I work with many clients with hoarding challenges. They have helped me to see and heal the 'hoarder' in me and others who come to see me NOT because of hoarding. I will use my own examples to clarify what I mean, and hope parts of this article resonate and are helpful for you:

I came from an academic background. 'Researcher' used to be my identity. Being someone skilled at conducting research still constitutes part of my self-value today, even though I have acquired a new identity as a therapist. Early this year I applied for a research grant to conduct a clinical trial on hoarding. However, my proposal was not funded, and the comments I received felt hurtful and hard to swallow. A week after getting these comments, I found myself saying yes and engaging in a dozen professional projects of various scales - I felt pride and heard my inner chatter saying, “I don't need the useless grant to do what I CAN do!” Anger was with me.

Recently, it was lovingly and assertively brought to my attention by my coach that I’ve been holding out on all of you, and myself. I’ve been keeping quiet about one of the most important things about my business: who I work with, and ultimately, what I do.
Ouch!
I felt that sting. I let it sink in for a moment, and in that space -- that place of pause, I knew she was right.