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Food and Home
Hoarding Severity Scale

From the shows Inside the Lives of Hoarders with Peter Walsh Parts 1 and 2

Assess your tendency towards hoarding Do you have a problem with compulsive hoarding? Use this self-assessment to find out.

For each question below, choose the word that corresponds most closely to your experience during the past week.

1. How much of the living area in your home is cluttered with possessions? (Consider the amount of clutter in your kitchen, living room, dining room, hallways, bedrooms, bathrooms or other rooms.)
None
A Little
A Moderate Amount
Most/Much
Almost All/Complete
2. How much of your home is difficult to walk through because of clutter?
None
A Little
A Moderate Amount
Most/Much
Almost All/Complete
3. To what extent do you have so many things that your room(s) are cluttered?
Not at all
Mild
Moderate
Considerable/Severe
Extreme
4. How much does clutter in your home interfere with your social, work or everyday functioning? Think about things that you don't do because of clutter.
Not at all
Mild
Moderate
Considerable/Severe
Extreme
5. To what extent does the clutter in your home prevent you from using parts of your home for their intended purposes? For example, cooking, using furniture, washing dishes, cleaning, etc.
Never
Rarely
Sometimes/Occasionally
Frequently/Often
Very often
6. To what extent do you have difficulty throwing things away?
Not at all
Mild
Moderate
Considerable/Severe
Extreme
7. How distressing do you find the task of throwing things away?
Not at all
Mild
Moderate
Considerable/Severe
Extreme
8. How strong is your urge to save something you know you may never use?
Not at all
Mild
Moderate
Considerable/Severe
Extreme
9. How often do you avoid trying to discard possessions because it is too stressful or time consuming?
Never
Rarely
Sometimes/Occasionally
Frequently/Often
Very often
10. How often do you decide to keep things you do not need and have little space for?
Never
Rarely
Sometimes/Occasionally
Frequently/Often
Very often
11. How distressed or uncomfortable would you feel if you could not acquire something you wanted?
Not at all
Mild
Moderate
Considerable/Severe
Extreme
12. How strong is your urge to buy or acquire free things for which you have no immediate use?
Not at all
Mild
Moderate
Considerable/Severe
Extreme
13. To what extent has your saving or compulsive buying resulted in financial difficulties for you?
Not at all
Mild
Moderate
Considerable/Severe
Extreme
14. How often do you feel compelled to acquire something you see, e.g., when shopping or offered free things?
Never
Rarely
Sometimes/Occasionally
Frequently/Often
Very often
15. How often do you actually buy (or acquire for free) things for which you have no immediate use or need?
Never
Rarely
Sometimes/Occasionally
Frequently/Often
Very often
From Buried in Treasures: Help for Compulsive Acquiring, Saving, and Hoarding by David Tolin, Randy O. Frost and Gail Steketee.


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