A straightforward, impressive, and comprehensive guide…
Renowned Oncologist, researcher, and the author of numerous scientific articles, Meadows writes with unflinching honesty about his time as an addict and alcoholic and his subsequent recovery through an intensive rehab program aimed at physician drinkers and presents a fascinating guide to overcome addiction. He talks about addicts’ belief that their addictions are, in no way, interfering with their lives. On the contrary, they believe that addiction helps make their lives easier; it makes them forget their problems, and attain a higher state of awareness. He writes about the disturbing absurdities of their lives: they are renowned physicians, from well-to-do families and by all appearances happy, healthy, and successful people. But addictions have slowly taken hold of their lives, and they are desperate to conceal its effects—an extremely good-looking neurologist who makes loads of money and has a lovely, understanding partner loses his life to addiction; a surgeon awakens from a blackout to find himself in the operating room, standing over the open abdomen of a patient; another doctor is sorting through garbage bags to find a syringe that had cocaine left in it and using skunk water to inject meth. Meadows does a terrific job at taking the reader through the depths of sadness and despair that accompany substance addiction. The fear of losing their license and ultimately their lives is what send them to the intensive rehab program. Meadows takes readers through step by step guide to understanding the disease of addiction and how to treat it. He shares the spiritual path of recovery that become central to their lives during the rehab program. He argues that the root cause of one’s problems is oneself: he writes, “I must understand that I’m the source of all my problems. Not God, not fate, not my disease. No ill-tempered winds blow trouble my way. No other person is responsible for my sorrows and heartaches. I alone am the source of my torments.” Meadows stresses that a person is not responsible for every thought in their head, but they are responsible for what they decide to do with those thoughts and for the consequences of their actions. Realizing one’s own role in misfortunes of one’s life is the first step to recovery. He shares methods for spiritual growth (such as forgiveness, gratitude, acceptance, low expectorations, helping others) and ways to incorporate moral attitudes and values into one’s life (establishing new priorities, forming new habits, re-people-ization). This outstanding guide with cogent insights into the nightmarish world of addiction and recovery is a must-read for anyone who thinks he has a problem with addiction.
A Spiritual Pathway to Recovery from Addiction
A Physician’s Journey of Discovery
by Linville M Meadows MD
Dr.; Launch ed.
Pub date August 3, 2020
ISBN 978-1735025803
Price $12.99 (USD) paperback, $4.28 Kindle edition
