Jo Cooke
Jo Cooke is Director of Hoarding Disorders UK, author of Understanding Hoarding, and a leading expert in practical and compassionate support for those affected. She brings over a d...
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Who are you? (Introduction, Name, Profession, something personal)
Hi, my name's Joe Cook. I am director of Hoarding Disorders uk, a community interest company. I'm also author of Understanding Hoarding. I live down in Devon and I love swimming. I love my grandchildren. And yeah, basically that's me.
What is your background?
Oh, I got quite a varied background from working for the civil service to doing bookkeeping to event management, working for a charity. But essentially I got into the world of specialising with people with hoarding behaviours and decluttering. After my father died, he was Polish. He grew up during the war and he had his own hoarding behaviours. So yes, it took me four months to clear the family home out, and then I realised that there's hoarding clutter and disorganisation, and that's when I set up my community interest company.
What is hoarding disorder?
Hoarding is recognised as a mental health disorder and was recognised as such by the DSM back in 2013. Essentially when we look at hoarding, it is the persistent difficulty discarding or parting with possessions regardless of their monetary value. And this is associated with a perceived need to save the items and distress associated with discarding them. That could be anything from a used tissue to a newspaper from 30 years ago to a moth eaten hat. And when we look at hoarding, we very much look at it as a security blanket. It makes people feel safe. And in the same token, it is around filling a void, but also acts as a form of avoidance. It's a very complex disorder.