RECOMMENDED READINGS ON SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS Updated September 2020
Memoirs
Quit Like A Woman
Holly Whitaker
We Are The Luckiest, The Surprising Magic of a Sober Life
Laura McKowen
This Naked Mind
Annie Grace
Broken -
William C. Moyers
Tweak,
Nic Sheff
Second Chances –
Gary Stromberg and Jane Merrill -
Guts –
Kirsten Johnson
Freedom From Our Addictions
Russell Brand
American Fix
Ryan Hampton
A Common Struggle- (mental health and addiction)
Patrick J Kennedy
Understanding the disease and other health issues
Clean –
David Sheff
Beyond Addiction, How Science and Kindness Help Change People
Jeff Foote & Carrie Wilkens
In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts
Gabor Mate
Good words for concerned persons to read / re-read while patient is getting help
The Anatomy of Peace
The Arbinger Institute
Be A Loving Mirror, BALM
Beverly Buncher
It Takes a Family
Debra Jay
Love First
Debra Jay
No More Letting Go
Debra Jay
Positive Recovery Reading
Unbroken Brain,
Maia Salavitz
Six Essentials to Achieve Lasting Recovery
Thomas Kimball & Sterling Shumway
GOD of Our Understanding-
Rabbi Shais Taub
The Language of Letting Go-
Melody Beattie
Codependent No More-
Melody Bettie
Educational Videos
Included are educational videos, documentaries, and films about what addiction is, what recovery is, and information about harm reduction. Click the images to view.
This documentary discusses the history and stigmatization of the anonymity around recovery while following celebrities, survivors, and experts as they discuss Substance Use Disorder. Full documentary available on Amazon, YouTube, and iTunes. Watch trailer here.
A PBS and NOVA documentary about how opioid addiction affects the brain and how evidence-based treatment is saving lives. Watch here.
Dr. Kevin McCauley uses his personal experience as a doctor as well as scientific research to dig deeper into the question of "Is addiction a disease?" Full documentary available to purchase on Amazon. Watch trailer here.
MTV teams up with multi-platinum artist and person in longterm recovery Macklemore to go inside America’s opioid epidemic, meeting those living with addiction and heading to Washington D.C. for an exclusive talk with former President Obama on this important issue. Watch documentary here.
Transformation: the Alchemy of Harm Reduction
This hour long documentary shows harm reduction programs such as needle exchanges in action and their larger, positive effect on the community around them. Watch documentary here.
TEDx Talk by Guy Felicella on Harm Reduction
Titled "I Died Six Times...Let's End the Stigma of Harm Reduction," Guy Felicella discusses his struggle with addiction and how harm reduction programs led him on the road to recovery. Watch video here.







