
"Hoarders" is an often painful look inside a disease that can bury its sufferer -- literally at times -- in its symptoms. Each hourlong episode profiles two people on the verge of a personal crisis, all caused by the fact that they are unable to part with even the tiniest possessions, and the cumulative effect becomes a mountain of junk and garbage overtaking their home or apartment. If they don't respond to professional help, the consequences sometimes involve eviction, kids being taken away, or even jail time.
A 49-year-old woman fears her hoarding will lead to authorities taking away her two children again; a well-educated man manages a successful honey business, but the inside of his home is a nightmare.
A woman's family has been ripped apart due to her hoarding; a man's girlfriend threatens to leave him if he does not clean up the hobby items he has been collecting since childhood.
A woman's life crumbles after her husband of 32 years dies while awaiting a heart transplant; a former psychologist is literally suffocating under her things.
A woman's house is falling down around her, but she can't make repairs because the house is packed full of her stuff.