NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “An unflinching examination of how our drinking culture hurts women and a gorgeous memoir of how one woman healed herself.”—Glennon Doyle, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Untamed“You don’t know how much you need this book, or maybe you do. Either way, it will save your life.”—Melissa Hartwig Urban, Whole30 co-founder and CEOThe founder of the first female-focused recovery program offers a groundbreaking look at alcohol and a radical new path to sobriety.We live in a world obsessed with drinking. We drink at baby showers and work events, brunch and book club, graduations and funerals. Yet no one ever questions alcohol’s ubiquity—in fact, the only thing ever questioned is why someone doesn’t drink. It is a qualifier for belonging and if you don’t imbibe, you are considered an anomaly. As a society, we are obsessed with health and wellness, yet we uphold alcohol as some kind of magic elixir, though it is anything but.When Holly Whitaker decided to seek help after one too many benders, she embarked on a journey that led not only to her own sobriety, but revealed the insidious role alcohol plays in our society and in the lives of women in particular. What’s more, she could not ignore the ways that alcohol companies were targeting women, just as the tobacco industry had successfully done generations before. Fueled by her own emerging feminism, she also realized that the predominant systems of recovery are archaic, patriarchal, and ineffective for the unique needs of women and other historically oppressed people—who don’t need to lose their egos and surrender to a male concept of God, as the tenets of Alcoholics Anonymous state, but who need to cultivate a deeper understanding of their own identities and take control of their lives. When Holly found an alternate way out of her own addiction, she felt a calling to create a sober community with resources for anyone questioning their relationship with drinking, so that they might find their way as well. Her resultant feminine-centric recovery program focuses on getting at the root causes that lead people to overindulge and provides the tools necessary to break the cycle of addiction, showing us what is possible when we remove alcohol and destroy our belief system around it.Written in a relatable voice that is honest and witty, Quit Like a Woman is at once a groundbreaking look at drinking culture and a road map to cutting out alcohol in order to live our best lives without the crutch of intoxication. You will never look at drinking the same way again.

Ever sworn off alcohol for a month and found yourself drinking by the 7th? Think there's 'no point' in just one drink? Welcome! There are millions of us.Catherine Gray was stuck in a hellish whirligig of Drink, Make horrible decisions, Hangover, Repeat. She had her fair share of 'drunk tank' jail cells and topless-in-a-hot-tub misadventures.But this book goes beyond the binges and blackouts to deep-dive into uncharted territory: What happens after you quit drinking? This gripping, heart-breaking and witty book takes us down the rabbit-hole of an alternative reality. A life with zero hangovers, through sober weddings, sex, Christmases and breakups. In The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober, Catherine Gray shines a light on society's drink-pushing and talks to top neuroscientists and psychologists about why we drink, delving into the science behind what it does to our brains and bodies.Much more than a tale from the netherworld of addicted drinking, this book is about the escape, and why a sober life can be more intoxicating than you ever imagined. Whether you're a hopelessly devoted drinker, merely sober-curious, or you've already ditched the drink, you will love this book.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “An unflinching examination of how our drinking culture hurts women and a gorgeous memoir of how one woman healed herself.”—Glennon Doyle, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Untamed“You don’t know how much you need this book, or maybe you do. Either way, it will save your life.”—Melissa Hartwig Urban, Whole30 co-founder and CEOThe founder of the first female-focused recovery program offers a groundbreaking look at alcohol and a radical new path to sobriety.We live in a world obsessed with drinking. We drink at baby showers and work events, brunch and book club, graduations and funerals. Yet no one ever questions alcohol’s ubiquity—in fact, the only thing ever questioned is why someone doesn’t drink. It is a qualifier for belonging and if you don’t imbibe, you are considered an anomaly. As a society, we are obsessed with health and wellness, yet we uphold alcohol as some kind of magic elixir, though it is anything but.When Holly Whitaker decided to seek help after one too many benders, she embarked on a journey that led not only to her own sobriety, but revealed the insidious role alcohol plays in our society and in the lives of women in particular. What’s more, she could not ignore the ways that alcohol companies were targeting women, just as the tobacco industry had successfully done generations before. Fueled by her own emerging feminism, she also realized that the predominant systems of recovery are archaic, patriarchal, and ineffective for the unique needs of women and other historically oppressed people—who don’t need to lose their egos and surrender to a male concept of God, as the tenets of Alcoholics Anonymous state, but who need to cultivate a deeper understanding of their own identities and take control of their lives. When Holly found an alternate way out of her own addiction, she felt a calling to create a sober community with resources for anyone questioning their relationship with drinking, so that they might find their way as well. Her resultant feminine-centric recovery program focuses on getting at the root causes that lead people to overindulge and provides the tools necessary to break the cycle of addiction, showing us what is possible when we remove alcohol and destroy our belief system around it.Written in a relatable voice that is honest and witty, Quit Like a Woman is at once a groundbreaking look at drinking culture and a road map to cutting out alcohol in order to live our best lives without the crutch of intoxication. You will never look at drinking the same way again.

How to develop healing routines for alcohol-free growth using the seasons as your guide. The book explores old wisdoms, new science and the female experience and includes tasks to shift mindset, questions for reflection, nervous system regulations techniques, menstrual and hormonal health tips.

A groundbreaking and inspiring book that challenges our relationship with alcohol by exploring the psychological factors behind alcohol use and the cultural influences that contribute to dependency.Many people question whether drinking has become too big a part of their lives, and worry that it may even be affecting their health. But, they resist change because they fear losing the pleasure and stress-relief associated with alcohol, and assume giving it up will involve deprivation and misery.This Naked Mind offers a new, positive solution. Here, Annie Grace clearly presents the psychological and neurological components of alcohol use based on the latest science, and reveals the cultural, social, and industry factors that support alcohol dependence in all of us. Packed with surprising insight into the reasons we drink and Annie’s own extraordinary and candid personal story, This Naked Mind will open your eyes to the startling role of alcohol in our culture, and how the stigma of alcoholism and recovery keeps people from getting the help they need.This Naked Mind will give you freedom from alcohol. It removes the psychological dependence so that you will not crave alcohol, allowing you to easily drink less (or stop drinking). With clarity, humor, and a unique blend of science and storytelling, This Naked Mind will open the door to the life you have been waiting for.“You have given me my live back.” —Katy F., Albuquerque, New Mexico“This is an inspiring and groundbreaking must-read. I am forever inspired and changed.” —Kate S., Los Angeles, California“The most selfless and amazing book that I have ever read.” —Bernie M., Dublin, Ireland

In Glorious Rock Bottom Bryony opens up about a toxic twenty-year relationship with alcohol and drugs and explains exactly why hitting rock bottom - for her, a traumatic event and the abrupt realisation that she was putting herself in danger, time and again - saved her life. Known for her trademark honesty, Bryony re-lives the darkest and most terrifying moments of her addiction, never shying away from the fact that alcoholism robs you of your ability to focus on your family, your work, your health, your children, yourself. And then, a chink of light as the hard work begins - rehab; AA meetings; endless, tedious, painful self-reflection - a rollercoaster ride through self-acceptance, friendship, love and hope, to a joy and pride in staying sober that her younger self could never have imagined.\\nShining a light on the deep connection between addiction and mental health issues, Glorious Rock Bottom is in turn, shocking, brutal, dark, funny, hopeful and uplifting. It is a sobriety memoir like no other.

