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Marie Kondo Appalled! Extreme Hoarding and Trash-filled Homes in Japan
Incidents of homes overflowing with garbage make the news as the nation's population of socially isolated elderly people living alone continues to grow.
What’s new: Contrary to the belief that all Japanese homes are kept tidy and their owners live according to the kind of traditional, minimalist aesthetic espoused by home organization guru KonMari (a.k.a. Marie Kondo), the reality is that many Japanese homes - most of which are on the smaller side1- can often appear cluttered with excess possessions.
While most people keep their homes reasonably clutter-free and routinely conduct annual spring cleaning (usually done at the end of the calendar year), cases of Diogenes Syndrome, also known as Senile Squalor Syndrome, seem to be on the rise in Japan as the population ages. Garbage-filled homes are known in Japanese as gomi yashiki (ゴミ屋敷). The term essentially translates to "garbage mansion" or "trash house.” This is extreme hoarding on a grand scale, which seems so out of sync with conventional wisdom about how Japanese people live.
Definition: Diogenes Syndrome is a disorder that involves garbage hoarding and extreme self-neglect.
"You can tell if a room is infested with cockroaches or other insects without even opening the door. Just by sniffing toward the the floor, you can smell rotting garbage." - Fuminao Futami, President of EVE, a company specializing in garbage and waste collection in the wake of someone with Diogenes Syndrome
People who suffer from Diogenes Syndrome often tend to avoid social interaction with their neighbors or others to avoid embarrassment, stress, or anxiety about their hoarded items. In such cases, clutter tends to pile up, blocking hallways and at least one doorway to the outside. Housekeeping becomes difficult due to inaccessibility, and often mold spreads throughout their bathroom or kitchen. In the most extreme cases, garbage is added to the mess by the reclusive hosts - many of whom are socially isolated elderly people who live alone. The situation can rapidly spiral out of control. Especially during the warmer months, the stench of rotting garbage or feces offends neighbors, and eventually the home can become a fire hazard.
Why it matters: While people suffering from Diogenes Syndrome can be found all over the world, it tends to be more of a problem among the elderly - especially the socially isolated who live alone. Japan has many such people. Today, nearly 30% of all Japanese are over the age of 65, and nearly 20% of them live alone. The vast majority of this cohort does an admirable job of keeping their homes tidy, but the country has many people at risk for Diogenes Syndrome. It is, therefore, likely that the number of cases of this social problem will increase as Japan's elderly population grows.
What's happening: To gain some understanding of how someone can let themselves go so far that their home becomes a gomi yashiki, let's consider these three case studies:
Loner Chastised by Neighbors: When local government officials were sent to the home of Mr. A (pseudonym) to investigate complaints from his neighbors, they literally found a mess. Every room in his apartment was littered with garbage and food waste. There were uncleaned empty lunch box containers, take-out beef bowls, remnants of cup noodles, packaged rice, empty snack bags, frozen foods, etc. strewn throughout the house. While some of the garbage was packed in bags, the rest was just sitting in small piles around the house. There was only enough room for one person to sleep in the entire house. In addition to the garbage bags, there were piles of cardboard and plastic bottles everywhere, making it impossible to see the floor. Used tissue paper was thrown over the bed, and there were countless piles of feces from the dog that was kept inside Mr. A’s home. Upon further investigation, government officials who visited this property also discovered layers and layers of newspaper, yellowed from dog urine, buried under the bags of dog feces. In the kitchen, a partially eaten piece of hamburger meat and various unidentified liquids were spilled on the floor.
Mr. A explained that his apartment had become a "dump" due to friction with his neighbors. Like most apartment complexes, Mr. A's building had a communal dumpster, but it had been closed for an extended period of time due to non-compliance with garbage disposal rules. Residents were, therefore, asked to dispose of their garbage in another dumpster a short distance away, which was shared with another apartment complex. It was a bit inconvenient, and this new site was not well managed. The shared dumpster was routinely filled to capacity, and the residents who lived near the shared dumpster did not like having to share the space with people from Mr. A's apartment. They often complained about it. When they saw Mr. A, whom they did not know, coming to throw out his garbage, they would reproach him.
