Digging Out: Helping Your Loved One Manage Clutter, Hoarding, and Compulsive Acquiring

by Michael A. Tompkins PhD, ABPP, Tamara L. Hartl PhD, Randy O. Frost PhD (Foreword by), Gail Steketee PhD (Foreword by)

Overview

Many people who hoard understand the extent of their problem and are open to help. This book is not for them. Digging Out is for the concerned and frustrated friends and family members of people who do not fully accept the magnitude of their hoarding problem and refuse help from others. If you have a friend or loved one with a hoarding problem and are seeking a way to guide him or her to a healthier, safer way of life, this book is for you.

In Digging Out, you will find a complete guide to helping your loved one with a hoarding problem live safely and comfortably in his or her home or apartment. Included are realistic harm reduction strategies that you can use to help your loved one manage health and safety hazards, avoid eviction, and motivate him or her to make long-term lifestyle changes. You'll learn how to handle a roommate or spouse with a hoarding problem, identify and work through special considerations that may arise when the person who hoards is frail and elderly, and receive guidance for healing strained relationships between people who hoard and their friends and family. Take heart. With this book as a guide, you can help your loved one live more comfortably and safely, salvage your damaged relationship, and restore your peace of mind.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781572245945
Publisher:	New Harbinger Publications
Publication date:	11/01/2009
Series:	Unassigned Series
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	101,231
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Michael A. Tompkins, PhD, ABPP, is a board-certified psychologist in behavioral and cognitive psychology. He is codirector of the San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy, and a faculty member of the Beck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy. Tompkins is author or coauthor of fifteen books, and presents to national and international audiences on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and related topics. His work has been highlighted by media outlets, including in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, on television (TLC, A&E), and on radio (KQED, NPR).

Tamara L. Hartl, PhD, is an independent clinical practitioner in Saratoga, CA, and a psychologist at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System. She has coauthored several seminal publications on hoarding behavior, including the first cognitive-behavioral model for the treatment of compulsive hoarding with Randy Frost. She specializes in the treatment of anxiety disorders and sexual dysfunction as well as compulsive hoarding.

read an excerpt | Read an interview |

Randy O. Frost, PhD, teaches abnormal psychology at Smith College in Northampton, MA. He is coauthor of Buried in Treasures.


Gail Steketee, PhD, is a professor and co-chair in the department of clinical practice at the School of Social Work at Boston University. She is coauthor of Buried in Treasures.

Table of Contents

Foreword ix

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

For Those Who Are Open to Help: Treatments That Work

Why They Refuse Help

Digging Out

How to Use This Book

Chapter 1 What Is Compulsive Hoarding? 13

Defining Compulsive Hoarding

Why Save That?

Why People Keep Hoarding

How Do You Know if Your Loved One Has the Problem?

Could It Be Something Else?

Chapter 2 Harm Reduction 27

What Is Harm Reduction?

Applying Harm Reduction to Compulsive Hoarding

Why Harm Reduction Can Help

Chapter 3 Setting the Stage for Harm Reduction 35

Let Go

Understand

Forgive

Grab Hold

Chapter 4 Helping Them Accept Help 51

Engaging Your Loved One in the Harm Reduction Approach

Introducing Your Loved One to the Harm Reduction Approach

Chapter 5 Assessing Harm Potential 71

Conducting the Home Assessment

Acquisition Pathways

Identifying Harm Reduction Targets

Chapter 6 Creating a Harm Reduction Plan 95

Features of a Harm Reduction Plan

Putting the Harm Reduction Team Together

Creating the Harm Reduction Plan

Formalizing the Harm Reduction Contract

Chapter 7 Keeping the Harm Reduction Targets Clear 113

Step Carefully: Seven Steps to Successful Home Visits

Why Do You Have This Here?

L.E.A.R.N.: Listen, Empathize, Affirm, Redirect, and Negotiate

Skills for the Long Term

Chapter 8 Managing the Bumps in the Road 135

Six Common Reasons for Contract Failures

Working Through Contract Failures

Avoiding Contract Burnout

Using Appropriate Pressure

Making the Best of a Public Situation

Chapter 9 All in the Family and Other Complications 153

When People Who Hoard Live Together

When People Who Hoard Live in Assisted-CareFacilities

When the Person Who Hoards Is an Older Adult

How Frailty Influences Harm Reduction

Chapter 10 When the Landlord Knocks, and Other Terrors 165

There Are No "Bad Guys," Only Potential Team Members

Adult and Child Protective Services

Health and Safety Codes

Guardianship or Conservatorship

Eviction Notices

Clear-Out Interventions

Resources 179

Recommended Reading

Professionals Who Can Help

Support Groups

Other Resources

Tips for Managing Paper, Mail, and E-mail

Where to Donate or Recycle

Reference 187

Editorial Reviews

If your loved one has a problem with compulsive saving, this book can help you both save what really counts—yourselves! With equal parts compassion, wisdom, and practicality, Michael Tompkins and Tamara Hartl offer step-by-step instructions for helping family members and friends with hoarding challenges. The authors’ passion for their work comes through on every page, and their extensive experience is evident in every nugget of advice they offer.”
—Jeff Bell, author of When in Doubt, Make Belief: An OCD-Inspired Approach to Living with Uncertainty

From the Publisher