READ THIS BOOK NOW AND BECOME A HAPPY NONDRINKER FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE.Allen Carr's Easyway is the most successful stop-smoking method of all time. It has helped millions of smokers from all over the world to quit. In Quit Drinking Without Willpower, Allen Carr's Easyway method has been applied to problem drinking. By explaining why you feel the need to drink and with simple step-by-step instructions to set you free, he shows you how to escape from the alcohol trap.• A unique method that does not require willpower• Removes the desire to drink alcohol• Stop easily, immediately, and painlessly• Regain control of your lifeWhat people say about Allen Carr's Easyway method:"I read the book in one day and I never drank again." Nikki Glaser "The Allen Carr program was nothing short of a miracle."Anjelica Huston"His skill is in removing the psychological dependence."The Sunday Times"I know so many people who turned their lives around after reading Allen Carr's books."Sir Richard Branson

Review\\nBryony Gordon is a terrific, compassionate writer whose razor-sharp honesty slices through every sentence of this compelling memoir.―Liz Day\\nPoetic, raw and very important.―Fearne Cotton\\nIt is my favourite of Bryony's books.―Dolly Alderton\\nThis book will make us all kinder, brighter and better.―Daisy Buchanan\\nThis is a book that tears down walls. It will make sobriety attractive and accessible in a way it never has before.―Marian Keyes\\nBrutally honest―Daily Mail\\nGordon's new book is a frank, sometimes wince-inducing and often very funny look at her 20-year relationship with booze.―INews\\nBryony Gordon has penned a compelling, candid sobriety memoir―Independent\\nAn unflinching memoir... harrowing but ultimately hopeful, this is essential reading.―Red\\n[Bryony Gordon] has now charted the whole journey through her through alcoholism and subsequent recovery in her no-holds-barred new book.―Press Association\\nThis very readable book is a crucial reminder that change - of any kind - isn't going to happen with a quick fix but that sometimes it can truly hurt and undo us but that there is a way out of the darkest places.―Stylist\\nhonest and courageous... a message of hope and encouragement to others facing similar battles.―PA\\nGlorious Rock Bottom tells how bone-suckingly hungry Bryony Gordon is for sobriety, how hard (and expensive) it is to get there, and what a wonderful place it turns out to be.―iNews\\nMade me laugh, cry and cringe.―The Scots Magazine\\nAlcohol, drugs and outrageous behaviour. . . This is how bad habits can change your life - and it is a great read―Financial Adviser\\nDARK, HONEST, UPLIFTING. THIS IS A SOBRIETY MEMOIR LIKE NO OTHER. >\\n'This is a book that tears down walls.' Marian Keyes\\n'Bryony Gordon is a terrific, compassionate writer whose razor-sharp honesty slices through every sentence of this compelling memoir.' Liz Day\\n'Poetic, raw and very important.' Fearne Cotton\\nBryony Gordon is a respected journalist, a number-one bestselling author and an award-winning mental health campaigner. She is also an alcoholic.\\nIn Glorious Rock Bottom Bryony opens up about a toxic twenty-year relationship with alcohol and drugs and explains exactly why hitting rock bottom - for her, a traumatic event and the abrupt realisation that she was putting herself in danger, time and again - saved her life. Known for her trademark honesty, Bryony re-lives the darkest and most terrifying moments of her addiction, never shying away from the fact that alcoholism robs you of your ability to focus on your family, your work, your health, your children, yourself. And then, a chink of light as the hard work begins - rehab; twelve-step meetings; endless, tedious, painful self-reflection - a rollercoaster ride through self-acceptance, friendship, love and hope, to a joy and pride in staying sober that her younger self could never have imagined.\\nShining a light on the deep connection between addiction and mental health issues, Glorious Rock Bottom is in turn, shocking, brutal, dark, funny, hopeful and uplifting. It is a sobriety memoir like no other.

“We Are the Luckiest is a masterpiece. It’s the truest, most generous, honest, and helpful sobriety memoir I’ve read. It’s going to save lives.” — Glennon Doyle, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Love Warrior: A Memoir What could possibly be “lucky” about addiction? Absolutely nothing, thought Laura McKowen when drinking brought her to her knees. As she puts it, she “kicked and screamed . . . wishing for something — anything — else” to be her issue. The people who got to drink normally, she thought, were so damn lucky. But in the midst of early sobriety, when no longer able to anesthetize her pain and anxiety, she realized that she was actually the lucky one. Lucky to feel her feelings, live honestly, really be with her daughter, change her legacy. She recognized that “those of us who answer the invitation to wake up, whatever our invitation, are really the luckiest of all.” Here, in straight-talking chapters filled with personal stories, McKowen addresses issues such as facing facts, the question of AA, and other people’s drinking. Without sugarcoating the struggles of sobriety, she relentlessly emphasizes the many blessings of an honest life, one without secrets and debilitating shame.

A bravely honest and brilliantly comic account of how one mother gave up drinking and started living. This is Bridget Jones Dries Out.\nClare Pooley is a Cambridge graduate and was a Managing Partner at one of the world's biggest advertising agencies, and yet by eighteen months ago she'd become an overweight, depressed, middle-aged mother of three who was drinking more than a bottle of wine a day, and spending her evenings Googling 'Am I an alcoholic?'\nIn a desperate bid to turn her life around, she quit drinking and started a blog. She called it Mummy Was a Secret Drinker.\nThis book is the story of a year in Clare's life. A year that started with her quitting booze having been drinking more than a bottle of wine every day. It sees her starting a hugely successful blog, then getting and beating breast cancer. By the end of the year she is booze free and cancer free, two stone lighter and with a life that is so much richer, healthier and more rewarding than ever before. Sober Diaries is an upbeat, funny and positive look at how to live life to the full. \nInterwoven within Clare's own very personal and frank story is research and advice, and answers to questions like: How do I know if I'm drinking too much? How will I cope at parties? What do I say to friends and family? How do I cope with cravings? Will I lose weight? What if my partner still drinks? And many more.

READ THIS BOOK NOW AND BECOME A HAPPY NONDRINKER FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE.Allen Carr's Easyway is the most successful stop-smoking method of all time. It has helped millions of smokers from all over the world to quit. In the Easy Way for Women to Quit Drinking, Allen Carr's Easyway method has been applied to problem drinking for women - acknowledging the particular difficulties that women face in quitting and tailoring its advice to these needs. By explaining why you feel the need to drink and with simple step-by-step instructions to set you free, Allen Carr shows you how to escape from the alcohol trap. This book comes with several assurances: You won't feel like you're being talked down to; there are no scare tactics or gimmicks; you won't feel deprived; and you won't miss drinking.• A unique method that does not require willpower• Removes the desire to drink alcohol• Stop easily, immediately, and painlessly• Regain control of your lifeWhat people say about Allen Carr's Easyway method:"The Allen Carr program was nothing short of a miracle."Anjelica Huston"His skill is in removing the psychological dependence."The Sunday Times"I know so many people who turned their lives around after reading Allen Carr's books."Sir Richard Branson

A memoir of unblinking honesty and poignant, laugh-out-loud humor, Blackout is the story of a woman stumbling into a new kind of adventure -- the sober life she never wanted.For Sarah Hepola, alcohol was "the gasoline of all adventure." She spent her evenings at cocktail parties and dark bars where she proudly stayed till last call. Drinking felt like freedom, part of her birthright as a strong, enlightened twenty-first-century woman.But there was a price. She often blacked out, waking up with a blank space where four hours should be. Mornings became detective work on her own life. What did I say last night? How did I meet that guy? She apologized for things she couldn't remember doing, as though she were cleaning up after an evil twin. Publicly, she covered her shame with self-deprecating jokes, and her career flourished, but as the blackouts accumulated, she could no longer avoid a sinking truth. The fuel she thought she needed was draining her spirit instead.A memoir of unblinking honesty and poignant, laugh-out-loud humor, Blackout is the story of a woman stumbling into a new kind of adventure -- the sober life she never wanted. Shining a light into her blackouts, she discovers the person she buried, as well as the confidence, intimacy, and creativity she once believed came only from a bottle. Her tale will resonate with anyone who has been forced to reinvent or struggled in the face of necessary change. It's about giving up the thing you cherish most -- but getting yourself back in return.