"Where did you come from? What are you doing here? You don't have to come all the way over here to throw your garbage away. You should dispose of it somewhere else." - Residents who lived near the community dumpster
Some of these residents would guard the area until the garbage truck came to collect the garbage. Mr. A. was intimidated and concluded that it would be easier to just keep his garbage at home. While the original dumpster near Mr. A's apartment complex was eventually opened again, by that time Mr. A's home was in such disrepair that he could not put things back in order. Although officials from Mr. A's local government have been supportive and helped him clean up, they are still concerned that something else could trigger Mr. A to return to his old habits. They mentioned that other extreme garbage hoarders are often triggered by life changes, such as moving to a new job, changing interpersonal relationships, or the death of relatives.
Elderly Widow in Osaka: Another case involved an elderly widow who lived alone in an apartment complex in Osaka and her son. After his mother's death, her son, who lived far away in Tokyo and rarely visited, discovered that his family's apartment had been turned into a garbage dump. A family of four (father, mother, son, and daughter) used to live there, but both the son and his older sister had become independent and moved far away many years ago. After becoming a widow, their mother slowly transformed into an extreme hoarder. Her hobby was singing, and she loved to perform in concerts but often bought new clothes before each performance. She also amassed a large collection of knickknacks and miscellaneous items. Although the house had a spacious three-bedroom layout, before long the only habitable room was the combined living room/kitchen. All the other rooms were piled high from floor to ceiling with clutter.
"Maybe you should clean up a little." - Gentle encouragement from the son during his infrequent visits home to see his mother
Her son visited only every now and then, and time passed.
The son did, however, not push too hard because he was worried about putting too much stress on his mother. He reasoned that it would simply be easier to let her live the way she felt comfortable.
Shortly before his mother's death, though, the neighbors started submitting to the local city hall complaints about odors and concerns about how the apartment could become a potential fire hazard. Fuminao Futami, President of EVE, a garbage disposal service that specializes in cleaning the homes of Diogenes Syndrome suffers, explained that his company often encounters this type of situation when an elderly family member dies.
"I think in this case the son's decision was not wrong. As long as his mother was not causing trouble for others, she should be allowed to live as she wished." - Fuminao Futami
When his mother died, the son began sorting through her belongings on his own. He soon realized how difficult the task would be. He spent several weekends commuting by bullet train from his home in Tokyo, but he had difficulty completing the task when confronted with various photos and other items that would remind him of his childhood. The son tried to clean the family home for a little over a year before finally deciding to give up and hire a contractor, EVE, to do the work.
In the end, Futami’s company needed about 1,200 garbage bags for the job. Of course, that number of bags could not just be thrown out with the rest of the neighborhood's trash. This massive haul had to be carted away.
Chronic Repeat Offender from Yokosuka: Not all gomi yashiki are home to elderly people. Local government officials often have to deal with chronic repeat offenders like a 56-year-old unemployed man who still lives in a gomi yashiki in Yokosuka, a city near Yokohama that is also home to a major naval base.
"It has been like this for about 10 years. The stench spreads in the summer. The homeowner has been collecting garbage again since the beginning of this month, shortly after his return from detention". - A neighbor in his 70s
Last month, the owner of this gomi yashiki found himself in police custody after he became upset when his home was raided for “administrative enforcement” to remove garbage hoarded by the man in accordance with the city's Environmental Preservation Ordinance. In total, more than 6.4 tons of garbage were removed from the property. The subsequent police investigation after his arrest revealed that the man stated that he was angry because the city had forcibly removed some of the "items he had left behind" and decided to protest by smashing one of his neighbor's flower pots. He was found guilty and fined 100,000 yen (about US$670). According to the police report, when asked why he was hoarding garbage, the man bluntly replied, "I don't know.” The man was subjected to similar action by the city six years ago, but the situation has remained the same. His neighbors are at their wits' end.
More than 100 separate complaints have been filed with Yokosuka City Hall over the past few months, but the delinquent homeowner began collecting garbage immediately upon his return from police custody. The trash, which includes plastic bottles, empty cans, leaves and shoes, now overflows into parked cars and the walkway leading to the front door.
"The basic solution is to ask residents why they are hoarding garbage and to offer assistance. Although enforcement on behalf of residents is a temporary measure and often leads to unhealthy human relations, we have no choice but to do it considering the inconvenience to the neighborhood." - Yokosuka City Official
Yokosuka has an ordinance that prohibits littering with penalties, but it is difficult to enforce because "the city cannot track individual behavior.”
By the numbers: Despite chronic underreporting due to the social stigma associated with gomi yashiki, there are some published statistics.
