Heroine By Mindy Mcginnis
When a car crash sidelines Mickey just before softball season, she has to find a way to hold on to her spot as the catcher for a team expected to make a historic tournament run. Behind the plate is the only place shes ever felt comfortable, and the painkillers shes been prescribed can help her get there.
The pills do more than take away pain they make her feel good.
With a new circle of friendsfellow injured athletes, others with just time to killMickey finds peaceful acceptance, and people with whom words come easily, even if it is just the pills loosening her tongue. But as the pressure to be Mickey Catalan heightens, her need increases, and it becomes less about pain and more about want, something that could send her spiraling out of control.
Nothing Good Can Come From This: Essays
Overview: When Kristi stopped drinking, she started noticing things. Like when you give up a debilitating habit, it leaves a space, one that cant easily be filled by mocktails or ice cream or sex or crafting. And when you cancel Rosé Season for yourself, youre left with just Summer, and thats when you notice that the women around you are tankedthat alcohol is the oil in the motors that keeps them purring when they could be making other kinds of noise.
In her sharp, incisive debut essay collection, Coulter reveals a portrait of a life in transition. By turns hilarious and heartrending, Nothing Good Can Come from This introduces a fierce new voice to fans of Sloane Crosley, David Sedaris, and Cheryl Strayedperfect for anyone who has ever stood in the middle of a so-called perfect life and looked for an escape hatch.
Consider Joining A Book Club
Book clubs are a great way to stay socially connected and read more books. If youre considering joining one, it can be helpful to make sure you enter the best book club. To do so:
Do a search on Meetup, Facebook groups, or even on Instagram and Twitter. There may also have traditional in-person options nearby where you live. Consider starting your own book club by creating a social media profile where you review books you have read or are currently reading and connect with other book lovers online.
There are also fun groups on GoodReads which is the more popular option. If youre looking for a new self-help book to read, check out the Passages Wellness Store for several great options.
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+ Books About Addiction And Recovery
Substance abuse is a silent epidemic thats affecting countless people worldwide. The more we know about this complex condition, the more empowered we become to steer clear of personal addiction triggersor give loved ones whatever they need to power through the journey towards lifelong sobriety.
Reading books about addiction recovery and memoirs of prominent personalities who share their struggles can be significantly beneficial for maintaining emotional sobriety and relapse prevention.
This article shares a comprehensive list of addiction recovery books worth checking out. Lets delve right in.
Broken: My Story Of Addiction And Redemption
This is one of the recovery books that shows how wins, losses, hopelessness, and courage are all part of the recovery process.
Broken tells the story of William Cope Myers, who was once wrapped up in the arms of crack cocaine.
His addiction to this substance almost brought him to the brink of death. With the help and support of the people around him, Myers was able to rebuild his spirituality on his way to a sober life. Today, he dedicates his life to changing the politics of addiction in the United States.
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Clean: Overcoming Addiction And Ending Americas Greatest Tragedy
A myth-shattering look at drug abuse and addiction treatment, based on cutting-edge research. Addiction is a preventable, treatable disease, not a moral failing. As with other illnesses, the approaches most likely to work are based on science not on faith, tradition, contrition, or wishful thinking. These facts are the foundation of Clean. The existing addiction treatments, including Twelve Step programs and rehabs, have helped some, but they have failed to help many more.
To discover why, David Sheff spent time with scores of scientists, doctors, counselors, and addicts and their families, and explored the latest research in psychology, neuroscience, and medicine. In Clean, he reveals how addiction really works, and how we can combat it.
In My Skin: A Memoir Of Addiction
This is one of the addiction books showcasing the toll of drugs on someones life. In My Skin: A Memoir of Addiction sheds light on Kate Holdens life. Holden a shy college graduate came from a middle-class family and seemed like she had everything she needed in life.
When she had her first hit of heroin, she had no idea that she was going to spiral into a life of addiction. She lost her job, her friends, and her apartment. It came to a point where she had to steal from her family. When she had nothing left, she sold her body to feed her addiction. With the love and support of her family, redemption was within her reach.
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Recovery From Trauma Addiction Or Both: Strategies For Finding Your Best Self By Lisa Najavits
Lisa Najavits discusses the effects that past trauma has on a persons addiction. This is an inspirational book that provides real-life examples of developing coping mechanisms and realistic goals that lead to a healthier life. In the book, Najavits links trauma with addiction and presents readers with science-based self-help strategies that can be used no matter where you are in your recovery process.
Permanent Midnight By Jerry Stahl
The writer of the comedy television show Alf, Stahl tells his story of heroin addiction and his journey to recovery. Permanent Midnight is both intense and humorous. Stahl describes his out-of-control behavior to get drugs, such as driving at midnight from his luxury home in Los Angeles to the worst neighborhoods in the city with his daughter in her car seat. He shares the hurdles he overcame to find a lasting sobriety.
