Loving Someone with OCD: Help for You and Your Family

by Karen J. Landsman, Kathleen M. Parrish, Cherlene Pedrick

People who suffer from mental illness rarely do so alone. Their families and loved ones face their own set of unique challenges—problems that deserve their own resources and sources of support. This is the first book written specifically to the loved ones of people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). It helps readers examine how OCD affects their lives and offers a straightforward system for building a healthier, more constructive relationship with OCD sufferers. The book contains basic information about OCD—its definition, cause, and symptoms—and a brief overview of treatments available for the disorder. After these introductory sections, the book focuses on ways readers can foster a healthy relationship with someone with OCD. It includes tips for increasing family involvement, making accommodation for the disorder in daily life, and creating an action plan for change using family contracts. The book also covers relational topics such as parenting and marriage, self-care, and support networking. Throughout, the book illustrates important points with the real-life stories of families living with OCD.

Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology, Self Help

174 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2005

Reviews

[bup · Rating 4 out of 5]

My biggest problem with the book is how short it is, but really, maybe I shouldn't make bones about that. People want friendly things, not intimidating.

It's officially 160 pages, but a whole lot of it is whitespace.

It boils down to a few simple things - ERP, contracts - and walks the reader through them in a friendly manner. It's a good book if you're dealing specifically with OCD - other diagnoses in the obsessive-compulsive spectrum area, not so much.

Also, I don't know of many other books like this, so it's a good thing to read if you want to learn about it.

[Marthe · Rating 4 out of 5]

The authors take an interesting moralistic stance in relation to OCD, positing it as an enemy and a tyrant to battle with. This seems to me to be an unnecessarily combative way of looking at it, but the methods recommended in this book for working together to reduce the impact of OCD seem quite useful. Learning more about the different ways OCD can look and function was interesting, and the concept of contracting in particular feels to me like a consent-based, inclusive, and holistic approach and an essential foundation for delving into further recovery methods.

[Saraelizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book super helpful with practical tips and concrete steps to take. It's mostly about how you, as a family member of someone with OCD, can best support and encourage them when they are working to overcome OCD. But I also think it would helpful for the person with OCD. Really, this mental illness affects the whole family and the whole family can and should be part of helping to overcome it.

[Dawn VanLerberghe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this because I need help loving someone with OCD. While I learned and liked the contract concept, I felt the information was repetitive and not unique from other OCD books. I was hoping for more about what I could do in my role. As another reviewer mentioned, the book stated to change how you responded to accommodations and reassuring, but gave very few examples of what to say. While we want to make big gains, I feel like I can only inch my way closer to helping my loved one.

[One · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had some decent information. My issue with it was that it was good in telling you what not to say and do to help someone with OCD, but it didn't tell you what TO do and say. I would have liked more info about what TO do, along with all the what not to do info.

[Juan Callejas Aquino · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very insightful and practical.

[Alexandria Knapp · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so helpful for understanding someone in your life that struggles with OCD.

[Breashl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found a handful of the chapters particularly helpful to read through. Those that resonated with me discussed the partner's role in the situation and how not to feed into obsessions or compulsions. I found that to be quite helpful. I'm all about supporting the person rather than feeding into the disorder. 9/10 I will read this book again when I need a refresher on the information.

[Candess Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent book. As a mental health counselor, I had not been trained in working with OCD and this book was a gem when I came across someone with OCD. With all illness, the environment can make a big difference in health and recovery. Most families and friends don't know what to do. This book gave clear guidelines in how to assist your loved one in recovery. It is also a good book for the person with OCD to read because they can understand how their illness affects others too!

A couple of main points - 1. Don't accommodate (enable) and 2. Don't reassure.

If you are in relationship with someone who has OCD, this is a must read before it gets worse. Give it to all the people closely involved in the person's life. It is empowering!

[Christine Calabrese · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was looking for a book to help ME cope with the OCD spouse not to change them. This book is centered around getting the OCD person to change and this is really not what the title indicates. Hope I find a book that is just about how to cope with this disorder rather than how to change it.