Addictions Books

This is probably the most important book on the market for people who have family or friends involved in destructive cults, or have been involved themselves.

A must read.

In Releasing the Bonds Steve Hassan brings help, healing and understanding to former cult members and their families and to sufferers of abuse and trauma in relationships. Mr.Hassan's in depth exposition of the interplay between individual personality and the psycho-technology of extremist organizations is fascinating and elucidating. His develoment of the strategic interactive approach to cult related problems and relationship trauma is a considerable contribution to contemporary psychotherapy.

This book is a must for students of psychology, anyone interested in the psychology of terrorism, practicing therapists as well as students of history and politics.

Hassan's insightful, inclusive and compassionate approach to the most intricate of human problems and suffering is a window into a world of hope.

I was first "introduced" to Steven Hassan when Dr. Phil had a program dealing with two girls who left a polygamous Mormon off-shoot cult, and Hassan was a guest consultant.

I found this book useful. Part of the reason is one of our family members are in a cult.

I've been familiar with cults for years, primarily from a doctrinal stance. Hassan is not a Christian (he's Jewish), but he approaches the subject differently. His focus is on mind control, and he points out that there are non-religious groups that are basically cults because of their mind control. Most people I know consider Mormonism a cult, but Hassan only mentions them in his bibliography. Jehovah's Witnesses, however do appear, because they use mind control.

This book is primarily aimed for rescuing someone out of cults, and is effective.

A master of love and compassion. A healer in every sense of the word. A gifted author who's outpouring of information gleaned through years of education, research, personal experience, and couseling ~ renews and restores lives shattered through 'cult-member' experiences. It seems he prides & reveres the personal freedom of each person as much as his own ~ and bends over backward to to educate and provide avenues for healing. Read this, read Combatting Cult Mind Control. To my way of thinking a hero in every sense of the word. There is help out there to get people out of cults and to help people in the healing of putting life "back together" again in hope and ultimately joy. Highly recommend!

Steve Hassan knows whereof he speaks, and this book will help anyone looking to rescue a loved one or friend from the grips of the mind control tactics that characterize sects of all kinds. The most important aspect of Hassan's program is respect: respect for what may have sent a person into the clutches of a sect to begin with, and respect for the individual lost in the double-talk miasma of sect manipulation. This is a book of hope and love; every single member of a family can learn and grow from it, and its message tells us never to give up.
Read it through to the end and make sure you understand all aspects of the intervention described in its pages. Hassan will arm you with the tools needed to act wisely, humanely, fairly. Your friend or loved one deserves it. So do you.

This is one of the best books I have read -certainly the best in the category of social history. Jay Stevens has researched his material meticulously and has delivered the narrative in a most enthralling manner. I found it hard to lay the book down. Whether, like me, you lived through the psychedelic experience of the sixties or you have but a passive interest, you will be amazed to learn of the full impact that the psychedelic culture has had on Western society, religion and philosophy -right through to the chemical hedonism of today.
This is truly a superb read!

I bought this on the recommendation of Dr. Stanley Krippner in a lecture on ayahuasca. It is absolutely the best book I have read on the history of the psychedelic movement during the past 100 years or so. Timothy Leary is not dead - he's only outside looking in. :-)

This should be required reading in American History. Who knew Canada had legal LSD centers? And the characters- Nin, Huxley, Kesey, Leary and Capt.Al Hubbard (??). Will we ever see their like again? Really a very sad story, and a fascinating one. Nice to see the Chief Boo Hoo, old Art Kleps in there as well. Sen. Kennedy: "Is your title really Chief Boo Hoo?" Art Kleps: "I'm afraid so, sir."

This is the definitive account of the 1960s psychedelic drug scene. Stevens does a great job of conveying the highs and lows of LSD and its proponents. His ability to relate endless facts while retaining a fast-paced narrative structure is amazing. I found this one of the most "addicting" books out there about the significance of drugs in American culture. Stevens reviews all the major personalities: Albert Hoffman, Timothy Leary, Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters, the Grateful Dead, Alan Watts, Jack Kerouac, Aldous Huxley, and more. If you're interested in this electric decade, the power of psychedelics to warp the mind, or any of the poet-prophets who were compelled to experiment with and sing the praises of acid then this book is sure to delight.

This was a very good book. You get lots of interesting stuff about Aldous Huxley, the famous beat writers, Owsley, Timothy Leary, Ken Kesey and the evolution of the so called counterculture as a whole.

