Coping with a Parent or Family Memeber Who Hoards with Deborah Kossmann

Deborah Kossmann joins host Ron Aaron and co-host Carol Zernial to talk about coping with a parent or family member who hoards on this edition of Caregiver SOS.

About Deborah

Deborah Derrickson Kossmann is the winner of Trio House Press's inaugural 2023 Aurora Polaris Creative Nonfiction Award; Lost Found Kept: A Memoir, published by Trio House Press. Her poetry, essays and feature articles have appeared in a range of literary journals and other

publications including the Nashville Review, The Woven Tale Press, Psychotherapy Networker, and Solstice Literary Magazine.

A licensed clinical psychologist who has been in full time private practice for more than thirty years, Deb has experience in oncology, community mental health, and leadership consulting. She participates in PSYPACT which allows her to see clients in more than 42 states via telehealth. She has taught graduate courses on ethics, family therapy, trauma and counseling skills. A member of the Pennsylvania Psychological Association, she sits on the Ethics Committee.

Book Description:

How does a psychologist fail to recognize that her intelligent, sensitive, and book-loving mother has created "the worst hoarder house ever seen?" After making the horrifying discovery that her mother had no water in her house for at least two years, Deborah Derrickson Kossmann begins the otherworldly excavation of a childhood home she hasn't been inside for three decades.

Moving back and forth in time, from this surreal nightmare of an archaeological dig to recollecting her past and long buried family secrets, Kossmann seeks to untangle a web of complicated familial relationships. In her lyrical and unflinching quest, she comes to understand what's been lost, what's been found and what's been kept in both her own and her mother's life. 

Hosts Ron Aaron and Carol Zernial, and their guests talk about Caregiving and how to best cope with the stresses associated with it. Learn about "Caregiver SOS" and the "Teleconnection Hotline" programs.

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