Addiction is more complex than it may seem. Written for the non-addict who seeks to understand substance addiction, The Soul of an Addict shows that addiction not just a disease or a choice. Using statistics, anecdotes from the lives of addicts, and the author's personal experience with addiction and recovery, the book argues that addiction affects all aspects of human existence, including identity, purpose, life structure, and morality. It serves as a religion in the addict's life, and any approach to recovery must also provide these essential needs. With one in seven Americans struggling with substance abuse, this book brings a timely analysis for anyone concerned about addiction.

"This inspiring and penetrating new book by Dr. Sinor shows how we gather the courage and the force of will to make a transformational change."--Mark Thurston, Ph.D.

When Michael was twenty-seven years old, his lengthy battle with drug addiction resulted in a seven-year prison sentence. It would take three years and the death of his father before he realized that his former life prevented him from becoming the man his father hoped he would be. Walking the road to recovery enabled him to change his life and become the man he was destined to be.

Recounts the addiction and recovery of the world-renowned solo artist and former lead singer and songwriter of Soul Coughing.

"This wise book provides practical exercises that will help us to develop conscious awareness and inner understanding, and the ways and means to free us from unsatisfying habits, addictions, and unconscious behavior patterns. I recommend it highly." --Lama Surya Das, author of the bestselling Awakening the Buddha Within "Anyone interested in finding a kind, spiritual guide to recovery that focuses on flexibility rather than the 'one true way' will benefit from this enjoyable and helpful book." --Maia Szalavitz, coauthor with Joseph Volpicelli, M.D., of Recovery Options: The Complete Guide In Mindful Recovery, you'll discover a fresh and effective method for healing from addiction that can help you handle important challenges, from managing anxiety and resisting cravings to dealing with emotional and physical imbalance. Drawing on both ancient spiritual wisdom and the authors' extensive clinical psychological work with their patients over many years, Mindful Recovery shows you how to use the simple Buddhist practice of mindfulness to be aware of-- and enjoy-- life in the present moment without the need to enhance or avoid experience with addictive behaviors. Mindful Recovery guides you step by step through ten powerful "doorways" to mindful recovery, giving you specific strategies that can help you cultivate a sense of calm awareness and balance in your life. Filled with personal stories of recovery, practical exercises, instructions for meditation, and more, Mindful Recovery accompanies you on a journey of exploration and healing that will help you find the strength and the tools to change, leading you to a fresh new experience of everyday living.

Pages from the Soul of an Addict is just that-pages that were poetically written from the author's soul while being bound by the consuming chemical chains of crack cocaine. There are pages of despair, doom, and darkness. However, there are also pages of hope, deliverance, and light. The goal and main objective of this book is to minister to anyone who is still suffering and caught up in the deadly web of drug addiction and to give the nonaddicts a poetically painted picture of what it is like being a drug addict and what it takes for deliverance.

Find inspiration for change and personal growth in each story as people in this dynamic community share their experiences of transformation, of lives reclaimed, of relationships renewed and futures full of promise.

A timely resource treating addiction holistically as both a spiritual and a pathological condition Substance addictions present a unique set of challenges for pastoral care. In this book Sonia Waters weaves together personal stories, research, and theological reflection to offer helpful tools for ministers, counselors, chaplains, and anyone else called to care pastorally for those struggling with addiction. Waters uses the story of the Gerasene demoniac in Mark’s Gospel to reframe addiction as a “soul-sickness” that arises from a legion of individual and social vulnerabilities. She includes pastoral reflections on oppression, the War on Drugs, trauma, guilt, discipleship, and identity. The final chapters focus on practical-care skills that address the challenges of recovery, especially ambivalence and resistance to change.

A “thought-provoking and powerful” study that reframes everything you’ve been taught about addiction and recovery—from the New York Times–bestselling author of The Myth of Normal (Bruce Perry, author of The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog). A world-renowned trauma expert combines real-life stories with cutting-edge research to offer a holistic approach to understanding addiction—its origins, its place in society, and the importance of self-compassion in recovery. Based on Gabor Maté’s two decades of experience as a medical doctor and his groundbreaking work with people with addiction on Vancouver’s skid row, this #1 international bestseller radically re-envisions a much misunderstood condition by taking a compassionate approach to substance abuse and addiction recovery. In the same vein as Bessel van der Kolk’s The Body Keeps the Score, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts traces the root causes of addiction to childhood trauma and examines the pervasiveness of addiction in society. Dr. Maté presents addiction not as a discrete phenomenon confined to an unfortunate or weak-willed few, but as a continuum that runs throughout—and perhaps underpins—our society. It is not a medical “condition” distinct from the lives it affects but rather the result of a complex interplay among personal history, emotional and neurological development, brain chemistry, and the drugs and behaviors of addiction. Simplifying a wide array of brain and addiction research findings from around the globe, the book avoids glib self-help remedies, instead promoting a thorough and compassionate self-understanding as the first key to healing and wellness. Dr. Maté argues persuasively against contemporary health, social, and criminal justice policies toward addiction and how they perpetuate the War on Drugs. The mix of personal stories—including the author’s candid discussion of his own “high-status” addictive tendencies—and science with positive solutions makes the book equally useful for lay readers and professionals.

"Any attempt to 'rehabilitate' someone without the saving power of God is only a temporary fix." In Rehab Is Not for the Soul: A Journey Out of Addiction, Gary Bentley makes a poignant and highly personal case that recovery from drug and alcohol addiction is possible only through spiritual surrender to God. Gary Bentley was an alcoholic at age 16 and was jailed many times over the next 18 years for fraud and drug-related crimes. He saw his work and home life fall apart as a result of his addictions, and he tried secular rehab programs in always-futile attempts to "come to his senses," as the prodigal son did in Luke 15:17. Yet as he shows, "rehab" only means to restore oneself to an earlier condition-and what the addict needs is a spiritual heart transplant. If you or someone you love is suffering from addiction, Gary reaches out to you with his example of success. Thanks to a spiritual awakening and the yearlong, free recovery program offered by the worldwide Christian program, Teen Challenge, he shows how biblical principles, wise family support, and faith can create total transformation. BIO: Gary Bentley came into the Teen Challenge program in 1997 after 18 years of substance abuse and four secular rehabilitation centers. After losing everything because of his addictions, he was homeless on the streets of New Orleans. Today he is a husband, father of one, and grandfather of two. Gary serves as the COO of Louisiana Teen Challenge and also helps train leaders for Teen Challenge in Russia.