The problems that I have with Storming Heaven is not for what was in it but what was left out. For one Stevens was WAY too easy on Timothy Leary. The author seemed almost like a school girl with a crush when he recounts his visit to Learys home for an interview for the book. He comes off more as a fan than he does an objective writer at times when he deals with Leary. Why wasn't it mentioned that it has come out that Leary was a government informant and information he gave led to the death of two members of the Weather Underground? Its also a known fact that Leary was surrounded by CIA assets and there is a lot of evidence that he was a government agent himself, and at the least he was feeding them information.

There is also a fleeting mention that wasn't elaborated on about Ken Kesey that he had LSD experiments done on him at Stanford by the guy that ended up in charge of the CIAs Mkultra mind control program. This really makes me wonder about Kesey. Its more or less accepted history that the first LSD to get out on the street level was what Kesey stole from the medicine chest at his job as a night shift janitor at a mental hospital and distributed it among his elitist friends. Kesey went from writing what was probably the best novel written during the 1960's to, while becoming a counterculture hero, never writing another thing worth reading again. Did doing too much LSD scramble his brains and ruin his creativity or was his creativity nullified by Mkultra programming? Its hard to say for sure but I have to wonder if Kesey was not under some sort of mind control or was being used by the CIA in one way or another. There are a lot of unanswered questions in my mind about Kesey.

They also fleetingly mention the Brotherhood of Eternal Love who were major LSD distributors and were known to be full of CIA people and had a close association with a Jewish man named Ron Starks who was a CIA spook that also happened to the biggest LSD dealer in the world. Starks was not even given the first mention in this book!

I mean with all these ivy league, Mkultra and CIA connections to the elites of the so called counterculture I have to seriously wonder how much of the hippy movement of the late 60's was an organic rebellion against what was (and still is) a very repressive society both socially and politically and how much of it was intentional social engineering that came from the highest levels of the power structure. Many people believe that the anti-war movement was flooded with drugs, in particular LSD, by federal agents. Its well known that the government tried to subvert and destroy the anti-war movement with the cointelpro program so why wouldn't they also use drugs to try to destroy it? While it can't be denied that LSD has enhanced many an artist, writer and musicians work can you honestly say that sitting around frying on acid all the time is going to do anything but disable political activists who in many cases were in a life and death struggle? Besides that the fact remains that many people became permanently damaged as result of doing acid.

All that said I would definitely recomend reading or of you can get it cheap, buying Storming Heaven. I could hardly put it down once I started reading it. I realize that this book was more geared toward looking into what psychelic drugs can do with the mind and its exponents history and theories on the subject than any conspiratorial maneuverings by the US government involving LSD but it just didn't go deep enough into the rabbit hole for my tastes.

This is a great book and makes the real costs of our prescription drug epidemic understandable to everyone. It is a must read for all Americans. We must educate the public that the prescription drug epidemic is going to ruin generations of our people unless we take action. We can no longer tolerate drug companies pushing legal "heroin" to our people and turning the other head when it causes the devastation pointed out by Sheryl McGinnis.

Steve Hayes
Medical Director
Novus Medical Detox Center

I Am Your Disease is not written by professional writers, its not scripted, its real stories, of real children, young adults, sons, daughters, written by people who loved them.

I have seen my own friends struggle with addictions and I saw it nightly at the hospital ER I worked in before Connor was born. I think some people like to believe that drug addictions come from broken homes, bad childhoods, homeless broken people who have no reason to live. I only wish this was true as the problem would be SO much easier to fix if this was really the case.

Drug addictions many times are born in perfectly happy, perfectly healthy people, that for some reason get involved with something that they just cannot control. Professionals, high school students, mothers, fathers, many many times people who otherwise have perfectly normal.. perfectly happy lives. Who knows why... a moment of weakness, a genetic predisposition, depression, boredom, peer pressure, I could go over a thousand reasons why... but thats really not important. What is important is as we look at our beautiful happy healthy babies, don't be blind to the fact that every child at some point in their life is given the choice at least once... and in my case many many many times have drugs passed in front of me and I had to make the conscious and sometimes difficult choice to say no.

One point I want to make to everyone out there... When I say drug addictions I do not just mean (street drugs), heroin, cocaine, meth, but some of the worst addictions I saw come through the ER on a nightly basis were prescribed that includes Valium.

I Am Your Disease, is a worthy read for every mom, dad, grandmother, out there.. these kids deserve to have their stories shared.

