books on addiction...

I loved Dry, and I'm a huge Augustin Burroughs fan so I also liked A Wolf at the Table: A Memoir of My Father, Running with Scissors and Magical Thinking. I've never read Requiem, but I appreciate the movie for it's disgusting depiction of the lifestyle. I have strange taste though, I appreciate things that make me uncomfortable and make me think. I've never read the other ones, but I probably should. I love Dr. Drew!
One that I enjoyed was Lighting Up: How I Stopped Smoking, Drinking, and Everything Else I Loved in Life Except Sex by Susan Shapiro. I haven't read a lot of books on addiction, but like I said I may have to check out some of the ones you mentioned!

hello lboogie7729, sorry for replying so late. i am still figuring out the forum logistics. did not know the comments option on the journals. silly me! anyway, glad to have found this forum for sure.

so, thank you for stopping by. i want to check the shapiro book. since you are not familiar with any of the books i mention, i would highly recommend the "Cracked" book. Not sure what your story is but as a woman (especially) the book was eye opening to me. again, his theory is hardcore to some... he does go far and you'll see what i mean i think. pretty much, from what i understand, he is the first one to come up with the theory that if addiction becomes stronger and stronger as the addict abuses year after year and if addiction has this almost magical spell on some of us... in other words, why would people keep on doing something that is killing them? His answer is: the reason is neurological. that is why "will" or the lack of it is a too simplistic and rather false judgment that so far, has caused more harm than good. He continues by saying that, if an individual continues to use a substance, after a while, the using of this substance or the need for it will join the rest of our innate instincts... such as we need air, we need food, all instincts that are located in the part of the brain. as far as he is concerned ( he uses scientific studies to back up his theory by the way), the need to get high becomes as strong as the need for water.... To me, reading his book was such a big help. For years, i was angry at myself for not having the will. For years, I judged myself and all this criticism only made me use more. I had no will power, i was useless and hopeless, i was a waste on this planet. i read his book in rehab. of course, the process was not a one "tata..." deal, it took time, i had relapses but the mechanism or thought process began. i was able to recognize each time i had the feeling that i was going to die if i did not have my fix... was a distorted reality. and more and more, i was able to identify and control my cravings. oops, got carried away. so sorry. anyway, if you'd like to speak more, let me know. in any case, i hope this finds you very well,

take very good care,

nikita

PS. by the way thank you for your comment on a past post... :)

update: been reading (actually listening to... on my way to work and back...which makes the ride actually quite fun now...) to running with scissors read by the author burroughs... very cool guy, very cool book. different from dry as it is more about his growing up... so not so much about addiction per se but gives a good backdrop and as always quite entertaining. Thank you lboogie... :)

Glad you're enjoying it! My mom (she's remar on here) and I both read it and got a kick out of it. I like to know the background story when it comes to addiction and while that one is funny, A Wolf at the Table is a darker book about growing up with his father. I can relate to someone who has grown up in an unorthodox kind of family, dealt with addiction, is intelligent and can be simultaneously serious and funny. ;-)

salut lboogie7729, always nice to hear from you!!!! hoping you are doing well,

nikita