As a Professional Organiser who has helped people declutter in the past I was very interested to read this book. It gives sensible advice and does not sensationalise hoarding like many of the shows on TV do. Behind the headlines there are always people who are struggling with their day to day lives and hoarding is a manifestation of this. I would recommend this book to those who would like to know more about the subject.

It's difficult to use a rating scale when reviewing a book that falls under the self-help category, because not everyone has the same goals when selecting a book such as this. As the author mentions several times, every hoarder is unique in their reasons for keeping things. Likewise, every reader will bring their own unique reasons for wanting to understand hoarding. The most helpful way to review this book may be to list the chapters and go from there.

1. What is hoarding disorder?
2. Why do people hoard?
3. Seeing the problem: Learning to visualize clutter
4. Decluttering techniques & tips
5. How to help someone who hoards
6. Sustainability: keeping it clear
7. Where does my stuff go?
8. Helpful therapies
9. The professionals perspective
10. The voice of the hoarder
Useful addresses
Further reading

Whatever your interest in the subject of hoarding, you will likely find something in this book that is of both interest and assistance. The biggest beneficiaries of the information will be people in the UK who are interested in understanding and assisting a loved one (possibly the reader themselves) who is a chronic hoarder. If you don't fit that description, this book still may be of great value you, but there may be more information than you need and some chapters or sections you can skip as they may not apply to your situation.

My mother is a hoarder and I have read a few books this year on hoarding and decluttering, so much of what I read in <i>Understanding Hoarding</i> I already had a basic understanding of, from experience and prior research. One thing that stood out to me about this book is how compassionate the author is on the subject. It's not about the clutter, it's about the individual. The author is very clear that the only long-term solution for a person with hoarding disorder is to try and understand the nature of their hoarding tendencies and work through the problem with their consent and at their own speed. While this makes sense as to why it's the most successful way to face the problem, it does not address the situations where there may be an immediate danger to individuals or animals in their dwelling. I say this as someone who has walked into a house so full of mold and mildew that the ceiling was caving in from years of water damage, on to piles and piles of clutter. In this case, the humane thing to do is to ensure that everything is disposed of only by a professional with an appropriate breathing apparatus. The drawback of focusing on the individual is that I don't know how it works when they are not ready to accept that they have a problem while their behavior affects the health & wellbeing of themselves and others.

Overall, this book is recommended to anyone who seeks to understand why people hoard and let their clutter control them. Particularly if you are just beginning to research the subject.

Amazing book! I always felt this was a sad mental disorder! This book helped me understand!

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This book is an absolute Godsend to people who are hoarders and the ones they love. As someone who is in a relationship with a “neat” hoarder of tubs and containers of brand new with tags items, I had nowhere to start. Do I get rid of things slowly without him noticing? No. The book says no. Because hoarding is actually a mental disorder. There is something underlying that needs to be addressed for the actual hoarding to be addressed. I really liked this book because it was thorough in describing the different types of hoarding (mine is a churner). It also had several stories from different points of view that were very interesting to read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jo Cooke, and Sheldon Press for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I do not suffer from hoarding, and I do not know anyone that does. As far as I know at least. I wanted to read this book because I have an interest in mental health issues, and wanted to see if there was anything in this book that could help with my own depression and anxiety.

If you are suffering from hoarding, or know anyone who is, I would recommend to look trough this book. It gives a great understanding of the condition, and great tips on how to help.

For me, I liked the first part of the book, the part of understanding the condition. The middle part became hard for me to relate to, but I can absolutely se the help it may provide. Not giving up on the book, I continued to the end, and I am happy I did. In the end hoarders and helpers explain their own experiences. I especially love the two myths and truth lists.

And, the book is filled with different lists. I love lists!

f you're anything like us here, families build up clutter we shove away to forget until we pass it on... eventually that is.

I remember watching Homes Under The Hammer and a Channel 4 programme about hoarders and seeing the state of their homes from excessive collecting of anything from recyclables to general life objects.

I wanted to learn more on the subject and this book covers the base of it perfectly for me.

It is factual but open, talking about how Hoarding is classed as a Mental Health issue and is commonly found alongside depression/depressive disorders and people with a range of disabilities/chronic illness too including my Fibromyalgia.
I never knew of that link for sure and though I own a good collection of books, if you haven't guessed! I do always have a clear out to keep space for more loved ones to have their time in my collection before clearing out again in the future.

Hoarding is talked about at length of where its roots come from be it childhood or events recently and it can be triggered by many things from abuse to redundancy etc.

People often feel a need for control and perfectionism can also try to take charge so receiving help and support whilst slowly making changes even a little bit a day to work through the hoarded goods can help alter their mindset and set a realistic goal for the future.

The book spoke so clearly and got the points across that even though anyone really can be affected, it doesn't have to be a life long condition and not get to the health effecting stage. It is treatable with the right accessible care and support.

I truly think anyone with hoarding tendencies will take something away from this book, whether its just facts they didn't know or a tip given within.

Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!