5 comments about Drunkard: A Hard-Drinking Life.

1. as a drinker i could relate to many of the problems the author faced.it was both informative and entertaining,laughing out loud in some instances.if you are or if you know or are involved with a colorful character you will enjoy and be more knowledgeable!and that's that!!!



2. "Drunkard" is a great book, with the author showing a wonderful use of words and a clever way to make his devastating story very funny. He laughs through his tears and so do the readers.



3. This is an excellent book for anyone that has an addiction, or for those that have lived with some form of dysfunction. In other words - everyone! The book doesn't suffer from pretense, and wisely leaves it to the reader to discern the futility of trying to repeat the same behaviour and expect different results. This is a lesson that applies to all aspects of life, not merely addiction.



4. This was an excellent book for those affected in some way back alcoholism. It was a very honest portrayal of the winding, rocky road recovery can be. It is rare that one shot at treatment is sufficient. I appreciated
   several things - 1) Mr. Steinberg's honesty about his struggle with the spiritual aspect of AA. This is something that keep many people away from AA and I think his sharing of his ambivolence about it - yet going and finding something of use there may be of benefit to others. 2) His honest about his relapses. Again, its rare that the path is a straight one for most people in recovery. 3) This is a story of a 'functional alcoholic' rather than someone really at rock bottom.
   
   I found the book very helpful in gaining insight as to what it's like for someone through the process of recovery.



5. I heard Neil Steinberg being interviewed on a local radio show and decided to purchase the book. I was really both surprised and disappointed in what I read. Actually, it is a very quick and easy read and did keep my attention. However, discussion of AA and his making a monetary profit seems to go against the AA steps and traditions. I found this more of a "drunkalogue" much as you hear people's stories in an AA meeting. He didn't really connect with the spiritual foundation of the program and declaring his wife as his Higher Power I find absurd. I know that people do often struggle with the concept of a higher power, and I'm glad for his sobriety, but giving his Al-Anon wife so much control is dangerous. They each need to work on themselves, through their own programs of recovery. Just my opinion!

4 comments about Understanding the Alcoholic's Mind: The Nature of Craving and How to Control It.

1. This book is a good "companion" book for someone who wants to stop drinking. It has chapters detailing the nature of cravings, practical solutions for resisting temptation, and what happens beyond sobriety. You can pick it up and put it down, after the first read through, and always find something useful if you need a little boost. The author's credentials and amount of research are exemplary.



2. I love this book. As a drunk, I recommend it to all my friends who need help quitting. The book talks a lot about the tricks we play on ourselves.



3. I have been in substance abuse counseling and AA on and off for a few years. Recently I began researching alternatives to the 12-step approach in secular organizations such as SOS and non-AA affiliated books such as "Rational Recovery." This was one of the books I chose to read and I'm very happy I did. Written by a medical doctor and experienced researcher, the book brings together a lot of information about alcoholism that I had picked up in bits and pieces from treatment into an understandable and inspiring model for recovery. The chapters -- entitled "Paradoxes and Contradictions", "The Lure of the Siren", "The Dry Drunk", "The Mystery of Craving", "On and Off the Wagon", "The Proper Frame of Mind", "Resisting Temptation", "Sobriety Scripts" and "The Sober Mind" -- cover in depth how and why alcoholics relapse, and present foundations for committed sobriety. He states the fundamental view of the book in the preface: "1. ...many alcoholics, under the proper circumstances, do manage to recover. 2. Those who recover do so by adopting certain characteristic ways of thinking and behaving. 3. The changes associated with recovery...tend to involve...all aspects of their lives." The book follows this premise with scientific background, real life examples, and insight into why AA and other approaches work or do not work for different individuals. I've been able to put into perspective the seriousness of my harmful drinking and understand what it means for me to make a true, lasting commitment to sobriety. Most importantly, I've gained insight into the worst aspect of alcoholism (for me), craving, through the latter chapters on how to avoid, curtail and resist it. The information in this book has given me valuable tools to continue with my sobriety.



