Psychology

Dee Burton, PhD is a psychologist who developed the American Cancer Society’s Fresh Start quit-smoking program. Each chapter of this guide gives you strategies to help you deal with the ways you may be feeling when you give up smoking so you can succeed with as little discomfort as possible.

Nakken uncovers what all addictions have in common and how they develop over time. The book covers genetic factors tied to addiction; the effect of the beliefs and norms of your culture on addictive behaviors; how the disease continues to develop; and steps to a successful recovery.

Using case studies, the author exposes the irrational and contradictory patterns of addictive thinking, and shows how to overcome them and the barriers they create – low self-esteem and relapse.

Sheff talked with scientists, doctors, counselors, and people with a substance use disorder and their families to learn how addiction works and how to treat it. He found it is almost always the result of people starting to use early, genetics, stress, trauma, mental illness, or a combination of these. He concludes that drugs are a symptom, not a cause, and whatever problems underlie them need to be addressed.

A clinical psychologist describes how to gain back emotional stability after growing up with the trauma of addiction and abuse. Dr. Dayton explains the research and how trauma chemically changes the brain. The book teaches you how to rewire your brain to help undo the negative effects of trauma and how to manage your feelings in healthy ways.

Using the voices of people who are struggling with the difficult first year of sobriety, this book explores the challenges all seem to face – living with loneliness, isolation, and fear and finding ways to deal with anger, depression, and resentment. Despite their differences, all are united in the process of giving life without alcohol or other drugs a chance and reaching a new level of happiness.

Through patients’ stories, the author’s personal experience with addiction and Buddhist teachings, Mate concludes that people who use alcohol or drugs are trying to fill a void inside themselves - and that recovery requires a mind/spirit approach. He looks at how personal history, emotional development, brain chemistry, and drugs set the stage for a substance use disorder - and how society tries to punish addiction rather than treat it.

Written by a recovery coach with over 30 years of experience, Valli shares a road map for long-term change and living a fulfilling, alcohol-free life. This is a practical and straightforward program on how to stop drinking, stay sober, and develop the skills to deal with your emotions and life’s up and downs.

This book teaches those in long term recovery how to use the power of writing to stay sober. Using simple and practical steps, the workbook combines writing in a personal journal with a focus on goals to help people make positive changes that are meaningful to them. Moynihan is a former NYC police officer who worked with the police department for 10 years helping them cope with substance abuse and other mental health issues.

Geared to helping those with addictions in all stages of recovery, the book contains practical tools that describe patterns of addictive thinking – and suggests specific action steps to develop healthier, sober thinking. It is a simple and practical guide that combines 25 life-recovery tools and real-life stories on how these tools have been applied.