Though this book is not a self help book or a book that covers the recovery process it is a great source of support through stories from families dealing with the loss of a loved one through a drug addiction or an inspiration for those of you dealing with a drug addiction as to why its so important to find help.

Sheryl has done a magnificent work by telling her story and the stories of other parents who have lost their children to addiction as well. Every story is the personal feelings of a parent that has gone through addiction with their child, going hand to hand combat with the monster and in the end slipping through their fingers and leaving pieces of a mother, father, sisters and brothers behind to somehow pick up their lives and and keep going. Every story is gripping and you can actually feel what they are feeling. I purchased 2 of these and sent them to my daughter Anna who is presently in prison for possession of Cocaine, and the other I donated to the Prison Library. I bought one from Sherry which she personally autographed to Anna, and I hope and pray I can actually present her with that copy one day. This book is a "must have" for every parent who deals with a child on addiction and especially for those who don't.

As a Clinical Social Worker, I recommend this book be mandatory for any professional in the field. This book goes beyond a scientific understanding of substance abuse, beyond treatment methods and beyond clinical strategy. It explores substance abuse from the viewpoint of the mother or the family member who has lost a loved one. It reminds us that a life lost to substance abuse is a life victimized by an ugly and unrelenting disease. It reminds us that families left behind are victims themselves, as we see in the painful words of the book's many contributing writers. Our society so easily stereotypes "the addict", judges or places blame on the person for "choosing" that lifestyle. This book challenges us to break that stereotype, to see the beauty, the intellect, the passion and the energy that such individuals possess. It challenges us not to cast such individuals into the marginalized population but to do all we can to support them and help them find recovery when possible. Any loss is great, but there is no greater loss than that of a child. I commend the strength and honesty of the mothers and family members who have come together to write this book. May this book continue to act as a passionate and moving tribute to their children. May it also remind all professionals in the field of addiction to treat not "the addict", but the individual; to explore that person's capabilities and dreams, to find that person's sources of energy, creativity and strength, to use family support in treatment when possible. "I Am Your Disease: The Many Faces of Addiction" is a powerful and honest read, and a necessity for any professional in the field.

Sarah Thomas, LCSW

Author Sheryl Letzgus McGinnis lost her son Scott to a drug overdose. She says she wrote this book as therapy for herself but also to warn others as to the dangers of addiction to drugs. This book is a compilation of many grieving parents who write the stories of their children's addictions. They come from all walks of life, social, and economic groups, but they have one thing in common--they have lost a child to addiction and subsequent death. They all tried to stop their child's downward spiral but none of them were successful. The book also contains poetry from grieving parents and an eye-opening look at a group of eighth graders' view of peer pressure. This is a sobering book which serves as a warning to any teenager or parent of a teenager. There is a list of support groups and there are some suggestions for heading off a serious addiction, but mostly the problem is presented in the stark reality of hopelessness. The only answer is not to start taking drugs in the first place and it is this point of view that the book is promoting.

Many a thing you know you'd like to tell her
Many a thing she ought to understand
But how do you make her stay
And listen to all you say
How do you keep a wave upon the sand?
---from the Sound of Music

I discovered early on in my parenting adventure that my least favorite part of it was the unremitting vulnerability without full control. And, I soon found, the control diminished rapidly through the dangerous years of adolescence and early adulthood.

Reading Pamela Palmer Mutino's beautifully written account of the addiction and subsequent overdose of her daughter was, at times, almost too painful to bear. Ms. Mutino has lived through our worst nightmare and recounts it with such raw frankness that you may need, as I did, to just shut the book and ponder for a moment or even for days the enormity of love and loss.

But don't make the mistake of not opening this book simply because it's sometimes a difficult read. Not only will the rich prose within strengthen you to motor on parenting despite the mixed bag of vulnerability and joy, she's got a secret at the end, and that is how to survive the journey and thrive no matter where it takes you.

"Maybe," she says, 'there could be life after Maria." Luckily, she not only shares her years with Maria in this powerful book, we get to see a glimpse of life after Maria.

Pamela Palmoer Mutino shares the story of her daughter. Mutino wants readers to know that Maria was more than an addict. She was intelligent, witty, and beautiful. She was loved. I can only imagine the pain and horror that Pamela Palmer Mutino is experiencing. She cleverly demonstrates how addiction does not only affect the addict but everyone around the addict. SWISH: Maria In The Mourning is beautifully written with the strong emotional voice that comes from a parent's love. This is a must read for all parents.