4. Though lucky enough to not be an addict myself, I have learned a huge amount about alcoholism and recovery from it in the past few months. I've been to several dozen AA and Al-Anon meetings, read many, many books and pamphlets and I must say that Ludwig's book is definitely one of the best I've read during that time. Everything he writes about rings dead true from what alcoholics, both using and recovering, and their loved ones report. If I had only one book to recommend as an adjunct to a good 12-step program, it would probably be this one. Don't be put off by the mass of references and small print, it's not a completely academic effort, but extremely pragmatic, super well written and easy to read and compassionate without being coddling.
   (The other writer I can't recommend highly enough on relapse prevention is Terence Gorski, but that's a subject for another review...)

5 comments about Get Your Loved One Sober: Alternatives to Nagging, Pleading, and Threatening..

1. I'm a therapist who works with the family members of substance users. I always use this book with my clients and they LOVE it. They like the easy to read format, the exercises that encourage change, and the positive tone of the book. I can't tell you how many lives this book has helped change. If you have a family member or close friend who has an alcohol or drug problem, this is the book for you!



2. I have been using this program for 9 months. I know it works for me and see great progress with my afflicted one. It is uplifting, gives me hope and encouragement, and makes sense. I read passages I have underlined almost every day. I learn something almost every day. This struggle is not easy and this book helps me a great deal.



3. I am so happy to recommend this book!
   
   I was looking for a better way to get my friend into treatment and found some of the latest research on HBO's website for their series, "Addiction". The HBO website has video clips that describe the CRAFT method and how it is proven to be the most effective, so I bought this book with high hopes.
   
   My friend decided he was ready for detox within a week of using this approach. I am grateful for tips like watching for a window and planning for treatment in advance. CRAFT is about empowerment with positive reinforcement - without anger or judgment. This book shows how important it is to avoid shame and guilt about addiction.
   
   I wish I could give this book to everyone in Al-Anon. Al-Anon was not offering anything but a support group for feeling OK about doing nothing - "Letting Go". It did not make sense to detach from my alcoholic friend and wait for him to hit a new bottom. I did not want to isolate him further or fall back into enabling and this book explained how to take action in a healthy way.
   
   Thank you to the authors - and to HBO for promoting CRAFT. Why isn't this more talked about?



4. This is a great book. I have been around the AA program with family members for my entire life and this approach for the hard headed or unconventional alcoholic/user is wonderful. I am happy to have found this and am using these new methods daily.



5. As a family therapist who is the director of a chemical dependency program at a local hospital I have seen the information in this book...when applied with the help of a professional...transform relationships and lives. It is a difficult path vs. ultimatums and threats...but it acually works the vast majority of the time.

3 comments about Came to Believe.

1. I dip into this AA World Services publication daily. I find it best to read one story at a sitting and reflect on the comments and experience of the recovering person -- most of the short reflections are peoples' spiritual experiences in recovery and they range from the "bolt of lightening" to the slow emergence of everyday spirituality. Keep it with your morning or evening meditation book(s) and dip into it. You'll "keep coming back."



2. I love this book. I'm a twelve-stepper who came to the program from a Christian fundamantalist childhood by way of a period recovering from that.
   
   One thing I came to believe from reading this book was that a higher power is not comprehensible by me or anyone else living or dead. Many traditions have been established that attempt to essentialize something greater than the individual in ways that suit their own needs.
   
   I'm fortnuate enough to be very well educated. I'm not into fairy tales. I do, however, experience many things about life that I cannot explain. This book helped me to understand that whatever shorthand various humans have assigned to the phenomena of life and their experiences is just that. Some power greater than myself, however, is a simple concept.
   
   (I'm a literary sort and rate this book within the context of recovery literature and books that have made an impact on me. The prose is not where it's at with this one.)



3. Surprised I couldn't find a copy through local AA, there are some remarks on spirituality I wanted to save from it. The search for meaning, & acceptance of life on life's terms, never ends.
   Publisher: Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
   Published Year: 1973

5 comments about Adult Children of Alcoholics Syndrome: A Step By Step Guide To Discovery And Recovery.

1. This book is a must read for any adult who was raised by alcoholics. When reading this book I felt like I was reading about my childhood.



2. This book may be a very useful tool for people who are ready to break the cycle of self-destruction and family dysfunction. Living with alcoholism absolutely affects everyone in the house, and we don't have to live with the secrets anymore. If you don't want to pass the hurt, the shame, the pain on to your own children, get this book and begin to heal the wounds of your own childhood.