"Alcohol and You" includes everything you need to know to self-diagnose the extent of your alcohol problem, decide what is the best solution for you, and gives you all the tools you need to achieve a successful result.Now in its third year on Amazon’s Best Seller lists, “Alcohol and You” has already transformed the lives of thousands of drinkers and their families.It doesn’t matter whether you want to reduce your drinking, stop drinking temporarily, or stop permanently, as this book will clarify which option is best for you.The author is an addiction therapist who worked for years with drinkers in government-backed services. He clearly explains essential information, including:* The best, scientifically-proven ways to reduce or quit.* How to self-diagnose alcohol dependence instantly.* How to find life-changing motivation easily.* How to choose your method: reduction or detox.* How to safely detox without rehab.* Discover prescription drugs that stop alcohol cravings.* Find out if attending Alcoholics Anonymous works.* How to enjoy a fabulous life without drinking.Get this book today, and say good-bye to drinking problems.

Product Description In this honest discussion of mental health, the founder of Therapy for Women explores our reasons for drinking alcohol—and the benefits of taking a break. When “retired party girl” and popular therapist Amanda White admitted she was an alcoholic, it wasn’t because she’d done something outrageous while under the influence, like land herself in jail or get married in Vegas. It was because she realized three things: 1. Alcohol was making her life worse. 2. Moderation wasn’t helping. 3. She could not be a therapist if she continued to use alcohol to numb her life. Something needed to change—not just her relationship with alcohol, but her relationship with herself. Choosing not to drink can be daunting. It’s everywhere in our culture, our socializing, and our destressing. And it can seem black or white: you drink, or you don’t (and if you don’t, people ask why). That’s where Not Drinking Tonight comes in. Judgement-free and relatable, Amanda helps you unpack your relationship with alcohol by showing you how to: Find out why you drink. Whether it’s a glass of wine after work or a weekly bar crawl, your drinking habits can be the result of everything from biology to trauma.Heal your relationship with alcohol. Understand how your relationships have been affecting your life, and learn how to set boundaries and create true self care.Build the sober life you love. Learn what comes next—how to maintain your social life, navigate sex and relationships, and love yourself. Not Drinking Tonight isn’t a program to stop drinking. It’s the first book to help you address the root issues that cause you to reach for a drink, and create a life you love—one that is not perfect, but is messy and real and one you are fully present for. Review “Not Drinking Tonight is a wonderful guide to setting healthy boundaries with alcohol—and yourself. Amanda helps you dig into the root of your struggles to better understand why you drink and why you might want to stop--setting you up for a more fulfilling life all around, even if you don’t choose full sobriety. Readers will gain the self-awareness, compassion, and confidence to make choices that better serve them.”―Nedra Tawwab, MSW, LCSW, New York Times bestselling author of Set Boundaries, Find Peace"Anyone wanting to change their relationship with alcohol must be willing to do some deep self-examination. Amanda White’s multi-layered approach offers empowerment, experience, and wisdom to those looking to begin their own journeys."―Annie Grace, author of This Naked Mind and The Alcohol Experiment“A knowledgeable, compassionate, and supportive guide. With a wealth of examples, tools, practices, and new ways of relating to both alcohol and the self, Not Drinking Tonight will be an accessible and revelatory balm for anyone questioning the kind of life they want to create outside of drinking.”―Lisa Olivera, LMFT, author of Already Enough"Amanda White is a gentle and wise guide on the journey toward living a sober or sober curious life. Not Drinking Tonight is full of relatable client stories and practical tools you can begin integrating immediately. A must read for anyone reconsidering their relationship with alcohol."―Vienna Pharaon, LMFT, founder of @mindfulmft and author of Origins of You“I truly believe that anyone will benefit from reading this book, regardless of their relationship with alcohol. This book is such a great, relatable resource that will help us cultivate more self-awareness and compassion, while gently examining our relationship with alcohol, and ourselves.”―Caroline Dooner, author of the bestselling book The F*ck It Diet“Not Drinking Tonight is the book for anyone questioning their relationship with alcohol or other addictive behaviors. I love how this book pushes us to examine what we’ve been taught about alcohol, how it’s impacting us, and what we can do about it. This guide will help anyone who's ever felt stuck in their drinking habits, without slapping o

The new book from Catherine Gray - icon of the Quit Lit movement and author of The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober "Stone cold sober." As the millions who choose to stay sober now know, the propaganda around drinking and sobriety is wonky. Sober doesn't feel stony, or cold.  Retired wreckhead Catherine Gray, author of surprise bestseller The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober, is now in her eighth sober year and has learned a damn sight more.  This hotly anticipated sequel enlists the help of experts and case studies, turning a curious, playful gaze onto provocative questions. Is alcohol a parenting aid? Why are booze and cocaine such a horse and carriage? Once an addict, always an addict? How do you feel safe - from alcohol, others and yourself - in sobriety?  Whether you're a dedicated boozehound, flirting with teetotalling, or already sober, this witty, gritty read may just change how you think about alcohol forever. 

In Alcohol Explained 2 William Porter develops his insight into the alcohol phenomenon, and provides the tools you need to retake control of your life for good.

About the Author\\nVeronica Valli is a former psychotherapist who now works as a sobriety coach with almost twenty years of experience. She has helped thousands of people reach their full potential and live happy, healthy lives by being alcohol-free. She’s been the keynote speaker at annual conferences, such as Women for Sobriety, and is the cohost of the popular Soberful podcast. Learn more at soberful.com.\\nHow to stop drinking, stay stopped, and develop emotional skills for a life of excitement and connection … without the hangover.\\n“No thanks―I’m not drinking tonight.” In a culture that equates alcohol with enjoyment and social acceptance, making this simple statement can make us feel like we’re depriving or even punishing ourselves. “When we realize we don’t want to drink anymore or can no longer drink safely, it can feel like the only choices are to spiral out of control or embrace a joyless life,” says psychotherapist and sobriety expert Veronica Valli. “But it’s not true! Sobriety can be a path filled with fun, excitement, belonging, relaxation, and romance.”\\nSoberful offers a practical and straightforward program on how to get sober and stay sober by increasing your self-worth, energy, and participation in life. Valli begins by debunking widespread beliefs about alcohol and sobriety, including the illusion that alcohol itself is the problem. Then she takes you into the heart of her method for building an alcohol-free life that works―the Five Pillars of Sustainable Sobriety:\\n• Movement―Taking care of your body for physical and emotional health\n• Connection―Using self-compassion as a foundation for creating healthy and authentic relationships\n• Balance―Learning how to disarm the triggers that make you want to drink\n• Process―Validating, honoring, and accepting the past to move forward into the future\n• Growth―How to keep changing, keep learning, and keep choosing to stay sober throughout the journey of your life\\n“When we change how we experience the world, we can stop trying to escape our feelings with alcohol,” Valli says. As a leader and pioneer in the field with 21 years of sobriety, Valli now shares the same steps that worked for her and her clients. Written with gentle humor and compassion, Soberful provides a road map to a life beyond drinking―one that is expansive, fulfilling, and joyously free.