This book portrays a mother's grief in a highly creative and realistic style. One does not have to know or have experienced addiction to feel the impact of Maria's or her mother's journey together. Finally, the book is about love and forgiveness.

One minute a mother is relishing the swishing sound of a wedding dress in anticipation of her daughter's wedding. Almost the next minute, it seems, she is mourning the death of that same daughter to horrific addiction and overdose of heroin. It's enough to make her imagine that a ornament-less, six-foot Christmas tree is the perfect size of a heroin dealer which she attacks with unmitigated rage.

Words can't describe the cycles of mourning, so aptly described years ago by Kubler-Ross, that consume the being of this mother who was so intimately involved in her daughter's life, as every loving mother would be. But far fewer mothers have had to do deal with the agony and hope of a daughter in rehabilitation, a process given attention in phone calls and Maria's letters from both jail and rehab center.

One particularly startling section describes the cold, clinical and heartless treatment Maria's mother received at the hospital where Maria was taken after her overdose. It's impossible to excuse this lack of sensitivity and Maria's mother aptly also describes her reactions to it in a letter composed to the staff of that hospital.

The words penned by Ms. Mutino and Maria's friends will poignantly touch the reader's heart but also leave them with the many questions such a death leaves behind, like the destruction wreaked by a horrific storm. The literate quality of this account sets it apart from the multitude of other accounts, with poetry such as "Heroin and the Livid Lie," in whith the author describes the process and aftermath of this insidious, consuming killer, "...My bare feet / tiptoe thorugh your psyche... / I am hungry / but you don't feed me.... / Abandoned, / I die inside you..."

Swish: Maria in the Mourning is quite simply unforgettable!

Reviewed by Viviane Crystal on August 18, 2008

Imagine your daughter's wedding day and helping her into her beautiful dress. Now, imagine the sound her dress makes...Swish...Swish. Pamela Mutino will never hear that sound. She will never see her only daughter get married. She really does have to imagine that day because it will not be reality for her. Swish is a beautiful story written by a mother to her daughter. Pamela Mutino's only child died of a heroin overdose at the young age of twenty-three. Mutino delves deep into her soul and bares her pain for all of her readers. In the first chapter, Mutino imagines her daughter's wedding. In the second, she faces reality at her daughter's graveside. And we feel her pain.

Mutino writes about her experience and details events I could not imagine. Especially touching is when Mutino noticed petals had fallen on Maria's body during Maria's visitation and she wondered why Maria did not brush them off. Another chapter that affected me was her chapter detailing her cruel treatment at the hospital when she found out about Maria's death. She writes a letter to the hospital asking them, among other things, why they could not have even cleaned the blood off Maria's neck and shoulders before she had to face her daughter lying on the table. Mutino shares with readers of Swish Maria's personal letters from jail and rehab, so we gain some insight into the struggles Maria faced in her short life. A talented writer, Mutino is also a playwrite, and as she tells in her book, she had no intention of ever writing anything. But she knew at some point her writing was her way of working through her personal tragedy. The best way to do justice to such a beautiful and emotional story is to end with Mutino's words.

"I only knew that there was a story in me that was going to haunt me until it was in print. I did not want pity for my suffering. I wanted Maria's beautiful spirit to live on in such a way that others would connect to their own truths, when it came to loving, losing, living, dying and moving on." - Pamela Palmer Mutino, Swish: Maria in the Mourning

Wisdom of the rooms gave me insight into all of the twelve step programs and words to help me through my own recovery. The collection of twelve step wisdom is eye-opening to all, I hope, and has helped me find my way through my recovery.

I simply love how the item comes quickly and the great excellent shape the book is in. Thank you

Each time I read this book I get something new from it. Reading a quote from this book is like attending one of those meetings that changes your soul, and Michael Z's interpretations seem to reach out connect with me on almost every level. The spiritual wisdom in this book touches those in and out of recovery, and the people I've given it to not only identify, but often buy copies to give as gifts - it's that's kind of book.

Quotes like "When fear knocks on the door and faith answers, no one is home", seem to be just the thing I need to read when I pick it up. I can literally just glance at any page and find something that speaks to me right when I need it. Whether I'm struggling with my concept of God, or with my fear, or even with setting healthy boundries ("No is a complete sentence"), it's all here for me.