3. Being a ACoa I found this little book insightful. I would recommend to all with this history.



4. THE ADULT CHILDREN OF ALCOHOLICS SYNDROME by Wayne Kritsberg
   It's a very helpfull book. Unlike so many other books on this issue it is very clear and well-organized. It is just a pleasure to read it. I am going to use some extracts from this book in my thesis paper on co-dependency.
   The books which i read before mostly described the emotions of the authors, since most of the books on alcoholism are written by the adult children of alcoholics or alcoholics in recovery, and very often they are filled up with tiny little details and emotions which need to be treated by a therapist but i personally don't need to know about them, just because i have my own.
   I have a lot of relatives who still live in denial and i believe that this book could be very helpfull for them as well, because it's not big, easy to read, logical and competent. The book does not judge or blame but explains. I love it.



5. I was so angered by the title of this book that I refused to buy it or read it. I'm a person not a syndrome

5 comments about Made From Scratch: A Memoir.

1. This book was great! I read it ONE day and I'm not a fast reader, but I just couldn't put it down! Gratned, it's not the most well-written or gramatically correct piece of writing I've seen in a while, but who cares! The story is real and honest and so is the woman behind it! The way she tells her real-life story is engaging and inpsirational! k! While I agree that her tablescapes are not always "easy" or "inexpensive," and her food is often chemically ladden with all of the "starters," and artificial crap in it, it IS easy! I think Ms. Lee is a very savy, smart and intelligent business woman, who yes, happened to know the right people and be in the right places at the right times, but hey, she worked her butt off, literally, for years and years and obviously, still does! I can't help but admire a hard worker! I think Ms. Lee's heart is/was always in the right place and her charitable work is admirable! I also liked the fact that she so honest at the end with how this book came to be! She states she's not a writer and also shares some of the pain in re-visisiting these memories and writing this story. I also liked that she acknowledged her divorce and how painful that is, many people glide over that facet of their life, I appreicated her honesty! All and all, I have a WHOLE NEW RESPECT and admiration for Ms. Lee after having read this book; if you want a quick, fast, easy and highly inspirational, encouraging read, you've found it!



2. Reading about Sandra Lee's upbringing was very emotional and heartwrenching. Made From Scratch is a very apt title. Did not have any idea what a hardscrabble childhood she had. I was interested in learning that she lived in Sumner, just a town away from me. She worked so hard and kept a good head on her shoulders through horrors hopefully none of us have experienced. She truly deserves all the success she has enjoyed. I hope she continues to flourish. I did not know about her former Beverly Hills/jet-setting lifestyle either so it was interesting to get a peek inside that world. I recommend this book--you will have a better understanding of Sandra Lee and her semi-homemade empire.



3. With a childhood like Sandra had, you wonder how anyone could survive, let alone succeed. What an inspiration she is! I could not put this book down.



4. I became interested in Sandra Lee's past after hearing others on the Food Network mentioning her hard life. Sandra made her own decisions growing-up to have a better life than her parents. Every time she was knocked-down, she got back up and moved forward. A riveting read.



5. I think Sandra's book "Made From Scratch" is lovely. She told her life story without self-pity, bragging or anything negative. She worked very hard to get where she is and I don't think she stepped on toes to get there. Even people who deserved nastiness were written about with respect. It is amazing how far she was able to go with that childhood and I am impressed that she has kept her family so close. I don't care if the writing is perfect; it's a memoir not a work of literature (and I didn't think the writing was bad anyway).

3 comments about Freedom from Addiction: The Chopra Center Method for Overcoming Destructive Habits.

1. Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R13CZYSSA5EL9P I've been reading Deepak for many years and have had a conversation with him regarding addiction and the 12 Steps. He's coming at it from a non-addict's perspective. One addict talking to another is the key to 12 Step recovery. See my upcoming book, The 12 Step Buddhist, where I deal with this material from the perspective of an addict, and a Buddhist.



2. This book is amazing!!!! The way David Simmon refamed the 12 step program is remarkable and much more user friendly for the general public...it's very nice how he and Deepak explain why people become addicted and that it is not something you need to see as an addiction for the rest of your life. The only thing missing is a program at the Chopra Center to go with it.



3. Very insightful book for anyone wanting to break bad habits such as smoking, drinking, etc.

3 comments about Staying Sober Workbook: A Serious Solution for the Problems of Relapse.