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How To Overcome Addiction Using Spiritual Tools
Here are the steps you can take to replace an addictive habit with a spiritual practice. Ive found this two-pronged method particularly helpful.
Practice abstinence: First, take away the permission-giving thoughts that are fueling your addiction. When I quit drinking, I didnt give myself permission to have one or two glasses of wine a week. I knew I couldnt drink casually. This abstinence helped me tremendously in my recovery.
Lean into a spiritual practice: When you no longer have permission to reach for your drug of choice, youll need to put a habit in place to replace drinking, texting, or whatever it is youre addicted to. When you feel the urge to turn to your vice, choose a spiritual practice instead. You may want to meditate, journal about all your frustration and fear , or take a walk. This will help you redirect your neural pathways and get to the root cause of the addiction.
Stupid Things That Mess Up Recovery By Allen Berger
Addiction is not the only problem. If you are a recovering addict and need help on preventing and avoiding relapse, this is the book for you.
For most addicts, removing their addictions doesnt work in the long-term because their main problem isnt resolved and they are still running away from it. Therefore, relapse is bound to happen.
This book goes beyond the treatment plan and addresses the emotional sobriety that needs to occur to sustain recovery. From getting real about your circumstances to addressing related issues like relationships and taking responsibility, this book discusses about the emotional work that needs to accompany physical sobriety.
Building a strong foundation that supports recovery is key and this book is great for that.
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Jesus’ Son By Denis Johnson
This short book of interlinked short stories gets my vote as the most terrifying, gorgeous, and perfect portrayal of addiction in literary history. Johnson, himself a former heroin addict, rips the skin off his narrators life to reveal the beauty and anguish underneath. After several readings Im still at a loss to pin down how Johnson succeeds in being so transcendently gritty, so brutally compassionate.
The Four Major Dimensions Of Recovery:
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Last Night I Sang To The Monster By Benjamin Alire Senz
Zach is eighteen. He is bright and articulate. Hes also an alcoholic and in rehab instead of high school, but he doesnt remember how he got there. Hes not sure he wants to remember. Something bad must have happened. Something really, really bad. Remembering sucks and being alive well, whats up with that?
I have it in my head that when were born, God writes things down on our hearts. See, on some peoples hearts he writes Happy and on some peoples hearts he writes Sad and on some peoples hearts he writes Crazy on some peoples hearts he writes Genius and on some peoples hearts he writes Angry and on some peoples hearts he writes Winner and on some peoples hearts he writes Loser. Its all like a game to him. Him. God. And its all pretty much random. He takes out his pen and starts writing on our blank hearts. When it came to my turn, he wrote Sad. I dont like God very much. Apparently he doesnt like me very much either.
A Very Fine House: A Mothers Story Of Love Faith And Crystal Meth
This is one of the recovery books written from the perspective of a loved one. In this memoir, Barbara Cofer Stoefen details how her young daughter surrendered her life to meth. Annie, Stoefens daughter, lived on the streets where she committed crimes to the community, to her family, and to herself.
This book shows the challenges and all the things it takes to regain control of ones life. Intimate, raw, and emotional, A Very Fine House is a must-read among other sobriety books.
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The Gambler By Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Perhaps surprisingly, the first great portrait of an addict in European fiction doesnt focus on alcohol or drugs, but on roulette. In 1866, a debt-mired Dostoyevsky made an outrageous gamble. In exchange for an advance from an unscrupulous businessman, he committed to deliver a new novel in a matter of months if he failed, hed surrender the copyright to his entire body of work for several years. He wrote feverishly around the clock, finishing The Gambler in just four weeks. These circumstances undoubtedly informed the dread-suffused atmosphere of the story, in which the protagonist is surrounded by a colorful cast of chancers, con-artists, and down-at-the-heel aristocratsall of them, in their different ways, hoping that one last spin of fortunes wheel will deliver them from their despair.
Recovery: Freedom From Our Addictions By Russell Brand
Movie star and comedian Russell Brand uses a mix of humor, compassion, and honesty to share his advice on addiction and recovery. After struggling with addictions to drugs and alcohol, Brand has been sober since 2003. He writes of how the process of staying sober is a daily activity. He shares his recovery plan and explains the importance of the 12-Step program and how it has helped him in his recovery journey.
