Recovery: Freedom from Our Addictions Kindle Edition

I hated the idea of getting help the way my parents would have.I hated the idea of going back to a God I left when I couldn’t function.I hated the idea of going to church and having to use church speech.And I hated the idea of giving up what I knew was killing me.Then a book that speaks the same language I do. Uses the same words I do. And outthinks me at ever step came into my view. This is the book that’s helping me go through recovery and to un f*** myself. I knew I needed it I just had no idea how much I wanted it.How much the pain of my past and what I was running from was killing my future by not letting me live in the present. All the reasons I never wanted to look back and just keep stuffing anything and everything into the void to get those moments of joy that turned to sorrow. How broken I wouldn’t let myself feel. And how much I thought fixing it would hurt.I’m still going through the book. I’m sure I will many more times. This isn’t a feel good in an hour then put it away kind of book. This is the manual for self realization. And that’s not something you put away until you have it down by heart.If you’re looking at this book thinking that it will cure you it won’t. But it will help you save you. And that’s all I needed. Now all I want is to live here and now and for the first time in over sixteen long years I’m starting to see the present not as something to escape from. But something to run to.If you wake up daily and try to forget the here and now this book is for you.If the moment the slightest problem in your life makes you run to a fix. It’s for you.If you made it this far. The book is for you.And thankfully the book was for me too.

I couldn't have found a better book to read right now. As someone with an adult child in recovery, this book gave me new insight that affirms my decision earlier this year to regulary attend a 12 step group, not only to support my daughter, but to make deep changes in myself. Russell Brand points out that we are all on the addiction scale in some area of our lives. He urges doing inner work so that addictions of all kinds. . . . drug, alcohol, sex, food, gambling, even internet/phone. Anything that we use to distract us from facing our emotions and making needed changes in our life - anything we do to numb ourselves can become something worth closer examination. His book follows the "12 Steps" but goes into specifics in a way that is both personal to him and identifiable to every reader. I was so moved by the changes he has made in the past 14 years of his sobriety. The fact that he faces his demons every day . . . . and is willing to share the inner tools that have worked so well for him makes the price of this book and the time to read it very worthwhile. The inner soul searching he has done makes me eager to do my own.

Russell has hard-won advice to share, and I love his raw honesty and humor. I'm not an addict per se but have depression and some bad habits to manage (among them overeating, inactivity, and procrastination). This book helps me find (and maintain) the strength and positive energy to tackle them. You can open the book to practically any page to get a dose of help.

I bought this book because I am in intern counselor who deals with clients with substance abuse. I also used it in my bibliography assignment for my counseling class. It took me about a month to finish it because I was taking notes but it was worth the read. I gave it 4 stars because sometimes Russell's references to things are lost in translation as an American reader and sometimes he does go off a bit on tangents. That said, aside from maybe needing a bit of a tighter editor and more universal dialogue, it was a great read. I really liked how he broke down The 12 Steps and made it understandable to people who aren't necessarilly in AA and or people who don't want to read "The Book". I especially liked how humble Russell was when he wrote his story and shared about others as well. He really is quite authentic, real, genuine etc. He's flawed, just like the rest of us and is not afraid to admit it. I would recommend this book to any reader wanting to familiarize themselves with the steps as well as anyone struggling with some kind of addiction. Russell makes it clear that to some degree, we all struggle with an addiciton, it may be shopping, over eating, movies/series on TV, sex, porn, exercise (even that can be bad for you if done in excess), drinking, pain killers, work, etc. He also shares his spiritual side, information on meditation/mindfulness and overall, just how to be a more aware, awake and compassionate person. If some of you are familiar with who/how Russell was about 15 years ago, he's really (to steal Virginia Slim's phrase) come a long way. He's a much more mature, kind, compassionate, empathetic, awake, aware, wise, humbled, husband, father and son. Thank you Russell Brand for encouraging others to be a better version of themselves and to stop stigmatizing people with addictions.

This is exactly exactly the sort of person I need to be "talking" to. Or listening to, or reading--what have you. Having recovered from more serious addictions 30+ years ago, I now find myself addicting to shopping! Yikes!!! If you are addicted to ANYTHING, from shopping to narcotics, and we all have addictions (believe me), you should find this book beneficial. For me, it's just great to be "communicating" with another hardball player with a sense of humor.

I thought 12 steps was for religious people and always put off recovery because of it, however my eyes have been opened to spiritualism and finding peace within yourself, and I cannot thank Brand enough for saving my life.

As someone in recovery, I had a few reservations about this book.Firstly, the profanity - the 12-steps is about developing a purity of heart - and paraphrasing the steps with the 'f' word is distateful. Secondly, it is surely against the 11th tradition which stresses anonymity at the level of press, radio and film. It's against the rules to promote recovery, because if he slips, it will discredit the programme.But hey, maybe that's my own resentments at work. I read the whole book. I found it complemented the many other recovery texts I cherish - A New Pair of Glasses, God of our Understanding, The Steps We Took - I also managed to get my wife interested in reading it.RB is sincere, and the book explains the process in a grown-up way, making it persuasive to a secular readership. He can vouch for the emptiness of sexual conquests, Hollywood fame and political meddling. Although given that he got clean in the early 2000s, it's surprisingly how long it took him to wake up and put the principles to work in all his affairs.I like taking the message to those who still suffer, and this book is one I can recommend to people for a gentle introduction into the Bill Wilson philosophy. Bournemouth, where I live, is one of the 12 step capitals of the UK. It has grown out of the rehab community. I hope this book attracts more people to the many fellowships that exist here and across the UK.

This is a superb book. It is life changing for anybody, not just 'addicts'. I saw Brand at a literary festival and bought it - purely out of interest, and have since ordered several copies as gifts for friends. A joy to read and written with care and desire to help and make a difference to the reader.

I have always been curious about what the 12 Step Programme entails and thanks to this book, I am now more aware. Russell Brand invites us to his own understanding of the 12 step programme and us to learn about examples from his own experiences. His account is humble, spiritual and written with humour and at times a solemn tone. He really does challenge the reader to "peel away" the addictions that may be present in thier lives, he states that his addiction to heroin was the easiest one to peel away but then he delves deep beyond his other addictions and invites the reader to really reflect on all addictions. This is an inspiring testament to someone who has overcome addiction and someone who works the programme every day. A really enlightening read. Thank you Russell !

I can’t recommend this book enough it’s amazing I’m only on chapter 3 and it’s helping so much already, I don’t have an obvious addiction like drugs porn or alcohol but it works all the same and the book reads well too excellent excellent excellent