Best Books For Addiction Recovery

The Best Books for addiction Recovery

So, I just want to thank you for stopping by this site to see what it’s all about. The best books for addiction recovery are a topic dear to my heart for many reasons. I’m a recovered addict and alcoholic of 15 years and worked in the recovery field as a nurse for over a decade. For this reason, I’ve got quite a bit of firsthand experience in personally dealing with recovery and then helping others get their lives back on track. However, there are too many books to name here pertaining to recovery, I will do my best as a late bloomer to focus on some popular books people are gravitating towards currently. So having said that, I give you the best books for addiction recovery.

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Best Books for Addiction Recovery & Audible!


Best Books: The Addiction Manifesto

best books for addiction recovery, the addiction manifesto

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The Addiction Manifesto is a best book on addiction recovery according to Good Reads. JR Weaver talks about his road to recovery and how he had to overcome demons. Like many recovery stories, this one involves one of losing it all and then regaining a new life afterwards. Whether you’re struggling with addiction yourself, have some sobriety or just someone trying to understand addiction, this is an absolutely popular read and one of the best books for addiction recovery.

In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction

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This best book on addiction recovery is written by Dr Gabor Mate. His book In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction, chronicles his experiences with treating addicts in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, Washington. Though, it’s still largely a hot topic, and there’s much debate about the ethics of it all, he takes aim at the stigmatized drug culture and the United States’ “War on Drugs”. Regardless of whether or not you think drugs should be decriminalized or not, this thought-provoking book will get you thinking and may even stir up some strong feeling surrounding the topic of addiction. Dr Gabor Mate is reported as being an extremely compassionate provider.

The Craving Brain: Science, Spirituality & the Road to Recovery

the craving brain, best books for addiction recovery

So, in this book on addiction recovery a doctor with decades of experience team up with a recovered addict to describe the “harsh challenges” associated with addiction. As you can see in the title, the authors focus on the effects of addiction on the brain, cravings, as well as the dopamine reward system in the brain. According to one review, this book conveniently outlines ways friends and family can become familiar with addictive behaviors. Good Reads lists The Craving Brain as a best book for addiction recovery.

Basketball Junkie

The story of Chris Herren is both a tragic one but one of hope as well. Basketball Junkie is Good Read’s top 5 best books for addiction recovery. The book chronicles Chris Herren’s rise and fall from fame as an NBA basketball player. However, I’ve watched many motivational videos by Chris as he has made his mission to help youth stay away from drugs. Today Herren has a company called the Herren Project, devoted to helping those struggling with addiction stay clean and sober. Whether you’re a recovering addict or know someone who’s struggling, Chris Herren’s story is one of hope and inspiration! Furthermore, I believe Basketball Junkie could be a included with positive mindset books as it encouraged people to do better in life!

Christ Herren: “The bad days are just part of the journey…”

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The Bench

the bench

The Bench is written by a recovered gambling addict named Joel Elston. In this story of hope the writer talks about how a bench on the beach played into his story. However, this man’s addictions took him to horrific places and depression, he shows how it was all necessary for a transformation. As a recovered alcoholic myself I can relate to this. We now know that regardless of what the addiction is, the root cause is generally the same. Whether its gambling, drugs, alcohol or sex, they all play a part in numbing some type of deep-rooted emotional pain or trauma. Without the addiction, the life it created and the recovery process, I too would have never been able to look inward at what was going on. Good Reads has The Bench in its top 5 best books for addiction recovery.

The Drug Users Bible

the drug users bible, best books for addiction recovery

The Drug Users Bible is a different approach from what you would expect from a book on addiction recovery. But Good Reads has it listed on its top 5 best books for addiction recovery. This popular books documents safety data and aims at vital harm reduction on over 150 recreational drugs. It references legal briefings, as well as overdose information. One review called it a “encyclopedic book”. From my experience in addiction recovery, information is key. In the past, the world has treated any type of addiction like taboo. However, nowadays society is opening up its eyes to the fact that addiction is widespread, it does not discriminate, and it comes in many forms.

The Glass Castle

the glass castle, best books for addiction recovery

The Glass Castle is a New York Times Best Seller and top book on Good Reads as well. This memoir and best books for addiction recovery was adapted into a movie in 2017. The author Jeanette Walls chronicles her life of dysfunction and growing up in the southwest with a well-intentioned but alcoholic father. In this book she shares how she left her home in Arizona at a young age for New York. She talks about the struggles of her and her siblings basically fending for themselves because of her irresponsible parents. Eventually her siblings and homeless parents followed her to New York.

Below Sea Level

below sea level, best books on addiction recovery

Below Sea Level is a novel written by Jane Foster about a family who is torn apart by alcoholism. The family returns to her home in New Orleans, “below sea level”. So, an article in Newsmax reported the author herself was a recovering alcoholic who wrote this novel to “demystify” the process of going to drug and alcohol treatment centers. However, at the heart of this story and novel is the power of prayer and reliance on God. Relying on a power higher than ourselves is sometimes all we have during our darkest hours and times. Good Reads lists this on their best books for addiction recovery.

Best Books for Addiction Recovery & AudiblE!

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Best Books for Addiction Recovery & Audible!

The Wrapup: Best Books for Addiction Recovery

Unfortunately, this article on the best books for addiction recovery can’t cover every book available to benefit those struggling with addiction. I would encourage you to do your own research. When I got sober, I started going to AA meetings and used the Big Book. It’s a time-tested resource for getting clean and sober. The sober life is a good life! Regardless of what you or someone you may know is struggling with, it’s not an easy path to walk. There will be many ups and downs, trial and error because everyone is struggling. I tell everyone to be patient with the process. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither was a happy, fulfilling clean and sober life. Thanks for stopping by my friends!

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Best Books for Addiction Recovery & Family!

So, I would like to thank you for stopping by the site and checking it out. However, this is a dear subject to my heart and I hope you’ve gained some hope and insight here. Undoubtedly, addiction in all its forms comes to us all personally or in someone close to us. But there is sunshine over the horizon. And even if it may seem dark and hopeless now, those who don’t quit and fight on, will eventually see success. So, encourage those close to you and yourself, if you’re in the thick of it. If you liked this article and have any comments, please send me a message! God Bless! Addiction recovery requires surrendering & a focus on what you can control.

Thoughts from the author

So, if I missed the opportunity to thank you for your support, I’d like to offer my humblest words of gratitude again. This blog site has saved my life, literally. Any content you ready here has been inspired by my life events-some recent and some not-so-recent. My hopes and prayers are that you, the reader, will apply the insights derived here to your own personal growth and development. If the content has been difficult to understand, I apologize, as I am a work in progress. I would like some more recent articles on the best books. Be sure to read and share the Best Self Help Audio Books, Best Christian Self Help Books and the Best Motivational Audio Books. Furthermore, 5 Steps to Overcoming Porn Addiction, Inspiring Sobriety Quotes and Sober Celebrity Quotes are powerful reads and dear to my heart. God Bless!