Recovery Memoirs

In 2018, 34 people were shot at a high school in Parkland, Florida. Jaime Guttenberg, a 14-year-old, was the second to last victim. That she and so many of her fellow students were struck down in cold blood galvanized many to action, including Jaime's father, Fred, who has become an activist dedicated to passing common-sense gun-safety legislation. This book is not about gun safety or Parkland. Instead, it tells the story of Fred Guttenberg's journey since Jaime's death and how he has been able to get through the worst of times thanks to the kindness and compassion of others.

Dana Bowman can't escape the lure of perfectionism, trying to be a flawless wife, mother, and person in recovery. When Dana experiences a short-lived relapse during the Christmas holiday, she has the startling realization that recovery is more than just giving up alcohol. In this funny and revealing follow-up to her best-selling book Bottled, Dana reflects on how we live in a society of excess, always pushing ourselves to do and be better. However, it doesn’t take her long to realize that self-care and getting over herself is the key to happiness.

For the first time, journalist and historian David Talbot turns inward in this intimate journey through the life-changing year following his stroke, a year that turned his life upside down, and ultimately, saved him. In his signature voice and with powerful storytelling, Talbot examines the physical, emotional, and psychological impact his stroke has had on his identity. Along the way Talbot offers listeners insider stories on the wild early days of internet journalism, insights into the new tech culture, the down and dirty of Hollywood, and much more.

Maybe I Don't Belong Here is a deeply personal exploration of the duality of growing up both Black and British, recovery from crisis and a rallying cry to examine the systems and biases that continue to shape our society. In this powerful and provocative account of a life lived after psychosis, critically acclaimed actor David Harewood uncovers devastating family history and investigates the very real impact of racism on Black mental health.

Justo cuando Glennon Doyle comenzaba a sentir que lo tenía todo, tres niños felices, un esposo cariñoso y una carrera como escritora tan exitosa que su primer libro alcanzó la cima de la lista best seller del New York Times, su esposo le reveló su infidelidad y se vio forzada a darse cuenta de que nada es lo que parece ser.

At the age of 27, married, living in New York, and working in book design, Mary Cregan gives birth to her first child, a daughter she names Anna. But it’s apparent that something is terribly wrong, and two days later, Anna dies - plunging Cregan into suicidal despair. Decades later, sustained by her work, a second marriage, and a son, Cregan reflects on this pivotal experience and attempts to make sense of it. She weaves together literature and research with details from her own ordeal - and the still visible scar of her suicide attempt....

A Life Long Spiritual Walk as a Friend of Bill W. is a tribute to her formative years, being around her grandmother, aunts, uncles, cousins, mom and dad, and all her loving animals. She has Native roots in Canada with the Blood tribe and in Montana with the Blackfeet tribe, all of which contribute to the woman she is. She attributes the beginnings of her walk to being led to the doors of Alcoholics Anonymous on her most vulnerable and most teachable day, that being the day she began to hear for the first time in a long time. The rest of the journey speaks for itself.

I have been a hardcore junkie for many years and I am certain that I will never stop using heroin or any other street drug. I love to get high. Point-blank. I’m sure I will overdose again and my body will be found in a gutter somewhere in Los Angeles.

With an audacious persistence to reclaim her life, Tia set off on a 15-year path to psychological health. The result is an emotionally regulated, actualized, self-aware woman able to tell her hard story without retraumatizing herself, a woman able to reach a hand back to help others claim what’s theirs. If trauma took your past, it shouldn’t get your present and future too. Through a series of personal stories, therapeutic stages, and resources built around a multi-step model, Tia Levings will guide you through the journey that helped her leave abuse, rediscover selfhood, and heal her mind.

At the age of 15, Cat Marnell unknowingly set out to murder her life. After a privileged yet emotionally-starved childhood in Washington, she became hooked on ADHD medication. This led to a dependence on Xanax at boarding school, and she experimented with cocaine, ecstasy - whatever came her way. By 26 her life had become a twisted merry-go-round of parties and pills at night and trying to hold down a high-profile job at Condé Nast during the day.

