Hoarding vs?
 

So I have been one of those that have been shaking my head at the "hoarders" that continue to take stuff from the shelves. Today there was as interview with several mental health experts who explained what is going on and yes, it boils down to mental illness. It is OCD at best, and at worst, a fear of never having enough of anything. When anything out of the usual occurs (hurricanes is another example) the fear of not being in control kicks in and taking stuff gives them a feeling of being in control. So maybe hoarders is too broad a term and maybe we should sympathize with those that are afflicted...??

I'll sympathize up to the point where I have no TP and someone has 500 rolls in their garage.

I think that mental health experts like to diagnose people as either affIicted or not afflicted. But, it is really a spectrum, based on personality. Some people do not feel comfortable unless they have a stockpile of certain supplies, food, or money in the bank. Other people are fine living day to day. However, it does seem that a very small number of people go to the extreme and need professional help. Did the mental health experts tell you how many rolls of toilet paper you need to have before seeking professional help?

Yep.

I do want to sympathize, especially today. But I believe it’s only a small portion of those that are hoarding that have an emotional reason for doing so. I think the majority doing it are just not good people. I mean to their soul they are not good.

Are the shelves empty now because people continue to empty them to hoard, or are the shelves empty now because normal need purchasing & the supply chain has not caught up??

One must consider the whole supply chain thing. I have learned thing I never have much thought to. Toilet paper there are 2 markets consumers and industrial. Most people don't use the majority of toilet paper at home as they are at work/school during the day. The industrial supply chain doesn't have contracts with the consumer market. Even if that were to happen today shelves wouldn't be stocked overnight. They use different material also, they would need enough staffing and have to make changes to reformat the rolls. Not as simple as it seems at first glance.

I read somewhere online that it is a supply chain problem that is partly caused by the pandemic and might not be solved for a while.

However.....one has to wonder.
Given that just about every public venue is no longer open.
Hence the supply of paper products needed for all these institutions has literally shut down.

Also given (I think) it has been weeks since the run on these products started.

So one would think between the hoarders larder being full and the lack of commercial demand there should be more than enough to go around. The companies that package for commercial use should be able to switch to some sort of retail packaging.

It just does not compute that the system has not been able to "recover" to a steady state.....(based on my limited knowledge how it works).

I hope you are right and that the situation will be resolved soon. We are one of the ones who did not stock up enough. Didn't realize there would be a supply problem. My amazon.com order of 250 lunch napkins got cancelled. I did manage to get 8 boxes of kleenex...

There were folks coming out of Walgreens (Paar Drive) with TP and paper towels.
Also the little country store set on the City Fire front porch (Sumter Square) has it as well.....to name a couple.

As a layman I can’t say someone is suffering from mental illness but I wonder. Couple weeks ago I got to watch a woman load a shopping cart with hundreds of rolls of TP. The mountain of TP was taller than her. (in NY the supermarkets still have TP). I said to the lady, is it necessary to buy years worth of TP at this time? She said nothing, she had that laser beam focus to get to the register and out the door. Also, shame on the store for not limiting TP purchases.

It seems to me that something in their brain says buy it now because you might never be able to buy it again. I don’t know if that’s the definition of a hoarder but there is definitely something going on upstairs.

The continued shortages are surprising to me, too, especially since I believe all the grocery stores here are limiting purchases of food and other high-demand items. The 20 oz container of Italian spice blend I've ordered for years was either unavailable or twice the usual price. It's a puzzlement.

My new year's resolution this year was to switch to just in time purchasing instead of stocking up on 2 each of BOGO pantry items like I usually do. Good thing that, as usual, I didn't stick to it!

There may be some that hoard that have problems, but I have always stocked up on several items. I may only use 5 bottles of water per week. But when I buy , I get a months worth. The same with many things. That is why pantries were built. That is why Costco, SAMS do business. When the COVID-9 crisis erupted, I made sure I had a months worth of needed items that I have seen hoarded in prior emergencies. TP was one item. Who wants to stand in line to buy this crap when the shelves are bare. Recall that our pioneer ancesters had to make sure they could withstand long periods without certain items being available. Perhaps it Is in our genes.

My question is why are these items unavailable. One evening on a recent Lake Sumpter walk, we noticed several customers coming out of Winn Dixie with cart loads of TP. Sure they may have limits , but what clerk is going to argue. Hopefully, that is not the stuff that is showing up for sale at new general stores

Stores may be limiting amounts purchased but that doesn’t stop couples from each purchasing the limit, going to their car unloading and going back to buy more as I witnessed the other day. Nor does it stop people from buying as much as they can from different stores.

I was using Sam’s concierge service (LOVE it) and heard a “gentleman” arguing with the clerk that he had a RIGHT to buy 5 packages of toilet paper. Ultimately, he was refused any service. Wish more stores were willing to stand behind their guidelines like that. I went over a month without an egg in the house because InstaCart shopped too late and I refuse to go into any store. So, I’d guess folks are still hoarding. Maybe those that missed out on the initial hoarding are now taking their turn?

And then there’s my neighbors. Their lanai is crammed with stuff — toilet paper, paper towels, bottled water, canned goods, etc. They had a heck of a fight when they found out they wouldn’t be able to return any of it. Hate to admit it, but I had a good laugh about their little problem. Think it’ll take them about two years to use everything that doesn’t go bad.