The brutal reality of drug addiction from the perspective of the survivor

books:

	• I Am Your Disease: The Many Faces of Addiction Sheryl Letzgus McGinnis, Heiko Ganzer Outskirts Press, 2006 - 392 pages average customer review:based on 34 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

As valuable as any clinical text.

As a Clinical Social Worker, I recommend this book be mandatory for any professional in the field. This book goes beyond a scientific understanding of substance abuse, beyond treatment methods and beyond clinical strategy. It explores substance abuse from the viewpoint of the mother or the family member who has lost a loved one. It reminds us that a life lost to substance abuse is a life victimized by an ugly and unrelenting disease. It reminds us that families left behind are victims themselves, as we see in the painful words of the book's many contributing writers. Our society so easily stereotypes "the addict", judges or places blame on the person for "choosing" that lifestyle. This book challenges us to break that stereotype, to see the beauty, the intellect, the passion and the energy that such individuals possess. It challenges us not to cast such individuals into the marginalized population but to do all we can to support them and help them find recovery when possible. Any loss is great, but there is no greater loss than that of a child. I commend the strength and honesty of the mothers and family members who have come together to write this book. May this book continue to act as a passionate and moving tribute to their children. May it also remind all professionals in the field of addiction to treat not "the addict", but the individual; to explore that person's capabilities and dreams, to find that person's sources of energy, creativity and strength, to use family support in treatment when possible. "I Am Your Disease: The Many Faces of Addiction" is a powerful and honest read, and a necessity for any professional in the field.

Sarah Thomas, LCSW

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great book for my son!

I bought this book for my son who is doing time in jail for many crimes related to his heroin addiction. He loved the book and it really hit home with him. It made him understand his disease and deal with it rather than deny it. He is willing to go to a year long rehab after he does his time.

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I am Your disease

This book is a must read for any parent dealing with a child with addiction. The book shows the disease has no boundries with age, gender, or statis. As a parent of a drug addict I could relate to many of the stories, and struggles.

The brutal reality of drug addiction from the perspective of the survivor

These stories, very sad and unfortunately so real, are about senseless death. The people described are the young victims of drug addiction so severe that it took their lives. Written by their surviving relatives, nearly always parents, the stories are real, raw and painful. They describe the struggles of how the parents supported their children, the anguish they felt as they watched the roller coaster of peaks, valleys, relapse, apparent recovery and finally death. Money, support, pushing them into treatment, all that could be expected of them was done, yet at best it kept their child alive a little longer.
My wife is a counselor who works with female addicts with children and so she understands how powerful the addictive beast can be. Sometimes, the best she can do is to manage the relapse well enough that it does not enter the "threat to life" category. When I explained the stories to her, she understood the problems fully.
The only way that the deaths of these young people can have any meaning is if they are used to persuade others to avoid contact with the monster of addiction. While they are not uplifting, they are important because they are real. When I was in my teens, my brother and I walked home from school with two girls who lived less than a block away. Two hours later, an ambulance was at their house and one of them, my brother's girlfriend, was dead of a drug overdose. Don't for one instant think that such a thing cannot happen to you, because it can. If you are a parent, read this book and learn what the price of a lack of vigilance can be.

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Disappointed

I was disappointed with this book. It is written in a somewhat breathy and excitable, even naive style which belies the subject matter. Basically it is a series of very sad stories of the perils and destruction of drug addiction. I was hoping for more analysis on why the people depicted in the various vignettes made the choices they did. I also noticed that most of the stories revolved around heroin and I was looking for examples of prescription drug abuse.

reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Compelling, provocative stories of Addiction and Loss

"Mom, nobody wakes up one day and decides to be an addict." The stories contained in this book are about people from every walk of life, socioeconomic levels, religious and ethnic backgrounds whose lives were intertwined with people who didn't "decide to be an addict."

They all share one common bond - living with, and loving an addicted person.
Contained within the pages of this book are stories by bereaved parents who have suffered the ultimate loss: The loss of their precious child.

Read how addiction, whether it be drugs, alcohol or gambling, destroys not only the addicted person, but their entire circle of friends and family.

No one escapes the tentacles of addiction. Like an octopus it reaches its deadly arms around us and squeezes the very life out of all of us. Our society is affected in ways we never imagined.

Read excerpts from middle school students on the peer pressures they face today.

Read the stories of parents who have gone through hell, sacrificing their very sanity trying to save their child.

The profiles of these children will change your mind about what kind of people do drugs. GOOD KIDS DO DRUGS TOO!

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