"The definitive guide to giving up booze."--People Foreword by Lo Bosworth For many people, drinking a glass of beer or wine after work is a part of everyday life. But did you know taking a break from drinking (even for just a month!) has extreme benefits and can be incredibly life-changing From losing weight, to saving money, to sleeping better at night, the overall health and mental gains of going dry for a month are endless. Whether you're eager to try Dry January or simply want to lessen your quarantine drinking habits in a positive and approachable way, as daunting as it may seem, you too can do it! Understandably, more and more people have been turning to alcohol as a coping mechanism to get through the pandemic, but maybe this is a good time to ask yourself: Are you waking up feeling out of sorts more often than you'd like to be   Offering friendly support and encouragement and filled with engaging activities to help you prepare -and complete - a full alcohol-free month, The Dry Challenge provides an easy step-by-step guide for completing your first Dry January, Sober October, or any other alcohol-free month. You'll find plenty of booze-free activities from prompts to checklists to the best mocktail recipes around. From making a plan to sharing the news with friends and family (and what to do when someone tries to sabotage your boozeless journey) to getting back on track if you slip up and have a drink (or two), we got you covered. Trend journalist, on-air host, and lifestyle expert Hilary Sheinbaum has been participating in Dry January for the past four years. What started out as a bet with a friend to see who could go the longest without taking a sip of alcohol during January became a ritual she looked most forward to every year. As friends, family, and readers turned to her for advice on how to start their own dry month journeys, Hilary realized everyone's motivations differed greatly. The decision to give up alcohol is deeply personal and making the choice to stop drinking for any length of time can be discouraging given how normalized alcohol culture is in our society. Have you noticed we use every celebratory event as an excuse to get our drink on But you don't have to do it alone! In The Dry Challenge, you'll find a best friend support system ready to help you tackle the challenges of forgoing alcohol for a month and encourage you every step of the way to the finish line. In The Dry Challenge, you'll: ·       Discover the health, mental, and financial benefits of living a month without booze ·       Learn how to combat social pressures from our current drinking culture ·       Find fun non-boozy activities everyone can participate in (including making delicious "zero-proof" drinks and throwing the best nonalcoholic shindigs) Gorgeously packaged and filled with bold colors and graphics, The Dry Challenge is the ultimate interactive guide to staying booze free for one month (yes, this includes champagne!). Written with humor, compassion, and insight, this book will help you achieve your goal of completing an alcohol-free month, one less drink at a time.

Product Description \\nEuphoric\n is your eight-week plan for an alcohol-free lifestyle that can lead to more happiness, well-being, and self-love. It's the modern woman's guide to relax without alcohol, find freedom from cravings and fitting in, and create the life you want - along with the audacity to go after it. \\nImagine a program that makes the benefits of "Dry January" last all year. That's \nEuphoric\n!\\nAlcohol is everywhere in our society, and it's hard to resist. The pressures to fit in and have "just one drink"--that turns into several - whether at a party or on a casual Friday night, can lead to an imbalanced life that's plagued with unhealthy habits, low self-esteem, and decreased productivity.\\nHow can you change your relationship with alcohol without feeling deprived or like a social outcast? First, decide you want a change and then pick up \nEuphoric, from certified alcohol-free life coach Karolina Rzadkowolska.\\nKarolina has helped thousands of casual drinkers transform their relationship with alcohol, including herself. In \nEuphoric, she shares a proven strategy to make alcohol insignificant in your life. In just eight weeks, you can ditch alcohol and learn how to:\\nCreate a natural buzz that alcohol can only mimic\nBe fully present with your kids, partner, and friends\nFeel more energized, look better, and live healthier\nEnjoy the best sleep of your life\nHave fun in any social situation, without drinking\nAccomplish goals with your newfound drive\nBecome confident to chase your biggest dreams\\nEuphoric presents an eight-week, easy-to-customize plan for anyone who wants to transform their relationship with alcohol and experience the life-changing benefits that happen when you take a break from booze to focus the health of your mind, body, and soul.\\nHere's the plan!\\nWeek 1: Examine and Dismantle Limiting Beliefs\nWeek 2: Let Go of Shame\nWeek 3: Step into Your Best Health\nWeek 4: Navigate Your Social Life\nWeek 5: Get Mindful and Embody Self-Love\nWeek 6: Find Pure and Utter Happiness\nWeek 7: Create Your Dream Life\nWeek 8: Step into Your Purpose\\nReclaim yourself and rejuvenate your life, as you make alcohol irrelevant and get motivated to claim a new lifestyle clearly focused on your goals, priority, and values.\\nReview \n"Euphoric. That's Karolina's word for living Alcohol-Free and this impressive book shows you exactly why - and how - to easily get there. I loved it and I know you will too.\n" \\n--Annie Grace, Author This Naked Mind: Control Alcohol, Find Freedom, Discover Happiness & Change Your Life\\n"Euphoric challenges the cultural assumptions that one must drink and gives you the tools you need to live a happier and healthier life. A must-read for anyone who's looking for a modern personal-growth oriented approach to change their habits."\\n--William Porter, Author of Alcohol Explained: Understand Why You Drink and How to Stop\\n"Karolina shows you not only how to change your relationship with alcohol, but also how to make space for your soul's calling and have the confidence to go after it."\n--\nRuari Fairbairns, CEO of One Year No Beer\\n"\nEuphoric offers afresh outlook, relatable voice, and practical step-by-step guide for those ready to trade in alcohol and hangovers for better health and more joy. I recommend this book to anyone pushing against the edges of their relationship with alcohol who knows they were made for more. Karolina will take you on a journey that makes you feel like she read parts of your journal, while giving you the permission, tools, and confidence to ditch alcohol and begin living an empowering, limitless life."\n—\nCarly Benson, speaker, CEO& founder of Miracles Are Brewing\\n"Written for "the casual drinker," Euphoric: Ditch Alcohol and Gain a Happier, More Confident You is an eight-week guidebook that'll help you learn to relax without a few glasses of vino before bed, and become more in tune with yourself and your surroundings. Pulling from her own personal exper

“An irresistibly delicious story.” —Holly Whitaker, New York Times bestselling author\\nA propulsive and vivid memoir—in the vein of Drinking: A Love Story and Somebody’s Daughter—about the journey to sobriety and self-love amidst addiction, privilege, racism, and self-sabotage from the host of the popular podcast The Only One in the Room.\\nAfter years of hiding her addiction from everyone—from stockpiling pills in her Louboutins to elaborately scheduling withdrawals between PTA meetings, baby showers, and tennis matches—Laura Cathcart Robbins settles into a complicated purgatory.\\nShe learns the hard way that privilege doesn’t protect you from pain. Facing divorce, the possibility of a grueling custody battle, and internalized racism, Robbins wonders just how much more she can take.\\nNow, with courage and candid openness, she reveals how she managed to begin the long journey towards sobriety and unexpectedly finding new love. Robbins harrowingly illustrates taking down the wall she built around herself brick by brick and what it means to be Black in a startingly white world. With its raw, finely crafted, and engaging prose, Stash is the story of just how badly the facade she created had to shatter before Laura could reconnect to her true self.