If you're looking for a book of spiritual yet practical wisdom that can fill your well with faith and hope, this book will become a favorite of yours, too. I love "The Wisdom of the Rooms" and look forward each week to the new quotes Michael Z puts out for free (visit the website: www.thewisdomoftherooms.com) and you can sign up.

This is a must have for those in and out of recovery, and it will enrich any spiritual practice you currently have. For those of you who haven't read it yet, you're in for a wonderful treat. Enjoy the wisdom!

An outstanding spiritual guidebook for those in recovery or those who just want to embrace their higher power. It helped me stay connected to what's really important and not feel so alone in this world. It's one of those books you can read again and again and always grasp something new. Thanks Michael Z!

For an "on the go" person in recovery like me, this is like the blackberry of 12 step meetings. Any page I open in this book, seems to give me exaclty what I need to read at that time, to give me a spiritual perspective on any situation. The way the author explains the quotes with ease, and then allows the readers to internally answer some questions regarding the quote, can bring tranquility to a turbulent head.

I wish more books on recovery were written this way.
Thank you Michael Z!!

I Recommend this book to any who struggle with pornography also i recommend taking the 60 day course at www.settingcaptivesfree.com the course is called pure freedom, i was addicted to pornography and this course opened my eyes to the distruction pornography does in a persons life:

This book has all the information one needs to be set from from all pornographic and sexual addictions. The material is very clear and easy to understand. Personal application of the lessons is emphasized; when a person applies the truths taught, they WILL be free from pornography - no doubt about it!

The following two paragraphs are part of my personal testimony, which is the end result of one applying the truths from this book...

"Let me tell you about the greatest thing that has happened. The deception is gone. For 26 years I have been bound and was convinced by the lie that pornography was something that was too strong to break! But the moment I brought my sin into the light, the power it had over me was shattered and my eyes were opened - this truth has given me such freedom! Confessing and exposing my sin to the light has brought me total, complete and on-going victory every day.

My life will NEVER be the same again; I have been unalterably changed forever. This freedom I am now experiencing is beyond my wildest dreams; I could not even imagine not loving pornography, but because of God's wonderful, awesome grace, I have a heartfelt hate for it. I am crying as I write this, because I was so hopelessly and completely bound, but I can now say after 26 years of bondage and darkness: FREE AT LAST, FREE AT LAST! PRAISE GOD! I AM FREE AT LAST!

Having personally been addicted for 26 years, I would like to heartily recommend this book - my life has been changed by the material it presented.

The book, a hard copy of the course, is grounded in Christ and puts Him and your addiction front and center. Not a impersonal method to change your behaviour, but an interpersonal change of one's heart. Break the addiction to pornography and find a new love... God and His Word!

I took the 60 day online version of this booklet and it has been extremely helpful. I had been fighting sexual addiction for quite some time in my Christian walk, and had never gained a lasting freedrom from the bondage pornography was holding me in - 10+ years.

There are many great, practical truths in these lessons. It's scripturally focused, and Jesus-centered. It has helped me regain my focus on the cross, my bible study and prayer life. God has completely changed my life through this. This course is bringing much glory to God, and I hope many other people can find freedom in Christ through this ministry.

I highly recommend this book/course. Freedom is waiting!

I am still thanking the Lord for the day when I found a mention of the online course, The Way of Purity on http://www.settingcaptivesfree.com (the online version of the book) in another review. The Holy Spirit, the course, mentoring and accountability that is part of the course all made sure that was able to finally be free after many years of bondage!

This book ALMOST describes my abusive, controlling husband exactly. He falls in love immediately, moves too fast, becomes obsessed, refuses to see "his women" as normal human beings and gives up his entire life for his partner. He's done this for 30 years, but I was his first wife. It was HELL!

My only problem with this book, is it talks about how people do this and put up with an abuser. What if doing this is what makes THEM the abuser? My husband controlled every aspect of my life, constantly told me all the things that were "wrong" with me and tried to "fix" me. He gave up all of his interests to dedicate his life to waiting on me, then got mad at ME even though I kept encouraging him to live his life without doing everything for me. I couldn't take the pressure of never being able to live up to his expectations. There was nothing wrong with me... I'd been in long term relationships and knew how to live with someone. When he started attacking everything I did, he slowly beat my self esteem into the ground.

There are number of books likes this (and codependency books) that focus on behavior that sounds EXACTLY like my love addict abuser, but I'd like to learn more about these behaviors when they are applied to a normal partner rather than an abuser.