Those at Risk: A study in Tokyo found that 61 of 270 socially isolated older adults (22.6%) met the criteria for Diogenes Syndrome based on a specific scoring system2. This is only a single, somewhat dated study in only one region, but it provides a glimpse of the potential scope.
National Implications: Garbage hoarding is a nationwide problem, but data are somewhat scarce. According to a national survey conducted by the Ministry of the Environment between 2006 and 2010, 661 municipalities, or 38% of the total, were aware of the existence of homes overflowing with garbage collected by extreme hoarders. There were a total of 5,224 confirmed cases. However, local government officials were only able to resolve and clean up less than half, or 2,588 cases.
Model Approach: 101 municipalities (out of 3,232 nationwide) have enacted ordinances or guidelines for dealing with homes stuffed with rotting garbage. Adachi Ward, Tokyo, which enacted an ordinance in 2001, is drawing national attention for its model program that emphasizes social support and links various social services.
"There are many people who need mental health care." - Director of the Welfare Department of Adachi Ward, Tokyo
Since implementing a new ordinance last month in this city within Tokyo’s jurisdiction, officials in Adachi Ward have responded to 345 cases and resolved 304. So far, they have not had to resort to forced intervention.
Commentary: Having once lived across the street from an elderly widower who threw beer cans out of his window and just left them piling up on the lawn, I can certainly attest to how stressful this sort of situation can be for neighbors. Although this case was probably on the mild side, especially in Japan, where there is an almost extreme sensitivity to how garbage is handled (e.g., detailed rules for sorting garbage for recycling, etc.), most neighbors go to extraordinary lengths to ensure that smooth interpersonal relations are maintained. Rather than confront our elderly neighbor directly, we filed numerous complaints with the equivalent of a homeowners' association, but nothing really changed until the offender became ill and was forced to sell his property and move in with a distant relative. Thus, the situation resolved itself.
While simply filing complaints through the proper channels may be appropriate as a first step, once a gomi yashiki becomes a potential fire hazard and/or begins to produce offensive odors, the local government should "take off the gloves" and implement a forceful intervention. Of course, to support such an approach, an appropriate set of laws would need to be enacted to ensure that individual rights are protected within reasonable limits. A compassionate approach should also be adopted to ensure that the chronic offender receives real help. Such measures sound good on paper but would be very difficult to put into practice.
What's next? As Japan's elderly population - especially those living alone who are at risk for Diogenes Syndrome - continues to grow, complaints about gomi yashiki are likely to escalate. Perhaps forced intervention will become the new norm.
What do you think? Imagine what you would do if your neighbor's property turned into a gomi yashiki. All answers are completely anonymous, even to the author.
Links to Japanese Sources: https://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/737555, https://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/734608, and https://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/article/311149.
#hoarding #hoarder #extremehoarder #trash #trashhouse #lonliness #wastecollection #socialissue #socialisolation #DiogenesSyndrome #senilesqualorsyndrome #selfneglect #geriatricpsychiatry #ゴミ屋敷 #ゴミ #孤独 #不用品回収 #社会問題 #ひとり暮らし #高齢者 #モノ屋敷
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According to government statistics, the average total floor area of a Japanese apartment in 2018 was around 93 square meters (about 1,021 square feet). Apartments in major cities are often much smaller, with the average in Tokyo being about 66 square meters (710 square feet).
Ito, Kae, Okamura, Tsuyoshi, Tsuda, Shuji, and Awata, Shuichi, "Diogenes Syndrome in a 10-Year Retrospective Observational Study: An Elderly Case Series in Tokyo," International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, January 20-22.
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Unveiling the Real Japan: An American Expat's Inside Look | Hot takes, commentary, and unfiltered insights on life as a foreigner in Japan.
Another great post, Mark. Thank you. I didn't know that hoarding is a problem in Japan. I guess it's global. In the UK, there have been whole television series drawing attention to the issue, eg:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=britain%27s+biggest+hoarders
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=the+hoarder+next+door
My take on the issue is that hoarding, rather than being inconsiderate or anti-social behavior, is a cry for help that requires active but sensitive interventions from suitably-qualified professionals that address the cause rather than the symptoms of the behavior - rather like addiction.
If we take away the laundry and a few other things from the room in the last photo, that could actually be a typical small bachelor pad anywhere in Japan.
On a lighter note, my wife says I'm a book hoarder... just because you'll find small piles of books everywhere, on the floor, in dark corners, and even inside drawers.
PS Even Marie Kondo's house is not as clean and uncluttered as before, now that she is busy raising children.