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

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.

Michael A. Tompkins, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist, a founding partner of the San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy, Assistant Clinical Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, and a Diplomate and Founding Fellow of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy. He is the author or co-author of numerous articles and chapters on cognitive-behavior therapy and related topics, as well as four books including, My Anxious Mind: A Teen's Guide to Managing Anxiety and Panic (with Katherine Martinez) (Magination Press/American Psychological Association, 2009); and Digging Out: Helping Your Loved One Manage Cutter, Hoarding, and Compulsive Acquiring (with Tamara L. Hartl) (New Harbinger, 2009) regarded as a seminal work on the topic of compulsive hoarding. He is a member of the San Francisco Task Force on Hoarding and has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and on television (The Learning Channel, Arts & Entertainment) and radio (KQED, KPFA).

Tamara L. Hartl, Ph.D., is a clinical instructor at Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA, and a staff psychologist in the VA Palo Alto Health Care System. She also has an independent clinical practice in Saratoga, CA. Hartl has coauthored several seminal publications on hoarding behavior, including a cognitive-behavioral model of compulsive hoarding that she co-created in 1996 and later published in Behavior Research and Therapy. Hartl specializes in the treatment of anxiety disorders and sexual dysfunction as well as compulsive hoarding.

Foreword writer Gail Steketee, Ph.D., 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.

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