This book helped me realize my negative behavior and take steps to begin healthly relationships, instead of addictive ones.

This book is for men and women because both sexes suffer from this problem. For along time, I had become obsesse over a man to the point that I couldn't work or even think straight. This book made me feel like I wasn't alone. It also helped to explain why I had become obsessed and what I could do to deal with it. I have no doubt this book will help millions.

People often think that only women become obsessed with someone. It's good to see that someone has written a book for both women and men about the very real problem of obsessive, controlling relationships. John Moore's book cuts through all of the psychological mumbo jumbo and gets right to the heart of why a person becomes so obsessed with a love interest that stalking is the result. Thank you Mr. Moore for offering us all a book that is sure to become a classic.

I read Moore's book and was very impressed with each of the case studies. In some way, each person's story spoke to my own situation in a controlling relationship. There were many times that I had to put the book aside because it hurt too much to keep reading. As I kept turning the pages, I saw all of the patterns in my own life and then the lightbulb went off and I thought, "That's me!" If you are in a controlling relationship or are obsessed with someone else, you have to get this book. It will change your life forever.

This is an excellent, straight-forward, sensitive book that deals with a topic that is difficult. It is written so that it can be easily understood and is incredibly helpful to victims as well as therapists who treat them. The author validates the victim's world and encourages the victim to get help and talks about the many males who have survived and are healing.

As a spouse of a survivor, I read this book which also offered advice to partners and spouses. This book gave way too many examples and other info for the first 4 chapters. Most of us already have an idea of what sexual abuse against boys can entail, there were just way too many stories of survivors that were disturbing and difficult to read. It did however give important insight and ways to get help and help yourself but it came along with a lot of unneeded information. If you have the time and patience it is a good tool towards recovery.

A thoughtful book re sexual abuse of people who are trying to get past the victim ideology. The writer has had much experience in treating these people and his suggestions are helpful.

If you or a loved one have been the victim of childhood sexual abuse then this book is an excellent resourcee. It deals primarily with Male Survivors and provides great insight into how coping mechanisms have become a way of life. It allows survivors to carefully examine their feelings and relationship choices in a positive and affirming manner, and begin to make changes to a healty lifestyle. If you have decided to read this book, well done!!! You have taken the first steps to reclaiming your life!

I gave this wonderful book to my husband who is in recovery from childhood sexual abuse by his father. He cried and read , cried and read from start to finish. The book is empowering, healing and filled with truth that heals. I recommend it as an essential read for those in recovery and for those who love them. Kate

This book does a fantastic job of demonstrating the synergies of working a 12 step program and buddhist practice. I think it would be valuable for anyone who is still uncomfortable with the Christian overtones of the 12 steps as it explains their origin and how to work them in relation to higher power of your own understanding.

I am a Zen Buddhist who has struggled in the past with alcohol. For personal and religious reasons, I wish to permanently quit alcohol use. I have tried in the past on my own unsuccesfully, and have recently sought help in this endeavor. I am participating in group counselling at this time. I have never really considered participating in a twelve step program as I have always been under the impression that they (AA) take a decidedly Judeo-Christian bent. This book does a fabulous job of explaining how a Buddhist can succesfully participate in such a program as well as how each of the steps can be interpreted and praciced from the Buddhist point of view. I have not joined a twelve step program as of yet, and may not, but I will definately be more open minded about the possibility after reading this book. Likewise, I have learned important techniques that I can use in my recovery now.

An intriguing perspective on 12 Step programs. Having written a book about walking that fine line between compassion and codependence, I found this book insightful and inspiring. - Rita Schiano, author of Sweet Bitter Love

This was an excellent read and I would recommend it to anybody involved with a 12 step program. Taken with the 12x12 it provides some perspective of the steps, discussing them in more contemporary language. I am not a Buddhist and have no wish to become one, but find there is quite a bit of useful content in the book for anyone in recovery. I've been at this for 25 years now, with countless big book and step studies over the years. I am not a joiner or in the market for a religion, but this book does provide intriguing references to concepts in Buddhism worth pursuing. You don't necessarily need the brand name to make use of something that works. I think one aspect of particular use will be working with a concept of a higher power outside the structure of the Christian traditions. I have to disagree with the earlier reviewer - the author does address his concept of a higher power.