"Remarkable, startling, and heartfelt...The bravery of Perry's book is not just in what he says, or how he says it, and how unflinching he is in his commitment to say it, but that he chose to say it at all." -GQ\\n"Candid, darkly funny...starkly chronicling his decades-long cage match with drinking and drug use. Perry writes gratefully and glowingly...fans will find poignant nuggets in its pages." -The New York Times\\n"A heartbreakingly beautiful memoir." -People\\n"Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing is a raw, unflinching memoir that took courage to write. As it turns out, Matthew Perry has a lot of courage. He takes us through his addiction, his illness and his paralyzing loneliness. Somehow, during the course of his life, Matthew was able to turn his pain into comedic joy for others, but, he tells us, it was at a cost. Matthew takes us through his "hell" but doesn't wallow. Ultimately, this book is filled with hope for the future. If you want to know about who Matthew Perry is, stay away from the rags and read this." -Marta Kauffman, co-creator of the NBC sitcom Friends

Becky Vollmer's You Are Not Stuck is a blend of straight talk, humor, and clear steps for action to help change-seekers reset their priorities, drown out the naysaying voices in their heads, and make bold choices.\\nWe all feel stuck sometimes: in our jobs, our relationships, our habits, or when the life we’re living simply doesn’t add up to the one we want. We feel stuck when it seems like we don’t have options, or when we don’t trust or allow ourselves to make the changes we so deeply long to make.\\nSpeaker and yoga teacher Becky Vollmer believes that, when we feel paralyzed by our fears, the answer isn’t just courage―it’s choice. Because we all have choices, we just have to be brave enough to make them.\\nYou Are Not Stuck is the key to breaking the cycle of fear and making bold choices for real change. Sometimes this transformation looks like an audacious Thelma and Louise-style leap; more often, though, it is a series of small, deliberate actions based on personal values that yield more clarity, alignment, and, ultimately, long-term contentment than driving off a cliff.\\nIf what you seek is a tried-and-true process of empowerment that unlocks the true north already inside you, look no further. This book is a unique blend of permission and spirituality that will help you excavate your divine inner badass, close the gap between intention and action, and develop a strategic path forward that’s as unique as your thumbprint.\\nThrough warm and straightforward wisdom, a modern and approachable take on ancient yoga philosophy, a series of practical and insightful grounding exercises, and a healthy dose of laugh-out-loud humor, you’ll learn how to make soul-guided choices in support of the life you’ve desired all along.

A practical and compassionate approach for helping your loved one change. If you have a loved one who is struggling with alcohol or other drugs, you may have feelings of frustration, anger, fear, or sadness. You may also feel powerless and unsure of how to help them, and how best to support them over time. You don't have to try a "tough love" approach or wait for your loved one to "hit rock bottom" before taking action. You can be a force for positive change in your loved one's life. This compassionate guide will show you how. From the authors of Beyond Addiction, this healing and supportive workbook offers practical, evidence-based skills to help you address substance use or other compulsive behaviors with your loved one in a productive way--without creating conflict. You'll also gain a greater understanding for their struggle, and learn essential strategies for improving communication and coping with your own feelings. Whether your loved one seems reluctant to change, or is actively seeking support, this workbook will give you the tools needed to help them on their journey. Using the authors' Invitation to Change approach, you'll discover: How to understand substance-using behaviors from a new perspective How to approach the problem without judgment How to open lines of communication How to set respectful limits How to live with pain and still stay connected How compassion is key to helping your loved one--and you!

Alcohol isn't going to fix the systemic lack of support for mothers--and pretending it's the solution to surviving motherhood does more harm than good. A wine glass etched with "Mommy needs wine"; a T-shirt that says, "I wine because my kids whine"; a onesie proclaiming, "I'm the reason mommy drinks." This is Mommy Wine Culture: the pervasive message that alcohol helps us survive motherhood. But according to writer and mother Celeste Yvonne, it's a symptom of a much larger issue: the mental load of motherhood, a burden born from outdated family norms, traditional roles, and a systemic lack of support for moms--all of which impact our mental health. In this refreshing, honest take on some of the most pressing concerns for twenty-first-century parents, Yvonne mixes research, cultural references, her own story, and engaging interviews with other moms who sought refuge in wine and found a way out. Drinking to blur the tumultuous days of parenting is a catch-22: it actually keeps us from being present during this precious time. It's Not about the Winepulls back the veil on what's really plaguing mothers, offers tangible tips for how to lighten your mental load, and paves a path forward for all of us who want to survive and thrive during these weary and wonderful years. From advice on talking about your mental load with your partner, to curating the media we consume and the company we keep, to deep reflections about how we use alcohol to manage burnout and stress, Yvonne helps us recognize the messaging of Mommy Wine Culture for what it is: a distraction from what we really need. If you are worn out and looking to evaluate your relationship to alcohol and motherhood, It's Not about the Wineis an invaluable companion.

"Lisa Smith gives us a darkly comic, honest, and completely relatable inside look at high-functioning addiction in the world of corporate law-a sort of 'Sex and the Psych Ward.' It's inspiring, informative, and impossible to put down." --Jennifer Belle, best-selling author of High Maintenance and The Seven Year Bitch"Whether she's telling the town car driver to turn around so she can ditch showing up for her niece's birth and meet her coke dealer, or staging her own semi-intervention, Smith takes us into the mind of someone who's completely in control while being radically out of control. This girl may have walked out of a bar, but she's walked into one of the best addiction memoirs I've ever read."--Anna David, New York Times best-selling author of Party Girl, Bought, and Editor-in-Chief of After Party Magazine"Raw, naked and unflinching, Girl Walks Out of A Bar catapults the reader into the sordid, desperate reality of high-functioning addiction: the booze, the coke, the lies; the denial, the depression, the blackouts. All are on full display as New York lawyer Lisa Smith loses herself in a deep and all-too-human descent into perpetual numbing. A chilling, cautionary tale."--Ann Dowsett Johnston, author of Drink: The Intimate Relationship Between Women and Alcohol Lisa Smith was a bright young lawyer at a prestigious law firm in NYC when alcoholism and drug addiction took over her life. What was once a way she escaped her insecurity and negativity as a teenager became a means of coping with the anxiety and stress of an impossible workload.Girl Walks Out of a Bar explores Smith's formative years, her decade of alcohol and drug abuse, divorce, and her road to recovery. In this darkly comic and wrenchingly honest story, Smith describes how her circumstances conspired with her predisposition to depression and self-medication in an environment ripe for addiction to flourish. When her close-knit group of high-achieving friends celebrate the end of their grueling workdays with alcohol-fueled nights at the city's clubs and summer weekends partying at the beach the feel-good times can spiral wildly out of control.Girl Walks Out of a Bar is a candid portrait of alcoholism through the lens of gritty New York realism. Beneath the façade of success lies the reality of addiction.

A sober hedonist's guide to living a decadent, wild, and soulful life--alcohol-free. In a culture where sipping "rosé all day" is seen as the epitome of relaxation, "grabbing a drink" the only way to network; and meeting at a bar the quintessential "first date," many of us are left wondering if drinking alcohol really is the only way to cultivate joy and connection in life. Jardine Libaire and Amanda Eyre Ward wanted to live spontaneous and luxurious lives, to escape the ordinary and enjoy the intoxicating. Their drinking, however, had started to numb them to the present moment instead of unlocking it. Ward was introduced to Libaire when she first got sober. As they became friends, the two women talked about how they yearned to create lives that were Technicolor, beautifully raw, connected, blissed out, and outside the lines . . . but how? In The Sober Lush, Libaire and Ward provide a road map for living a lush and sensual life without booze. This book offers ideas and instruction for such nonalcoholic joys as:   *  The allure of "the Vanish," in which one disappears early from the party without saying goodbye to a soul, to amble home under the stars   *  The art of creating zero-proof cocktails for all seasons   *  Having a fantastic first date while completely sober   *  A primer on setting up your own backyard beehive, and honey tastings For anyone curious about lowering their alcohol consumption or quitting drinking altogether, or anyone established in sobriety who wants inspiration, this shimmering and sumptuous book will show you how to keep indulging in life even if you stop indulging in alcohol.

