It also rests on the premise that an unhealthy attachment to drinking is endemic to a person’s identity, and therefore impossible to get over. The good news is that regardless of the “root causes” of alcoholism, anyone with this disorder can decide to take control of their biochemistry, psychology, social influences, and spiritual development. It is a disorder that can be permanently resolved using the Bio-Psycho-Social-Spiritual model of recovery.

Straightforward and to the point, Carr helps you examine the reasons you drink in the first place in The Easy Way to Control Alcohol. This book is a great place to start if you’ve been feeling sober curious. Punch Me Up to the Gods is a beautifully written series of personal essays that describe Brian Broome’s experience growing up Black and queer in Ohio, and the effect early substance use had on his upbringing.

‘Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed with Alcohol,’ by Holly Whitaker

So here are 10 best-selling and/or award-winning books on addiction and recovery. Along with educational insights on substance use disorders, the books provide multiple perspectives from those who have successfully traversed the road to recovery. Yet there’s a reason it’s one of the most popular books on alcoholism, with more than 30 million copies sold. Black authors are largely absent from quit lit, and the treatment landscape is very white-centric, said Ryan Cain, executive director of Fund Recovery, a nonprofit that provides access to treatment programs. But stories like “Stash” can help reduce stigma around addiction, he said.

Options include not only classic libations much also some low-ABV and nonalcoholic options that are worth a look. Books are very helpful to stop one from drinking, but not everyone will connect with every book. If a title speaks to you, it would be wise to explore the book and see what stuck out to you. Reading a book may not be the complete solution, but it can send one down the path to rehabilitation. Veronica Valli, an addiction therapist and recovered alcoholic, wrote “Why You Drink and How to Stop” as a clear, insightful, and informational self-help book that is meant to do exactly what the title outlines.

Fiction Books About Alcoholism

Now, in The Book of Boundaries, out November 2023, Urban, who has been in recovery for more than 20 years, shows how setting clear limits can help protect your time, energy, health, security, confidence, and freedom. Authored by addiction professionals, Beyond Addiction illustrates how people can use positive reinforcement, behavior strategies, and kindness to help their loved ones achieve sobriety. Pairing insights on treatment options and how to navigate the rehab system, content is designed to not only help someone change but also prompt them to want to change. Former “20/20” anchor Elizabeth Vargas shares her story of anxiety and alcohol use disorder in this compelling memoir. Between Breaths reveals how she lived in denial and secrecy for years before finally entering rehab and a life of sobriety.

This book can supply you with the internal resolve and concrete strategies you’ll need to make progress in all aspects of your life. The only part I took issue with was the diet chapter, which promotes some dated myths about meat. Dr. Linus Pauling was the only scientist to have won two unshared Nobel Prizes, and this book is easily the best nutritional guide that I have read. best alcohol recovery books While this book is not explicitly about recovering from alcoholism, the information is very relevant for people who want to repair their brains and bodies after conquering acute alcohol withdrawal. Describing an emotional roller coaster, author Amanda Andruzzi wrote her “Hope Street” memoir to provide insight into what it’s like to live with an addict and be a co-addict.

Twenty-Four Hours a Day

A tragic story, riddled with dark humor, King describes her fall from grace to alcoholism over 276 gripping pages. Without the gilded setting of such novels outlined above as “Party Girl ” and “Unwifeable”, King’s memoir is still about personal pain, and the way in which she was eventually saved from her addiction. Written by Anna David and published in 2009, “Party Girl” is the story of a young woman in Los Angeles who falls into a habit of excessive partying and drug addiction. While at first her lifestyle as an entertainment journalist seems enviable, it becomes increasingly unhealthy, breaching on the point of self destructive.

• Unlike 7 Weeks to Sobriety, this book answers some questions about why the addiction treatment industry tends to ignore nutrition.
• Creating healthy boundaries is one of the most useful practices we can put into place in early sobriety.
• (A 1997 Time cover story described dopamine as “the master molecule of addiction.”) And sometimes the travails of addiction are ascribed to an intrinsic vulnerability that is exacerbated by external factors.
• In those stories, the decision to get better often arrives like a bolt of lightning, but this is rarely the case.

Creating healthy boundaries is one of the most useful practices we can put into place in early sobriety. But what does that mean, exactly, and how do you go about establishing boundaries? Nedra Glover Tawwab combines wisdom, research, and practical tools to help you change your life by building sustainable boundaries that actually work for you. Reading We are the Luckiest by Laura McKowen can quite possibly save your life. For anyone hiding in the shadows of shame, this book is a guiding light.

The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober by Catherine Gray

This book is for everyone, but learning to ‘tame the inner dragon’ is especially helpful to people in recovery. (And for good reason!) Atomic Habits offers practical strategies for making meaningful changes to your habits and routines, one tiny step at a time. Written by a cognitive neuroscientist with former substance use struggles, Marc Lewis emphasizes the habitual reward loop in the brain that can cause a substance use disorder to develop. This book also examines the brain’s ability to create new neural pathways and lose the desire to use substances. Lewis provides a description of life in recovery that I relate to myself; that sober life is not a life of deprivation, but one of fulfillment, continued growth, and personal development. Healing Neen provides a personal look into the connection between incarceration, substance use, and trauma.

Plus, you’ll get to read beautiful writing, and expand your worldview and perspectives. This article was written and published in partnership with Monument/Tempest. This book serves as a guide for anyone starting their journey with a 30 day sobriety challenge. The Dry Challenge can be especially helpful for people who drink socially, and are looking https://ecosoberhouse.com/ to take a structured step back to re-evaluate their habits. This book offers inspiration for alcohol-free drinks and activities, and tangible tips on how to navigate a month (or beyond!) without alcohol. Alcohol addiction is difficult to overcome in a culture obsessed with alcohol and alcohol recovery books might not get you where you want to be.