Thinking Simply About Addiction: A Handbook for Recovery

by Richard Sandor

A profound yet practical guide to understanding addiction and recovery from an authority on the subject.

No social problem today causes greater confusion than addiction. Whatever form it takes — alcohol, heroin, cocaine, nicotine, etc. — it tears apart homes and relationships, destroys careers and futures, and leaves loved ones Why couldn't he stop once and for all? Or "get better"? Or control himself?

Despite everything that's been said and written, many people remain deeply confounded about these problems. The addiction-treatment field itself is in a state of civil war because there is no consensus on what addiction is, much less what to do about it.

Based on years of hard-won experience by a preeminent specialist in addictive behavior, Thinking Simply About Addiction explains the core truth of It is not a neurosis, a physical malady, a behavioral choice, or, in the narrowest sense, a moral failure. It is an automatism — an involuntary, non-stoppable behavior that once triggered leaves the addict powerless. It is a human problem and a part of human nature. As such, it is something that we all experience.

In four to-the-point chapters, Thinking Simply About Addiction rises above the noise level and provides real-world help and new ways of thinking for addicts and those who care for them. Its insights are so profoundly clear and sensible that many readers will be able to Finally, someone gets it .

Genres: Nonfiction

190 pages, Paperback

First published March 3, 2009

Reviews

[KC Chapa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent and simple introduction to addiction. Greatly assisted my understanding.

[Monica Willyard Moen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wise, compassionate, and thought-provoking book about addiction, its causes, and how to move toward recovery. While the ideas are simple to understand, they are not simplistic. The author doesn’t claim to have a one size fits all cure for addiction as others have done. What he does provide in this book our insights, strategies, and ways of understanding addiction that are not focused on shame and self blame. Most addicts already know they have messed up their lives, and shaming them does not help. That tends to drive them deeper into their addiction because they feel even worse about themselves. On the other hand, understanding the neuroscience of what happens to the brain during addiction can help many people begin to make different choices. Recovery from addiction is never easy, but it can be done. The ideas in this book are tools that a person struggling with addiction can use along with other therapies and tools to get control of their life back and to start to get well.

[Mrsbettis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. It was a quick glimpse into the world of addition. It was not an exhaustive research laden textbook, but it was just to get you in the mind of someone who may be addicted. I read it and came away with some real understandings about my own behaviors and how in some instances I could be "addicted". Like I said it was a good glimpse and I liked it.

[Anne Churko · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so helpful in gaining a clearer understanding of addiction, as well as the human condition in general. I would highly recommend this for anyone to read, whether you suffer from an addiction, know someone who does, or simply want to learn compassion for people and join in the search for meaning in life.