Sober Stick Figure is a memoir from stand-up comedian Amber Tozer, chronicling her life as an alcoholic - starting with her first drink at the age of seven - and her eventual recovery. Amber writes about the crazy and harsh truths of being raised by alcoholics, becoming one herself, stagnating in denial for years, and finally getting sober. As a teenager Amber is an overachieving student athlete who copes with her family's alcoholic tragedies by focusing on her achievements. It quickly takes a funny and dark turn when she starts to experiment with booze and ignores the warning signs of alcoholism. Through blackouts, cringe-worthy embarrassments, and pounding hangovers, she convinces herself that she "just likes to party". She leaves her hometown of Pueblo, Colorado, to follow her dreams and ends up in New York City, spending lots of time binge drinking, passing out on trains, and telling jokes onstage. She then moves to Los Angeles, thinking sunshine and show business will save her. Eventually hitting rock bottom, she has a moment of clarity and knows she has to stop drinking. It's now been seven years since that last drink, and she's ready to tell her story. Sober Stick Figure is adventurous, hilarious, sad, sweet, tragic - and ultimately inspiring.

"Nothing Good Can Come from This is a book about generative discomfort, surprising sources of beauty, and the odd, often hilarious, business of being human." ―Leslie Jamison, author of The Empathy Exams and The RecoveringKristi Coulter inspired and incensed the internet when she wrote about what happened when she stopped drinking. Nothing Good Can Come from This is her debut--a frank, funny, and feminist essay collection by a keen-eyed observer no longer numbed into complacency.\nWhen Kristi stopped drinking, she started noticing things. Like when you give up a debilitating habit, it leaves a space, one that can’t easily be filled by mocktails or ice cream or sex or crafting. And when you cancel Rosé Season for yourself, you’re left with just Summer, and that’s when you notice that the women around you are tanked―that alcohol is the oil in the motors that keeps them purring when they could be making other kinds of noise.\nIn her sharp, incisive debut essay collection, Coulter reveals a portrait of a life in transition. By turns hilarious and heartrending, Nothing Good Can Come from This introduces a fierce new voice to fans of Sloane Crosley, David Sedaris, and Cheryl Strayed―perfect for anyone who has ever stood in the middle of a so-called perfect life and looked for an escape hatch.

From YouTube star and Facebook Video sensation Laura Clery comes a collection of comedic essays in the vein of We Are Never Meeting in Real Life by Samantha Irby and You’ll Grow Out of It by Jessi Klein.Laura Clery makes a living by sharing inappropriate comedy sketches with millions of strangers on the Internet. She writes songs about her anatomy, talks trash about her one-eyed rescue pug, and sexually harasses her husband, Stephen. And it pays the bills!Now, in her first-ever book, Laura recounts how she went from being a dangerously impulsive, broke, unemployable, suicidal, cocaine-addicted narcissist, crippled by fear and hopping from one toxic romance to the next…to a more-happy-than-not, somewhat rational, meditating, vegan yogi with good credit, a great marriage, a fantastic career, and four unfortunate-looking rescue animals. Still, above all, Laura remains an amazingly talented, adorable, and vulnerable, self-described…Idiot.With her signature brand of offbeat, no-holds-barred humor, Idiot introduces you to a wildly original—and undeniably relatable—new voice.

In Drink: The Intimate Relationship Between Women and Alcohol, award-winning journalist Anne Dowsett Johnston combines in-depth research with her own personal story of recovery, and delivers a groundbreaking examination of a shocking yet little recognized epidemic threatening society today: the precipitous rise in risky drinking among women and girls.\nWith the feminist revolution, women have closed the gender gap in their professional and educational lives. They have also achieved equality with men in more troubling areas as well. In the U.S. alone, the rates of alcohol abuse among women have skyrocketed in the past decade. DUIs, “drunkorexia” (choosing to limit eating to consume greater quantities of alcohol), and health problems connected to drinking are all rising—a problem exacerbated by the alcohol industry itself.\nBattling for women’s dollars and leisure time, corporations have developed marketing strategies and products targeted exclusively to women. Equally alarming is a recent CDC report showing a sharp rise in binge drinking, putting women and girls at further risk.\nAs she brilliantly weaves in-depth research, interviews with leading researchers, and the moving story of her own struggle with alcohol abuse, Johnston illuminates this startling epidemic, dissecting the psychological, social, and industry factors that have contributed to its rise, and exploring its long-lasting impact on our society and individual lives.

Little changes can make a big, big difference! In The Little Book of Big Change, psychologist Amy Johnson shows you how to rewire your brain and overcome your bad habits―once and for all.No matter what your bad habit is, you have the power to change it. Drawing on a powerful combination of neuroscience and spirituality, this book will show you that you are not your habits. Rather, your habits and addictions are the result of simple brain wiring that is easily reversed. By learning to stop bad habits at the source, you will take charge of your habits and addictions for good.Anything done repeatedly has the potential to form neural circuitry in the brain. In this light, habits and addictions are impersonal brain wiring problems that result from taking your habitual thinking as truth, and acting on that thinking in the form of doing your habit―over and over. This book offers a number of small changes you can make in your everyday life that will help you stop your bad habit in its tracks.If you want to understand the science behind your habit, make the decision to end it, and commit to real, lasting change, this book will help you to finally take charge of your life―once and for all.

In the tradition of Blackout and Permanent Midnight, a darkly funny and revealing debut memoir of one woman's twenty-year battle with sex, drugs, and alcohol addiction, and what happens when she finally emerges on the other side. Growing up in Beverly Hills, Amy Dresner had it all: a top-notch private school education, the most expensive summer camps, and even a weekly clothing allowance. But at 24, she started dabbling in meth in San Francisco and unleashed a fiendish addiction monster. Soon, if you could snort it, smoke it, or have sex with, she did. Smart and charming, with Daddy's money to fall back on, she sort of managed to keep it all together. But on Christmas Eve 2011 all of that changed when, high on Oxycontin, she stupidly "brandished" a bread knife on her husband and was promptly arrested for "felony domestic violence with a deadly weapon." Within months, she found herself in the psych ward--and then penniless, divorced, and looking at 240 hours of court-ordered community service. For two years, assigned to a Hollywood Boulevard "chain gang," she swept up syringes (and worse) as she bounced from rehabs to halfway houses, all while struggling with sobriety, sex addiction, and starting over in her forties. In the tradition of Orange Is the New Black and Jerry Stahl's Permanent Midnight, Amy Dresner's My Fair Junkie is an insightful, darkly funny, and shamelessly honest memoir of one woman's battle with all forms of addiction, hitting rock bottom, and forging a path to a life worth living.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Running With Scissors comes a groundbreaking book by Augusten Burroughs that explores how to survive what you think you can't.\nIf you're fat and fail every diet, if you're thin but can't get thin enough, if you lose your job, if your child dies, if you are diagnosed with cancer, if you always end up with exactly the wrong kind of person, if you always end up alone, if you can't get over the past, if your parents are insane and ruining your life, if you really and truly wish you were dead, if you feel like it's your destiny to be a star, if you believe life has a grudge against you, if you don't want to have sex with your spouse and don't know why, if you feel so ashamed, if you're lost in life, if you have ever wondered, How am I supposed to survive this?\nThis is How.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • An up-close portrait of the mind of an addict and a life unraveled by narcotics—a memoir of captivating urgency and surprising humor that puts a human face on the opioid crisis.“Raw, brutal, and shocking. Move over, Orange Is the New Black.”—Amy Dresner, author of My Fair JunkieWhen word got out that Tiffany Jenkins was withdrawing from opiates on the floor of a jail cell, people in her town were shocked. Not because of the twenty felonies she’d committed, or the nature of her crimes, or even that she’d been captain of the high school cheerleading squad just a few years earlier, but because her boyfriend was a Deputy Sherriff, and his friends—their friends—were the ones who’d arrested her.A raw and twisty page-turning memoir that reads like fiction, High Achiever spans Tiffany’s life as an active opioid addict, her 120 days in a Florida jail where every officer despised what she’d done to their brother in blue, and her eventual recovery. With heart-racing urgency and unflinching honesty, Jenkins takes you inside the grips of addiction and the desperate decisions it breeds. She is a born storyteller who lived an incredible story, from blackmail by an ex-boyfriend to a soul-shattering deal with a drug dealer, and her telling brims with suspense and unexpected wit. But the true surprise is her path to recovery. Tiffany breaks through the stigma and silence to offer hope and inspiration to anyone battling the disease—whether it’s a loved one or themselves.

