Answered questions(2)
Hoarding is Complex and Challenging to Treat
I have a relative that is probably a hoarder. He has so much stuff that there are rooms I can’t even get into because the stuff is piled from floor to ceiling. I have tried for years to get him to work through some of the junk (because most of it is junk) but he just can’t seem to make any real progress on it. He always has a reason why everything has some value to him or why he might need it again in the future. It seems crazy but he actually starts to get pretty upset if I press the issue so invariably I just leave it alone and nothing really gets done. The place is obviously a fire hazard and to me the air is very stuffy and musty, although he says he doesn’t notice this. I worry he is going to get some sort of lung disease from the dust and bad air. I know that he has a real problem here and I don’t think he will ever be able to solve this on his own. I have keys to his house and I know his schedule and so what I am thinking about doing is going in when I know he’ll be gone for the day and renting a Uhaul and just pulling out a few literal truck loads of useless junk and taking it to the dump. I know he’ll be upset after but at least it will make a little room in the house and after he sees this maybe he’ll be inspired to keep the progress going. I guess I am not sure if I should do this or not. I am ready to give a little tough love here, but I don’t want to do something that is harmful or mean spirited. Should I make him take this help that he doesn’t want – for his own good?
Read answer →Alcohol Withdrawal: Anxiety and Other Symptoms Vary Among Individual Users
I have been a heavy drinker for about 25 years. I drink 10 or 12 beers a day. I don’t get drunk and I know what the alcohol does to me and how it affects me. I am probably what you would call a functional alcoholic and at this stage in my life I am not interested in stopping. Lately I have been having a lot of anxiety and I went to my doctor to get some medication for it. He said that it could be the alcohol that was making me anxious and that he didn’t want to prescribe me anything until I tried quitting the drinking first to see if that made the anxiety go away. I do not wish to quit drinking and I have been drinking for long enough that I know what it does to me and what it does not do to me. Alcohol actually makes me feel less anxious and it’s pretty much the only thing I’ve got now to deal with the anxiety since he would not give me any medications. I do not wish to go against medical advice, if it is sound, but it simply makes no sense to me. Is it possible that alcohol would not make me anxious for 24 years and then all of a sudden it would start to make me feel anxious now? It just seems crazy to me.
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