Addiction in Black & White For some, reading is part of a successful opiate detox
There is something uniquely comforting about recognizing yourself in the pages of a book – whether it be fiction, nonfiction or memoir. For those in need of a detox center in Florida, that moment when you feel the connection, when the idea dawns that someone really does understand what you are going through, is so powerful. If you are hoping that someone you care about will enter one of Florida’s drug rehab centers or commit to a Florida alcohol detox center, you may have felt invisible as you face the limits of what you can accomplish. Seeing your situation play out in black and white will let you know that someone does see you.
Most of all, there is the comfort of knowing that you are not alone. You can find that comfort at Spring Gardens Recovery Treatment Center in Florida or in the pages of one of the many books that feature addiction to one extent or another. There are others who are facing the same challenges that you face, who understand what you are going through and there are others who have made it through to the other side and are living a life of sobriety.
Seeing yourself in the pages of a book can be incredibly affirming, no matter what stage of the journey to recovery you find yourself in.
There is an incredible range of books dealing with various aspects of alcohol and drug addiction – from novels to memoirs. Countless contemporary writers have tackled the subject. Writers from previous generations and previous centuries have also written knowledgably about the disease of addiction, offering a new perspective on the challenge.
Each person’s journey is unique but there are universal themes and shared challenges that all addicts face. “Addiction is powerful, complicated, and appears in our lives in a variety of different ways,” Katie MacBride, who has been sober for 10 years says in 100 Must-Read Books About Addiction on Book Riot. “The beauty of literature is its ability to convey all the exciting, ugly, complicated nuances of issues like addiction, so we might reflect on the myriad ways it impacts our world.”
Drinking: A Love Story by Caroline Knapp is high on the list of titles that MacBride recommends. “This is arguably the most important book I’ve ever read,” she says. The book is a candid memoir by Knapp, a writer and columnist, that made it to the bestsellers list when it came out in 1996. “Years before I got sober, Caroline Knapp pulled me into this book with her gorgeous prose. Once I was hooked on her writing, I began to see a reflection of my story in her own,” MacBride says. “A must read for…anyone.”
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie is among the fiction titles on MacBride’s reading list, but it is based on the author’s own experiences. Alexie is the winner of the 2010 PEN/Faulkner Award, the 2007 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, the 2001 PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story, and a Special Citation for the 1994 PEN/Hemingway Award for Best First Fiction. Smoke Signals, the film he wrote and coproduced, won both the Audience Award and the Filmmakers Trophy at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival.
In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian, he shares the story of Junior, a budding cartoonist growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation, who is determined to take his future into his own hands, Junior leaves his troubled school on the rez to attend an all-white farm town high school where the only other Indian is the school mascot. “Junior chronicles his observations in his diary, including the various addictions he sees plague many of the adults in his life,” MacBride tells us. She then quotes a line of Junior’s from the book: “There are all kinds of addicts, I guess. We all have pain. And we all look for ways to make the pain go away.”
If you or someone you love is looking for a healthy and constructive way to deal with the pain, please call us at Spring Gardens alcohol and drug detox in Florida.
About the Author
Kelly Fitzgerald is a sober writer based in Southwest Florida who is best known for her personal blog The Adventures of a Sober Señorita. Her work has been published across the web including sites like The Huffington Post, Thought Catalog, Ravishly, SheKnows, Elite Daily, The Fix, Brit + Co, Addiction Unscripted and AfterPartyMagazine. She is currently writing a memoir.