1. Mr. Gorski is one of today's leading experts on addiction and recovery, and has authored several books on the subject; as well as appearing in educational videos. This workbook is a valuable tool for those in recovery.



2. This Workbook for those who have experienced relapses into addiction counts very highly in my work with addicts. Alcohol is my specialty. Those who drink again after a period of abstinence need special help. Just going back to AA Meetings is not really enough. The Workbooks, with a counsellor, provides in-depth work for maintaining sobriety. One cannot do it alone. Just dealing with a sponsor, plus AA Meetings, is not enough. My experience shows that the recovering person make big steps forward with this Wortkbook.



3. From back cover:
   
   "This new, revised version of 'The Staying Sober Workbook' treats the problem of relapse as what it really is: the most serious problem facing recovering people and the addiction field. Serious problems require serious solutions.
   
   'The Staying Sober Workbook' presents a practical method for relapse prevention - a method in use since 1988 when the first workbook was published and field tested by hundreds of Certified Relapse Prevention Specialists in their work with recovering clients.
   
   [This book] presents a practical and proven method for relapse prevention. It is not a quick fix or a 'magic bullet' for the problem of relapse. It is a serious guide for relapse prevention that requires time, energy and is especially helpful when used under the guidance of trained professionals."
   
   From Introduction:
   
   "Most people relapse because they don't understand what relapse is and how to prevent it. With a relapse prevention plan you can identify early warning signs that lead to relapse and learn to manage these warning signs while sober. This workbook is to be used as a supplement to 'Staying Sober: A Guide For Relapse Prevention' by Terence T. Gorski and Merlene Miller.
   
   Relapse is a process that beings long before people start drinking or drugging. Most people return to alcohol and drug use because they experience a sequence of problems which causes them to become so dysfunctional in sobriety that a return to chemical use seems like a reasonable choice. The pathway into dysfunction includes changes in attitudes, thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. These changes are often referred to as 'stinking thinking' or 'building up to drink.'
   
   You may never use alcohol or other drugs and still be a victim of the relapse process. You can become dysfunctional in sobriety without using alcohol or other drugs. In AA this is called a 'dry drunk.' These dry drunks should always be taken seriously because they can lead to wet drunks.
   
   You can interrupt the relapse process before you start using alcohol and drugs if you learn to recognize the warning signs that indicate that you are moving away from recovery and toward relapse.
   
   Relapse prevention planning is for persons who have accepted the fact that they are suffering from an addictive disease and can no longer control the use of alcohol or other drugs. It is intended to complement, not replace, other self-help groups and regular alcoholism or drug dependence treatment or counseling.
   
   When you have finished this workbook you will have a plan to help you progress in recovery and avoid relapse. You may use the workbook alone, with a counselor, or with a group."
   
   
   Workbook Exercises include:
   
   * Stabilization Checklist
   * Self-Assessment of Treatment Need
   * Recovery Program Evaluation Worksheets
   * Post Acute Withdrawl (PAW) Self-Evaluation
   * Immediate Relapse Prevention Plan
   * Immediate High-Risk Solutions
   * Immediate Relapse Prevention Plans
   * Relapse Early Intervention Worksheet
   * Challenging Relapse Justifications (w/worksheets)
   * Life and Addiction History Worksheet & Documentation Form
   * The Relapse Calendar
   * The Relapse Episode List
   * Relapse Episode Analysis
   * The Causes of Relapse
   * The External & Internal Causes of Relapse
   * Combined Causes of Relapse
   
   II - Warning Sign Identification
   * Relapse Education (w/ self-test)
   * Relapse Warning Sign Review Sheet
   * Initial Warning Sign List
   * Intro to Warning Sign Analysis
   * Reactions to Warning Sign Analysis
   * Sentence Completion
   * The Final Warning List
   * Identifying Critical Warning SIgns
   
   III - Managing Warning Signs
   * Warning Sign Identification Cards
   * High Risk Thought & Feelings Lists
   
   IV. Recovery Planning

5 comments about Marriage On The Rocks: Learning to Live with Yourself and an Alcoholic.

