Heartbeats

by Wes Hollis

I believe that I surrendered to the disease of alcoholism on the day before I was to die. I had hit rock bottom, relapsed dozens of times over a five year period, and there was finally nowhere left for me to go but up, or all the way out. Through the love, support, and grace of several wonderful people, and my Higher Power, I chose to go up. I surrendered to my disease on a warm, sunny Sunday afternoon in June, 1992, at an alcohol and drug rehab on the side of a mountain in New Hampshire. This is my story about recovery from the disease of alcoholism and addiction, the good, the bad and the ugly, and the hope I carry for a better day that has been unselfishly handed to me by thousands of courageous recovering people over the past twenty six years. If you, or a loved one, are suffering under the lash of addiction please know that there is hope for a better life for you, so never give up on yourself, no matter what, and hopefully my book can help to point you in the right direction. And if nobody told you today that they love you, well, I do.

405 pages, Paperback

Published April 9, 2019

Reviews

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

An extremely fresh and interesting read, for me! I was approached to read and review this title because I had titles in my "read" list that had the word "drunk" in them :) As nice a guy as this author was, and knowing I had some time to read his book, I decided yes, I would read and review his title. I don't normally read a lot of non-fiction titles and very rarely one that has to do with someone's life experiences but I had a feeling I needed to branch out. Well, I was right. This was so well written, and learning about this author's struggles and climb out of some bad places in life, it made me really think about what my father, who was an alcoholic, may have gone through, when he finally gave up drinking. I actually learned quite a bit while reading this title and in the process met a really nice guy who has some amazing writing and "editing" skills. There's no way I could give this title anything smaller than a 5 star rating. It is such an important book and one that could really help save other people's lives, that are going through these dark times. I end this review with - Thank You Wes for sharing your story with me.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartbeats is a moving portrayal of a man who, with the help of many kind and unselfish people, was able to be brought from the depths of despair into healthy sunshine.
The story is told by means of 3Hs: Honesty, Humility and Humor. From the book’s opening descriptions of alcohol fueled blackout episodes to the eventual, step-by-step, relinquishing of this self-proclaimed “Lone Wolf’s” need to control what was clearly a life spiraling out of control the reader is able to appreciate how committed Wes was to achieving and maintaining sobriety.
This author doesn’t pull punches. He calls himself out on his shortcomings, doesn’t slap the blame for failures on others and, most importantly, puts himself forward to help others in need.
If you have a friend or family member struggling with addiction I would, wholeheartedly, recommend reading and sharing this book them.