Squalor!

November 25th, 2023| Topic: RaMbLeS | 0

Recently, journalist Pauline Allione reported in VICE Belgium about filth hoarders.

A decade ago, Bastien, 43 (not his real name), was the type of guy who would meticulously clean his windowsills with a cotton bud. But after experiencing a triple whammy of unemployment, a tough break-up and severe depression, his dedication to cleanliness collapsed.”

Said Bastien himself:

I couldn’t throw anything away; I started piling up rubbish left, right and center. Trash quickly took over my flat. Eventually, I couldn’t take the bins out anymore because of the sheer amount of stuff piled up next to the front door. I started leaving boxes everywhere and soon I couldn’t get into my kitchen. That’s how I ended up eating cold meals for two years.”

It’s a disease and yes, there’s a name for it: Diogenes syndrome, also called “senile squalor syndrome,” since it most often affects people over 60. About 5 in 10,000 of those sexagenarians suffer from this condition, with devastating consequences for those patients’ health and social life.

[The name of the condition derives from Diogenes of Sinope, an ancient fourth-century BC Greek philosopher, a Cynic and an ultimate minimalist, who allegedly lived in a large clay wine jar in Athens. But we’ve done the guy a disfavor: Not only did he not hoard, but he actually sought human company by venturing daily to the marketplace.]

Bastien lived in this situation for eight years before reaching out for help. Eventually, a local charity helped him work through his shame, clear his apartment, and return to normality. Eight years!

I was completely secluded for eight years. When someone would turn up at my place, I would turn down the TV so it sounded like I wasn’t home. Before going out, I’d listen by the door to make sure no one was in the corridor. There was no way I could let anyone see my flat.”

Paris-based psychiatrist and geriatrician, Laurence Hugonot-Diener, vividly remembers one particular female patient in her 40s suffering from this disease.

She had dozens of cats in her studio, but a third of them were dead. We had everything cleared by a company, and every time one of the cats was taken away, she’d cry. Despite the intensity of the experience, the woman was eventually able to get her flat back to normal and invite her partner into her home.”

Life is like that: we sinners “hoard” sins that need to be extirpated.

Be gracious to me, God, according to Your lovingkindness;
according to the abundance of Your compassions
wipe away my rebellions.
Thoroughly wash me from my iniquity
and from my sin cleanse me. …
Against You—against You only, have I sinned
and what is evil in Your sight I have done.
Psalm 51:1–2, 4

Declared Hugonot-Diener:

The problem is, of course, it’s always down to the people experiencing these states to seek help. “If the person doesn’t acknowledge they have a problem, there is no point in insisting.”

And for sin, the only way out is divine forgiveness, based on the atoning work of Jesus Christ, our Savior.

Remove my sin [by sprinkling] with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash my guilt, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Psalm 51:7

To those who believe in simple faith in the final and full payment of their sins by Christ, cleanness is granted:

Rescue me from [the guilt of] blood[shed], God, the God of my deliverance;
my tongue will shout joyfully of Your righteousness.
Psalm 51:14

No need to live in the squalor of sin!

SOURCE: VICE Belgium