1. Besides going to alanon, this is an excellent starting point to validate and identify your problems with an alcoholic. Also buy Jeff Jay's LOVE FIRST--on how to do an intervention. I bought both of these books for myself and my friends so they would understand what I was going through (friends give you all the wrong advice until they really understand)and help me with the intervention--which WORKED!!! Don't be afraid to tell people. You are hurting yourself and your children by keeping secrets. Believe me, my 6 year old knew way more than i could have imagined when I started being honest with her--I was shocked--sometimes it seemed like she understood more than I did). To my shock--My husband went into a 28 day detox/alcohol rehab program after I did the intervention---it MUST be done RIGHT to work! Even the interventionist said he was a really tough case. These 2 books did the trick (I read many other books that did not "speak to me" the way these 2 books did. After 2-3 years of research online and in books--these are the 2 books that worked for me and my husband. After his 28 days treatment he refused a sober house (which was a mistake--it would have been better if he was recovering away from me and my daughter for OUR sake not his). In a sober house, the newly sober alcoholic can still go to work, see family, etc--he just lives in the sober house for support and checks and balances). So, After the 28 days, he has now been in outpatient rehab for 2 months. A very slow, emotional time for the family, but at least he is abstaining from alcohol. They tell me it takes 4-6 months for their heads to clear and really start a true recovery. THUS, I cannot stress enough that AFTER treatment the follow up is almost as tough. You must get your WHOLE family into recovery/treatment--the best thing is to insist that you alcoholic spouse/friend/dad/eic. go to outpatient rehab after inpatient rehab (even better, to a sober house first after inpatient treatment) and then the family and significant other should be in any and all programs available at the out patient tratment. That is when you realize that YOU need to help YOURSELVES and stop worrying about the alcoholic. PLEASE, go to ALANON as well and read these books. Also look at books on co-dependency to help you and your children get a life. The books by Beatty (I forgot her first name)on co-dependent 12 steps are excellent too. ESPECIALLY if you have kids involved.



2. This is an excellent book for anybody who has ever been affected by someone else's drinking problem. Even if it is not your spouse. This book will help you understand the disease, and that nobody is at fault. The alcoholic is NOT to blame for his disease, but IS responsible for his behavior. If you are a wife, a parent, a child, a close friend, or in any way associated with an alcoholic, this book is for you. It is important that you help yourself, before the alcoholic. This book will show you how.



3. We often so need to -- or want to-- stay with the alcoholic, for today.
   We often don't know if we can stand it if we are alone, or if we can go out there in that world again, trying to 'date', or whatever.
   Another book that I also find so extremely helpful is "Getting Them Sober". That book-- both for me and my patients -- has literally saved all our lives, with its hundreds of so very practical and effective daily suggestions that really do make life easier when living under the same roof with an alcoholic. No wonder it has sold over a million copies, and Melody Beattie (author of "Codependent NO More") says "it's the best book for the family of the still-drinking alcoholic".Getting Them Sober: You Can Help! (Getting Them Sober)



4. Books written to the spouses of alcoholics seem to be few and far between. I am grateful for this book. I have shared many passages with friends in my Significant Other Group and we've all found this book to be useful, informative, and quite frankly, spot-on. Many of the concepts in this book are consistent with the lessons in Al-Anon. It's really easy to think that you are going through this personal hell by yourself. Oddly enough, you are not. In fact, your life, as painful as it seems, is "textbook" in many respects. This book helps you, or reminds you, of this and that there is serenity to be found. You are not crazy nor alone. I would highly recommend this to spouses of either sex. Happy Recovery reading...



5. The title is dishonest and the book content is sexist. The book is written with the drunk being called "he", "your husband", or names like "Harry". (at least, every page I looked at, because of that problem I did not buy the book). The subtitle should say "Learning to live with yourself and an alcoholic *husband*". I had hopes of finding a good book for a male friend dealing with his destructively drunk wife. So far each book I have found whose title sounds promising ends up being addressed to the woman dealing with a drunk husband.
   
   For women dealing with alcoholic men, what I paged through looked decent, but the book will be a real misfire for those who bought it on the title alone

1 comments about Controlling Your Drinking: Tools to Make Moderation Work for You.

1. I read this book as part of my biographical research on a man who was an alcoholic. It opened my eyes to the many aspects of alcohol dependency. Its intelligent, unpatronizing directions on how to reduce the amount you drink or decide for abstinence were thoughtful, and I could see how it would be helpful to those thinking through their relationship with alcohol. I think this book would be useful, too, for impulse eating and similar situations. I recommend this book highly.