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My Struggle: Book One By Karl Ove Knausgaard
The first book in the Norwegian authors epic six-volume autofiction is the best portrayal Ive ever read of the tragic effects of alcoholism on a family. The author is traumatized by his unstable, punitive fathers parentingand then watches helplessly as the older Knausgaard drinks himself to oblivion and, finally, death. The scene where Karl Ove and his brother clear up hundreds of empty liquor bottles from their dead fathers wrecked home will stay with you forever.
Books For Those Struggling With Addiction
Books about addiction can help people who are still wrestling with addiction in the privacy of their own minds. These writings are sober curious books or for people who are interested in understanding what addiction and recovery looks like. These books can offer real help as they illustrate the varied nature of addiction and how the writers found success in recovery.
- The Naked Mind: Control Alcohol, Find Freedom, Discover Happiness, & Change Your Life by Annie Grace
This book offers answers to the questions many people have who regularly drink alcohol, such as, could I be an alcoholic? and other questions about alcohol dependence. This book is a technical analysis of the role alcohol plays in our society and what alcohol dependence or misuse may look like.
- Tweak: Growing Up on Methamphetamines by Nic Sheff
Meth addiction recovery is vividly illustrated in this book. The author dealt with addiction to multiple drugs and unsuccessfully pursued recovery on his own. His story acknowledges the power of drug addiction and the challenges to overcome substance abuse.
There is also a book for the sober curious, or those who are interested in taking a more mindful approach to their drinking instead of permanent abstinence. Sober Curious: The Blissful Sleep, Greater Focus, Limitless Presence, and Deep Connection Awaiting Us All on the Other Side of Alcohol by Ruby Warrington may change how you think about alcohol.
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The Patrick Melrose Novels By Edward St Aubyn
I read these five autobiographical novels twice: once as a heroin addict and a second time in rehab. Together they are perhaps the most powerful depiction of the full life cycle of addictionfrom childhood trauma to chaotic dependency to tentative recoveryin English literature. And somehow, they manage to be both terrible and hilarious . Every addict will relate to the St. Aubyns beautifully paradoxical line: The way other people felt about love, he felt about heroin, and he felt about love the way other people felt about heroin: that it was a dangerous and incomprehensible waste of time.
Dont Face The Battle Alone
Our team is here to guide you through your path to recovery.
Sometimes we are asked what are the best books on drug/alcohol addiction we recommend to clients? Can these books be separated into categories for recovering addicts and family members? Our short answer is, yes! For our long answer, keep reading Books, movies, music and various art forms can do wonders to inform what we know about addiction and recovery. When counseling clients, we will frequently cite excerpts and recommend reading from books that present a particularly insightful or influential point of view. In recent years, a growing number of famous figures have authored books about their battles with addiction seeking to help others who struggle to learn from their experience. Authors who successfully transition from addiction to long-term recovery often serve to inspire readers who identify with them. The best books on addiction teach us about the commonalities of the disease and the fact that a great number of people ultimately do recover. Here are list of five addiction and recovery books weve been referencing and recommending lately.
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Everything Within And In Between By Nikki Barthelmess
For Ri Fernándezs entire life, shes been told, We live in America and we speak English. Raised by her strict Mexican grandma, Ri has never been allowed to learn Spanish.
Whats more, her grandma has pulled Ri away from the community where they once belonged. In its place, Ri has grown up trying to fit in among her best friends world of mansions and country clubs in an attempt try to live out her grandmothers version of the American Dream.
In her heart, Ri has always believed that her mother, who disappeared when Ri was young, would accept her exactly how she is and not try to turn her into someone shes never wanted to be. So when Ri finds a long-hidden letter from her mom begging for a visit, she decides to reclaim what Grandma kept from her: her heritage and her mom.
But nothing goes as planned. Her mom isnt who Ri imagined she would be and finding her doesnt make Ris struggle to navigate the interweaving threads of her mixed heritage any less complicated. Nobody has any idea of who Ri really isnot even Ri herself.
This Naked Mind: Control Alcohol By Annie Grace
Reviewers say this book reframes sobriety as a choice rather than as a consequence, a dichotomy that many struggling with addiction must face early in the recovery process. Published in 2015, This Naked Mind explores the societal norms associated with alcohol and draws on the latest addiction research to create a thorough understanding about how one shapes the other.
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The Top 8 Books On Addiction And Recovery
Countless books will talk about addiction and recovery, and how sobriety has changed someones life memoirs, psychology books, and so on. However, all roads to recovery are different, and so are addictions, even though everyone experiences some kind of struggle. Here, we put together a list of eight books that are not only notable mentioning, but can also be thought-provoking for somebody looking to find that much-needed saving grace in his or her life. As you read through the list of books to consider, please understand that everyones situation is different, and that youre not alone in whatever it is that youre going through.
**Disclaimer Please not that these books are the opinion of the author.
