Kriti Mehrotra
The Emmy-nominated and Critics Choice Award-winning reality series ‘Hoarders,’ as the title suggests, explores the world of extreme hoarding. Providing an in-depth look into the lives of those affected by compulsive hoarding, this unique show gives us a detailed look inside a disease that can literally bury its sufferer in its symptoms.
With piles of junk filling their homes, if those featured here don’t respond to the professional help offered to them, it can result in a personal crisis like no other. The finale episode of season 12, entitled ‘Debbie,’ is solid proof of the said consequences. So, let’s find out all that there is to know about the woman in question, shall we?
Debbie’s Hoarding has Robbed Her of A Lot
A&E’s synopsis for episode 8 of season 12 asserts: “Debbie worked hard as a single parent and faced loneliness when her only child grew up and moved out of the house. The sudden loss of her mother and caring for her depressed father caused Debbie to seek escape from constant stress. Thrift store shopping gave Debbie comfort, but it also triggered her hoarding disorder. Now, Debbie wants to build a new life with her boyfriend. With the help of the Hoarders team, Debbie wants to clean up her life and get her hoarding disorder under control.”
Unlike many hoards, Debbie acknowledges she has a problem that affects almost every aspect of her life. As the camera pans around her home, we see exactly how every corner and crevice of it is covered with random objects, including mountains of cardboard and plastic boxes, along with a myriad of clothing, utensils, papers, and seemingly unnecessary pieces of furniture. “The hoard has just robbed me of so much,” Debbie cries at one point, almost as if she is sick and tired of her living situation, which one of her relatives describes as unsafe.
Debbie Goes Through the Entire Process of Grief and Loss
As matters progress and Debbie fully comprehends that the professionals will be throwing out most of her well-loved commodities, the personal and working relationship between them gets tense. “This [clean-up] process is what needs to happen for you to heal,” we clearly hear psychologist Robin Zasio say, implying that Debbie needs to let go of her belongings and face her past loss and loneliness to move on in life. However, when an expert tells Debbie that she needs to get rid of more, she shouts, “absolutely not.”
With the ensuing clean-up, arguments, and a whole series of events, it’s not surprising that we eventually see Debbie break down and come to a full-circle realization of what needs to happen. As her family readily acts as her backbone, telling her, “We can’t change the past, but we can still get the future,” Debbie agrees to change, grow, and improve. “I want to live and thrive rather than just survive,” she says. Therefore, despite still having a long way to go, Debbie has made some crucial initial progress.
Slowly, yet surely, with the love and support of those who genuinely care about her, Debbie’s overall situation is bound to improve, and we, for one, can’t wait to see how it will turn out. Right now, though, Debbie seems to be on the path towards a positive transformation.
Read More: Where is Margie From Hoarders Season 12 Episode 7 Now?