In the summer of 2012 a woman named Eva was found dead in the London townhouse she shared with her husband, Hans K. Rausing. The couple had struggled with addiction for years, often under the glare of tabloid headlines. Now, writing with singular clarity and restraint, Hans' sister, the editor and publisher Sigrid Rausing, tries to make sense of what happened. Mayhem is an eloquent and timely attempt to understand addiction and a memoir that is as poignant and riveting as it is devastating.

Dan W., possibly related to Bill W., shares his experience, strength, and hope in this powerful book, Dan 2. 0, on recovering from his addictions to alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine. Following his childhood in Africa, the son of missionaries, he became a career Marine, serving nearly 39-years on active duty. Deciding to quit his three addictions, after retiring from the Marines, he discovered that he could not do it on willpower and discipline alone. He needed help, which he found in a Higher Power and in the rooms of AA.

Jowita Bydlowska's memoir of her relapse into addiction is an extraordinary achievement. The writing is raw and immediate. It places you in the moment—saddened, appalled, nerve-wracked, but never able to look away or stop listening. With brutal honesty, Bydlowska takes us through the binges and blackouts, the self-deception and less successful attempts to deceive others, the humiliations and extraordinary risk-taking. She shines a light on the endless hunger of wanting just one more drink, and one more again, while dealing with motherhood, anxiety, depression—and rehab.

Renegade MD: A Doctor's Stories from the Streets is a powerful and inspiring memoir by Dr. Susan Partovi, a renowned street doctor who has dedicated her life to treating the impoverished around the world and people experiencing homelessness on LA's Skid Row. Through her stories, Dr. Partovi takes us on a journey to the heart of the challenges faced by those living on the streets, and shines a light on her unwavering commitment to advocate for social justice and to provide compassionate care to some of the most vulnerable people in our society.

Tara Sidhoo Fraser is thirty-one years old when a rare mutation in her brain causes a stroke. Awakening after surgery with no memory of her previous life, she attempts to piece it all back together through a haze of amnesia. Yet, as memories do begin to surface, they are seen through someone else's eyes—the person whose body she stole, whom she calls Ghost.

With no fear of taking risks, Susan Binkley embarked on a difficult spiritual journey that started with nothing but a powerful dream one night in 1995—a dream she had clearly intercepted, which was surely intended for someone else. After all, the dream was about helping women and children, and Susan did not particularly care for either. Shortly after, however, she found herself on an unexpected journey that completely changed her life and heart.

In 2017, at the age of 62, the writer and filmmaker Stephen Trombley left his native America for a simpler life in rural France. He found a little place in the southwest, but after only five months, he was struck down by a stroke that left his right arm paralyzed and his brains scrambled. While he was in hospital, his relationship failed. Alone, broke, and with only a schoolboy’s grasp of the language, Trombley found himself completely dependent on the French medical system. As soon as he was able, Trombley started keeping a diary, recording his long and painful journey.

With Out of the Ashes: A Story of Recovery and Hope, Sallie Crotty offers a profoundly moving memoir told with unflinching bravery and insight. Her compelling story explores a topic that affects us all: mental health. Detailing a mid-life descent into debilitating despair, she brings the listener on a deeply personal journey. She reveals her struggles, time spent in a psychiatric ward, and how lacking a clear diagnosis almost led to her death. She also describes how proper care and receiving the right diagnosis and treatment can provide hope, stability, and a path to happiness.

After Bill had accumulated significant sobriety a celebratory dinner was held in New York City at which Bill gave an AA talk. (Bill drank for 17 years and staying sober for an 17 years was a notable milestone not only to him but to Lois as well.) Bill talks about the role that Ebby played in getting Bill interested in sobriety and the role of Doctor Silkworth in helping him stay sober.

He was lost because of the addiction, broken from his past, and ashamed of the lifestyle he lived. An Injection of Faith: One Addict’s Journey to Deliverance, is a story of hope, love, and forgiveness from one man’s life with addictions. Author Anthony Ordille reveals his life of drugs and bar living, and how he found freedom from this crippling disease. He will walk you through the paths he took, how they ended, bring you through his years spent in recovery, and end with some of the happiest times he has experienced. Discover: What his childhood was like, how he dealt with his pain, ...