From the writer of the popular recovery blog UnPickled and host of The Bubble Hour podcast comes this resource guide for the holidays. Wondering how to stay alcohol-free at the annual rounds of office parties and family gatherings when booze is everywhere? Worried about how to respond when situations get uncomfortable? Wish you knew what other sober people have to say about their experiences? UnPickled Holiday Survival Guide includes insights and lessons learned from hundreds of interviews and blog posts about life after alcohol. PLUS: practical exercises to build your readiness for awkward situations, bonus information for friends and family of people in recovery, and tips from others in recovery.

Determine if your drinking is a problem, develop strategies for curbing your intake, and measure your progress with this practical, engaging guide to taking care of yourself.Every day, millions of people drink a beer or two while watching a game, shake a cocktail at a party with friends, or enjoy a glass of wine with a good meal. For more than 30 percent of these drinkers, alcohol has begun to have a negative impact on their everyday lives. Yet, only a small number are true alcoholics--people who have completely lost control over their drinking and who need alcohol to function. The great majority are what Dr. Doyle and Dr. Nowinski call "Almost Alcoholics," a growing number of people whose excessive drinking contributes to a variety of problems in their lives.In Almost Alcoholic, Dr. Doyle and Dr. Nowinski give the facts and guidance needed to address this often unrecognized and devastating condition. They provide the tools to: identify and assess your patterns of alcohol use; evaluate its impact on your relationships, work, and personal well-being; develop strategies and goals for changing the amount and frequency of alcohol use; measure the results of applying these strategies; and make informed decisions about your next steps.

Now in 24 languages.Nature's Lessons in Healing Trauma...Waking the Tiger offers a new and hopeful vision of trauma. It views the human animal as a unique being, endowed with an instinctual capacity. It asks and answers an intriguing question: why are animals in the wild, though threatened routinely, rarely traumatized? By understanding the dynamics that make wild animals virtually immune to traumatic symptoms, the mystery of human trauma is revealed.Waking the Tiger normalizes the symptoms of trauma and the steps needed to heal them. People are often traumatized by seemingly ordinary experiences. The reader is taken on a guided tour of the subtle, yet powerful impulses that govern our responses to overwhelming life events. To do this, it employs a series of exercises that help us focus on bodily sensations. Through heightened awareness of these sensations trauma can be healed.

Hildy Good is a townie. A lifelong resident of a small community on the rocky coast of Boston's North Shore, she knows pretty much everything about everyone. And she's good at lots of things, too. A successful real-estate broker, mother, and grandmother, her days are full. But her nights have become lonely ever since her daughters, convinced their mother was drinking too much, sent her off to rehab. Now she's in recovery―more or less.\nAlone and feeling unjustly persecuted, Hildy finds a friend in Rebecca McAllister, one of the town's wealthy newcomers. Rebecca is grateful for the friendship and Hildy feels like a person of the world again, as she and Rebecca escape their worries with some harmless gossip and a bottle of wine by the fire―just one of their secrets. \nBut Rebecca is herself the subject of town gossip. When Frank Getchell, an old friend who shares a complicated history with Hildy, tries to warn her away from Rebecca, Hildy attempts to protect her friend from a potential scandal. Soon, however, Hildy is busy trying to protect her own reputation. When a cluster of secrets becomes dangerously entwined, the reckless behavior of one person threatens to expose the other, and this darkly comic novel takes a chilling turn.\nThe Good House, by Ann Leary, is funny, poignant, and terrifying. A classic New England tale that lays bare the secrets of one little town, this spirited novel will stay with you long after the story has ended.

At the age of 23, James Frey woke up on a plane to find his front teeth knocked out and his nose broken. He had no idea where the plane was headed nor any recollection of the past two weeks. An alcoholic for ten years and a crack addict for three, he checked into a treatment facility shortly after landing. There he was told he could either stop using or die before he reached age 24. This is Frey’s acclaimed account of his six weeks in rehab.

“In Highlight Real, Emily Paulson has given women—not just those who struggle with alcohol but all women—a true gift. It is a page-turning, starkly honest account of a beautiful-on-the-outside life that was in truth a collision course of self-destruction. Highlight Real is the rare memoir that should be considered an instant classic in the addiction recovery genre.” – Lisa Smith, recovery advocate, lawyer and award-winning, bestselling author of Girl Walks Out of a BarA music prodigy, head of her class, and well-liked in school, Emily Paulson decided early that embellishment paved the road to success. As she grew up, she figured out how to make the picture look even better - with a successful husband, five beautiful children, and all the required accompanying accoutrements.Then along came social media, where those pictures of the perfect life grew her a following of women who believed that everything about Emily was blessed and inspiring. But behind the filtered façade was a reality filled with trauma, addiction, and dysfunctional behavior. From disordered eating to breaking the law and nearly destroying her marriage, Emily had been running from her own trauma for years. Living a life shot through with more self-destruction than she could track, Emily knew things had to change when she woke up one morning and realized that she was barely participating in the picture she had so carefully crafted.\nHighlight Real: Finding Honesty and Recovery Behind the Filtered Life is the true story of what happens when a so-called perfect mother and businesswoman is forced to find reckoning with her past and build a future based on the authenticity she has always sought. Searingly honest, heartbreaking and packed with uncountable did-she-actually-just-say-that moments, Highlight Real is a memoir of healing as well as a fully modern look at what happens when the filters fall off and real life emerges into the light.

In the vein of Girl, Wash Your Face and How to Stop Feeling Like Sh*t, a practical guide to acknowledging and getting rid of the nonsense and bs in your lifeExhausted and overworked lawyer, triathlete, wife, and mom Meredith Atwood decided one morning that she'd had it. She didn't take her kids to school. She didn't go to work. She didn't go to the gym. When she pulled herself out of bed hours later than she should have, she found a note from her husband next to two empty bottles of wine and a stack of unpaid bills: You need to get your sh*t together.And that's what Meredith began to do, starting with identifying the nonsense in her life that was holding her back: saying "yes" too much, keeping frenemies around, and more. In The Year of No Nonsense, Atwood shares what she learned, tackling struggles with work, family, and body image, and also willpower and time management. Ultimately, she's the tough-as-nails coach /slash/ best friend who shares a practical plan for identifying and getting rid of your own nonsense in order to move forward and live an authentic, healthy life. From recognizing lies you believe about yourself and your abilities, to making a "nonsense" list and developing a "no nonsense blueprint," this book walks you through reclaiming yourself with grit and determination, step by step.With targeted, practical chapters to help you stop feeling stuck and get on with your life, The Year of No Nonsense is equal parts girlfriend and been-there-done-that. The best part? Like any friend, she helps you get to the other side.

