Around 600.000 Australians have a hoarding disorder and it’s ruining their lives. People collect stuff obsessively because they identify with their possession and throwing something away is like losing a part of themselves. They also process information differently: Instead of categorising objects, they sort them spatially. You first need to understand the mind of a hoarder before you can tackle the clutter.

Highlight from Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things presented by Catholic Community Services at the National Hoarding and Squalor Conference. 29 June 2016.