audience, rather than help the person with the compulsive hoarding disorder. Almendrala also cites Randy Frost, the author of the book Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding And The Meaning Of Things, who emphasizes removing the clutter is only a temporary solution and will eventually lead to relapse. Almendrala argues the hoarding TV shows are ineffective because hoarders need long-term treatment, so they can gradually overcome and cope with their mental illness. Almendrala’s article is credible because she is a senior reporter for the Huffington Post, and references psychologists, psychology organizations, and authors of hoarding books to support her argument against the accuracy of the hoarding TV shows.

Another critic of televised hoarding is Scott Helman, whose article, “Where the TV Shows Get it Wrong on Hoarding,” discusses how non-clinical hoarding organizations are more effective than TV shows at treating hoarding disorders. Helman’s focal reference was Jesse Edsell-Vetter, a man who inspected Boston housing and had to evict residence for hoarding. Edsell-Vetter created a hoarding intervention program, based on cognitive behavioral therapy and intensive case management to help hoarders who are in danger of being evicted. Edsell-Vetter forms relationships with these people and their families, talks about their hoarding behaviors, personally helps clean and organize their homes, and monitors them to prevent relapse. Helman supports Edsell-Vetter’s gradual and realistic method for helping hoarders. Edsell-Vetter finds hoarding shows harmful because someone’s mental health condition should not be used for pleasure and entertainment. He argues it is stressful, violating, and destructive to force a hoarder to immediately dispose of all their valuable possessions. Also, he believes the hoarders on the shows often regress because they received no follow up care.

Helman also cites Randy Frost and Lee Shuer, who created Buried in Treasures, a 16-week program for hoarders, led by hoarders, and is based on cognitive behavioral therapy. Helman explained the workshops are more beneficial and successful than the TV shows because the current hoarders are comforted and motivated by those in recovery. Overall, Helman is against hoarding shows because they disrespect and mistreat the people with the disorder and are only used to make money and amuse the public.

Scott Helman’s article is trustworthy because it was published on the Boston Globe newspaper, he is an author of two books, and his team were finalists for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize in Local Reporting for investigating the Massachusetts mental health care system, thus, he is educated in mental health disorders. Additionally, Helman included credible references, Jesse Edsell-Vetter, Lee Shuer, and Randy Frost, who was also cited by Anna Almendrala.

After researching, I am against the controversial shows, Hoarders and Hoarding: Buried Alive, but I agree with some of the supporting arguments. I understand Dr. Tompkins uses the HARM Reduction approach because hoarders are likely to refuse treatment if they are in denial or are skeptical, however, he ignores the need for long-term care. Hoarders need persistent care, not an instantaneous home make-over, which Dr. Tompkins defends. The prompt clean-outs disregard the meaning behind the clutter, thus, causing the hoarders anxiety and distress. This can intimidate hoarders in the audience and make them reluctant to get help for themselves. Additionally, other convincing points are the shows raise awareness for the disorder and accurately represent the dangerous living conditions and relationship struggles hoarders experience. Although this is true, I think most audience members are ignorant of this mental health condition and solely watch the show for enjoyment. Also, the shows only portray extreme cases of hoarding, and ignore less sever stages, to entertain the audience. I think the TV producers and cast are more concerned with their ratings than the hoarders’ well-being, due to a lack of follow-ups or monitoring after the show has aired.

Mental health conditions should not be used for entertainment and pleasure. Often, people with mental health disorders need long-term treatment to make any progress. Thus, barging into a hoarder’s home and forcing them to throw away their meaningful belongings is an inappropriate way to help. Instead, I think it is most beneficial for hoarders to receive care from recovering hoarders who have gone through similar situations. This connection will motivate the current hoarder and give them someone to look up to. If this service is not easily accessible, hoarders need long-term aid from an experienced professional. During recovery, the hoarder and professional should from a relationship, go through the clutter together, slowly and gradually, and discuss the underlining cause of the hoarding, like Jesse Edsell-Vetter in Scott Helman’s article. The TV shows are unethical because they provide the public with inaccurate and inefficient treatment strategies for compulsive-hoarding, dismiss how traumatizing the show is for the person, and misrepresents how they feel.

https://www.becomingminimalist.com/hoarding/

https://www.dorothytheorganizer.com/hoaders/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIV0WxvpPcA

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/17/hoarding-reality-shows_n_7605804.html

https://www.bostonglobe.com/magazine/2016/11/01/where-shows-get-wrong-hoarding/vnzaM9LsKM5P3HqGSrUteJ/story.html

--Original published at KatiesPerspectives

Shows like True Life, My Strange Addiction, and Hoarding: Buried Alive are shows that the viewer can watch casually and comfortably in their homes at the touch of a button – but do we ever think about the story behind the person? In some of these shows, the person that is being followed can seem “crazy,” but have you ever stopped to think that maybe their being exploited by the ones holding the camera? In my opinion, these are people who need professional help, not the magnification of society watching their every move – their every mistake. Some might question the ethics of the situation as a whole. Is it okay to document a person who is mentally ill’s life (regardless of consent) and broadcast it on national television? This is something that I think should be reconsidered when creating shows like My 600-lbs Life and 16 and Pregnant. There seems to be some sort of societal disconnect between what is okay to put on tv based on the consent by someone who is labeled as “mentally ill.” I think it should be rethought that a person who is labeled as “mentally ill” is eligible to give consent for themselves. In my opinion, shows like this are quite harmful to the people that are in them and should be taken off air. People who are mentally ill must not be used for our entertainment, rather treated with compassion and acknowledged as the part of society that needs help in their every day life.

Through research findings and articles that I found online, I quickly learned that there were many more people who agreed with me in saying that these shows are harmful to the people in them. According to the British Psychological Society, people should “desist from using mental health problems to entertain and shock the public.” Clinical Psychologist Sophie Holmes says, “we have a responsibility to consider the mental health needs of the people on the shows.” Many people who watch the shows, see this sort of exploitation as an act of bullying and how it is much different than tv shows that promote human transformation. Although there are normally great changes in people’s lives by the ends of the show, it is clear to see that much trauma had to happen in order for these changes to happen.

Some people argue that shows like this help people finally realize that they have a problem. The BPS report cites one anonymous source who wrote, “Before the programs, I didn’t realize there was help out there. It would have helped me to have this information years ago.” Another anonymous source added, “It was only when the programs were on television that I thought it’s actually a mental health problem. Before that I just thought I’m creating clutter.”  When we open our minds to the different perspective of people on both sides of the equation, we realize that these shows can be more than harmful to society.

This information was just some that I derived from the links listed below combined with my personal thoughts and feelings. Overall, I think there is some good information out there to help and argue against the broadcasting of these potentially harmful reality shows. I think it’s important to look at the facts and combine those with people’s opinions and try your best to see things through the eyes of others. The sources I used to get facts were mostly The Huffington Post and Psychology Today. Both of these sources had references and quotations from people giving their opinions on the subject at hand. These sources provided perspectives that I never thought of and many that I also agreed with. All in all, I learned a lot of things from reading through all of these sources.

From the outside looking in, these shows might seem harmless and helpful but when you realize that these people are mentally ill and are possibly being exploited for it, you might rethink turning on some of your favorite shows.

Harmful:

1. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/17/hoarding-reality-shows_n_7605804.html
2. http://tvcriticism2014.blogspot.com/2014/04/hoarding-buried-alive-unwrapped.html

Helpful:

1. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/insight-is-2020/201504/mental-illness-reality-tv-helpful-or-harmful
2. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/tom-green/reality-tv-rewarding-bad-_b_3606641.html