The Liars' Club brought to vivid, indelible life Mary Karr's hardscrabble Texas childhood. Cherry, her account of her adolescence, 'continued to set the literary standard for making the personal universal' (Entertainment Weekly). Now Lit follows the self-professed blackbelt sinner's descent into the inferno of alcoholism and madness--and to her astonishing resurrection. Karr's longing for a solid family seems secure when her marriage to a handsome, Shakespeare-quoting blueblood poet produces a son they adore. But she can't outrun her apocalyptic past. She drinks herself into the same numbness that nearly devoured her charismatic but troubled mother, reaching the brink of suicide. A hair-raising stint in 'The Mental Marriott,' with an oddball tribe of gurus and saviors, awakens her to the possibility of joy and leads her to an unlikely faith. Not since Saint Augustine cried, 'Give me chastity, Lord-but not yet!' has a conversion story rung with such dark hilarity. Lit is about getting drunk and getting sober, becoming a mother by letting go of a mother, learning to write by learning to live. Written with Karr's relentless honesty, unflinching self-scrutiny, and irreverent, lacerating humor, it is a truly electrifying story of how to grow up--as only Mary Karr can tell it.

Recover. Rinse. Repeat.\nDana 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.

Beloved former ABC 20/20 anchor Elizabeth Vargas reveals her alcohol addiction and anxiety disorder in a shockingly honest and emotional memoir. Winner of the Books for a Better Life Award in the First Book categoryInstant New York Times and USA Today Bestseller From the moment she uttered the brave and honest words, "I am an alcoholic," to interviewer George Stephanopoulos, Elizabeth Vargas began writing her story, as her experiences were still raw.Now, in BETWEEN BREATHS, Vargas discusses her accounts of growing up with anxiety--which began suddenly at the age of six when her father served in Vietnam--and how she dealt with this anxiety as she came of age, eventually turning to alcohol for a release from her painful reality. The now-A&E Network reporter reveals how she found herself living in denial about the extent of her addiction, and how she kept her dependency a secret for so long. She addresses her time in rehab, her first year of sobriety, and the guilt she felt as a working mother who could never find the right balance between a career and parenting.Honest and hopeful, BETWEEN BREATHS is an inspiring read.

The Tenth Anniversary Edition of the New York Times bestselling book that has sold over half a million copies in paperback."I was addicted to "Bewitched" as a kid. I worshipped Darren Stevens the First. When he'd come home from work and Samantha would say, ‘Darren, would you like me to fix you a drink?' He'd always rest his briefcase on the table below the mirror in the foyer, wipe his forehead with a monogrammed handkerchief and say, ‘Better make it a double.'" (from Chapter Two)You may not know it, but you've met Augusten Burroughs. You've seen him on the street, in bars, on the subway, at restaurants: a twentysomething guy, nice suit, works in advertising. Regular. Ordinary. But when the ordinary person had two drinks, Augusten was circling the drain by having twelve; when the ordinary person went home at midnight, Augusten never went home at all. Loud, distracting ties, automated wake-up calls and cologne on the tongue could only hide so much for so long. At the request (well, it wasn't really a request) of his employers, Augusten lands in rehab, where his dreams of group therapy with Robert Downey Jr. are immediately dashed by grim reality of fluorescent lighting and paper hospital slippers. But when Augusten is forced to examine himself, something actually starts to click and that's when he finds himself in the worst trouble of all. Because when his thirty days are up, he has to return to his same drunken Manhattan life―and live it sober. What follows is a memoir that's as moving as it is funny, as heartbreaking as it is true. Dry is the story of love, loss, and Starbucks as a Higher Power.

What if the thing you thought you loved… was actually the thing destroying you? When Rebecca Weller’s pounding, dehydrated head woke her at 3am, yet again, she stared at the ceiling, wondering why the hell she kept doing this to herself. At 39 years of age – and a Health Coach, no less – she knew better than to down several bottles of wine per week. Her increasingly dysfunctional relationship with alcohol had to stop, but after decades of social drinking, she was terrified of what that might mean.How could she live a joyful existence, without alcohol? How would she relax, socialise, or celebrate – without wine?In sheer frustration, on a morning filled with regret and tears, she embarks on a 3-month sobriety experiment that becomes a quest for self-discovery, and ultimately, transforms her entire world. A Happier Hour is a heartfelt, moving, and inspiring true story for anyone who has ever had to give up something they loved in order to get what they truly wanted.

Erica C. Barnett had her first sip of alcohol when she was thirteen, and quickly developed a taste for drinking to oblivion with her friends. In her late twenties, her addiction became inescapable. By the time she was in her late thirties, she had run the gauntlet of alcoholism. With brave and vulnerable writing, Barnett expands on her own story to confront the dire state of addiction today, the rise of alcoholism in women, and the lack of rehabilitation options available. Quitter is essential reading for our age and an ultimately hopeful story of Barnett's own hard-fought path to sobriety.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Empathy Exams comes this transformative work showing that sometimes the recovery is more gripping than the addiction.With its deeply personal and seamless blend of memoir, cultural history, literary criticism, and reportage, The Recovering turns our understanding of the traditional addiction narrative on its head, demonstrating that the story of recovery can be every bit as electrifying as the train wreck itself. Leslie Jamison deftly excavates the stories we tell about addiction -- both her own and others' -- and examines what we want these stories to do and what happens when they fail us. All the while, she offers a fascinating look at the larger history of the recovery movement, and at the complicated bearing that race and class have on our understanding of who is criminal and who is ill.At the heart of the book is Jamison's ongoing conversation with literary and artistic geniuses whose lives and works were shaped by alcoholism and substance dependence, including John Berryman, Jean Rhys, Billie Holiday, Raymond Carver, Denis Johnson, and David Foster Wallace, as well as brilliant lesser-known figures such as George Cain, lost to obscurity but newly illuminated here. Through its unvarnished relation of Jamison's own ordeals, The Recovering also becomes a book about a different kind of dependency: the way our desires can make us all, as she puts it, "broken spigots of need." It's about the particular loneliness of the human experience-the craving for love that both devours us and shapes who we are.For her striking language and piercing observations, Jamison has been compared to such iconic writers as Joan Didion and Susan Sontag, yet her utterly singular voice also offers something new. With enormous empathy and wisdom, Jamison has given us nothing less than the story of addiction and recovery in America writ large, a definitive and revelatory account that will resonate for years to come.

A wryly funny and surprisingly moving account of an extraordinary life lived almost entirely in the public eye\nA teen idol at fifteen, an international icon and founder of the Brat Pack at twenty, and one of Hollywood's top stars to this day, Rob Lowe chronicles his experiences as a painfully misunderstood child actor in Ohio uprooted to the wild counterculture of mid-seventies Malibu, where he embarked on his unrelenting pursuit of a career in Hollywood. \nThe Outsiders placed Lowe at the birth of the modern youth movement in the entertainment industry. During his time on The West Wing, he witnessed the surreal nexus of show business and politics both on the set and in the actual White House. And in between are deft and humorous stories of the wild excesses that marked the eighties, leading to his quest for family and sobriety. \nNever mean-spirited or salacious, Lowe delivers unexpected glimpses into his successes, disappointments, relationships, and one-of-a-kind encounters with people who shaped our world over the last twenty-five years. These stories are as entertaining as they are unforgettable.

Women's recovery can differ from men's, and each person's recovery is in many ways unique. That's why Stephanie Covington has designed A Women's Way Through the Twelve Steps to help a woman find her own path-and find it in terms especially suited to the way women experience not just addiction and recovery but also relationships, self, sexuality, and everyday life. Unlike many ''rewritten'' Twelve Step interpretations for women, this guide works with the original Step language, preserving its spirit and focusing attention on its healing message. This compilation of a diverse group of real women's voices and wisdom illuminates how women understand the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous and offers inspiring stories of how they have traveled through the Steps and discovered what works for them. The book can be used alone or as a companion to The Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions of Alcoholics Anonymous.By drawing attention to how recovery raises special issues for women - from questions about sexuality and relationships to essential topics such as powerlessness, spirituality, and trauma - A Woman's Way empowers women to take ownership of their recovery and to grow and flourish in sobriety.Also available in Spanish.