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Mary Beth O'Connor

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https://junkietojudge.com

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August 2012

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For Mary Beth, childhood abuse and other traumas led to substance use disorder (addiction).

Beginning with alcohol at age 12, she spent several years abusing various drugs. She found methamphetamine at 16 and started shooting up at 17. Mary Beth struggled with meth until she was 32 years old.

By incorporating ideas from multiple sources to build a secular (not 12-step or faith based) recovery plan that works for her, Mary Beth has been sober since 1994. She used similar techniques to address the trauma and related anxiety as well.

Mary Beth is a board member for LifeRing Secular Recovery and She Recovers Foundation. She speaks on behalf of these organizations, about multiple paths to recovery, and about all topics related to substance use dis ...more

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Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

Mary Beth O'Connor My book is memoir, so it's true. Still, a memoirist has to make decisions as to the themes on which to focus, which impacts the timeframe and the even…moreMy book is memoir, so it's true. Still, a memoirist has to make decisions as to the themes on which to focus, which impacts the timeframe and the events to include. I wanted to show the trauma and other childhood challenges that led to my very early drug use and to shooting meth by 17. I also wanted to demonstrate the process of recovery, rather than the typical presentation that recovery is quick or moves forward in a straight line. I also thought it important to explain the multiple paths available for peer support for addiction recovery. And to show how I used the techniques I developed in my drug recovery when working on the ptsd and anxiety caused by the trauma.(less)

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Mary Beth O'Connor’s books

Average rating: 4.38 · 152 ratings · 39 reviews · 1 distinct work • Similar authors

From Junkie to Judge: One Woman's Triumph Over Trauma and Addiction

4.38 avg rating — 152 ratings — 8 editions

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Quotes by Mary Beth O'Connor (?)

“WHEN I GRADUATED from my New Jersey high school in 1979, I was an honor student and a junkie. I don’t mean I smoked a lot of weed or popped too many pills—I shot speed daily. Methamphetamine to the chemist, crank in my hometown, crystal in modern terminology.”
― Mary Beth O'Connor, From Junkie to Judge: One Woman's Triumph Over Trauma and Addiction