Nobody in today's A.A. should assume he is entitled to throw rocks at Christianity or atheism or Buddhism.A New Way Out: New Path - Familiar Road Signs - Our Creator's Guidance. A.A. was a Christian Fellowship when it began.The Akron Genesis of Alcoholics Anonymous. It required acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. It required belief in God.The Golden Text of A.A.: God, the Pioneers, and Real Spirituality. And it emphasized Bible study, prayer meetings, and revelation from the Creator as well as reading Christian literature.The Good Book and the Big Book: A.A.'s Roots in the Bible (Bridge Builders Edition).
But things have changed--dramatically. A.A. today is not Christian, nor is it a Christian Fellowship. Nor can its book or its steps or its fellowship be changed to say they embrace atheism, Buddhism, Roman Catholicism, humanism, or the unbelief and doubt of some members. It's there with all its universalism and secularism, and it's there to stay. And it calls for tolerance and love, not criticism and rejection.
However, it also calls for choice. He who puts Jesus in the Twelve Steps; he who thinks there is a "higher power" that is a light bulb; and he who worships some other deity is not speaking of the A.A. founded and developed by Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob Smith in Akron.Dr. Bob of Alcoholics Anonymous: His Excellent Training in the Good Book As a Youngster in Vermont, and The Conversion of Bill W.: More on the Creator's Role in Early A.A.. As a matter of fact, when Bill was working with the Jesuit priest Father John Ford and writing Alcoholics Anonymous Comes of Age and Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, Ford suggested that there should be sanctions against those who didn't fit the A.A. mold. Bill Wilson rejected the suggestion; and, in correspondence with Ford that I personally saw and copied, Bill said he didn't much care what the Budhhists did with the Twelve Steps.New Light on Alcoholism: God, Sam Shoemaker, and A.A. (2d ed.).
I really don't know any better answer, other than that embraced in this kind of tolerance. If someone wants to use prayer beads or chants, they're free to do so in the present Twelve Step fellowships. But I believe all, including this author, should be acquainted with the history of A.A., report it, respect it, and then choose the religious or nonreligious route he or she will pursue today.Introduction to the Sources and Founding of Alcoholics Anonymous. I am speaking as a recovered Christian member of A.A. who has lasted twenty-two years while counting Bill Wilson's secretary Nell Wing (a Bhuddist)as a good friend. Also counting as my very close AA friend, "Yosemite Tom," who set up our great campouts and then pitched his tent in the middle and did Buddhist chants all night long. Also counting as my good friend Seymour W., a devout Jew, who never failed to mention God and his own prayer life in our regular Wednesday meeting and elsewhere. None of these things offended me or converted me to Buddhism or Judaism. They let me see how broad the road is today.

So far I've only gotten throught the first chapter. It's a dense amount of information, but it is incredibly well written and informative. No extra words just to take up space and get something into book format. It's definetly a text book. The first chapter gives you an extensive review of the human relationship with drugs since the beginning of time, and forty pages later, I feel enlightened and full of ideas. Incredibly insightful and well worth the price for someone with a deep interest in this field.

This is a wonderfully written book with lots of great information. However, I really dislike the newspaper column width of the text. It is very hard to read from such a thick book with this layout.

The item shipped quickly and was brand new as I was told. I am not impressed with the Study Guide, and the book itself is rather disjointed. It's hard to find the information within all the quotes from addicts. I would set it up so that the information came first and then the quotes would be placed at the end of the text in each section.

If you work in human services or if you're just interested in learning about substance abuse, this is the only book you'll need. This was my text in grad school and a decade after I'm still recommending it to clinicians.

The authors, Darryl Inaba and William Cohen do a great job of keeping this book very open and simple. They cover almost every drug (5th edition) which a counselor may run into when talking with his students. As a research or higher level order book though, this would not do as it is just too brief on most subjects to really get to know indepth pharmacology or pharmacodynamics on most of the psychoactive drug actions. There is a lot of history, and even a CD-ROM to help you familiarize yourself with many topics of addiction in a very short period of time. In some sections, there is some really good information on drugs I have not seen on the pharmacy shelves for at least 12 years. If you are someone who wants to quickly get to know the subject of psychoactive drugs, then I highly recommend this book for you. His vocabulary is such that it is easy to read, without too much of a serious tone-- and you will not even need a highliner to remember the facts. This book is packed with knowledge. Very enjoyable reading for a change, with lots of good and interesting photographs that make you think. You will enjoy this book, for it is written in a very unique format that makes you want to relax and just turn each page and learn. guyairey