STRATEGIES TO QUIT

10 Outstanding Books to Help You Stay Fully Engaged In Your Sobriety

I have read each of these books, and everyone offers incredible value.

We all need help fighting addiction — and help comes in many forms.

Since you’re here, I assume you enjoy reading. The fact that you arrived at the Alcohol Is Not Your Friend platform tells me you are interested in sobriety.

Clever, aren’t I?

My favorite sitting-down pastime besides writing — you guessed it — is reading.

Last December 1, I published an article titled 5 Amazing Life-Changing Books That Helped Sober Me Up.

Of course, I include them in my list as they were unparalleled in my road to sobriety:

• This Naked Mind by Annie Grace — This is the book that started my sober quest. Love, love this book. Her book will: “Change your perception by showing you why you drink, both psychologically and neurologically.”
• Stop Drinking Now by Allen Carr — Many people worldwide have overcome their addictions with Mr. Carr’s programs. Annie Grace credits Carr for the idea that reaching our subconscious is the route to sobriety.
• Kick the Drink… Easily by Jason Vale — his quote is right on: “By stopping drinking, you are breaking free and achieving something that most drinkers would love. Have fun, rejoice in your freedom and enjoy letting that disease starve to death.”
• Nothing Good Can Come From This by Kristi Coulter — Kristi’s story had me laughing, cringing, and recollecting my alcoholic missteps as I read her words. Priceless.
• The Sober Diaries — How One Woman Stopped Drinking and Started Living by Clare Pooley — Clare was an expert at hiding her addiction — a wake-up call to anyone who may think they have a problem with the drink.

I quit drinking by reading and rereading the first three. Without a doubt, these books are the reasons I am sober today.

The following books supported me after putting the booze behind me, but still in my first months of sobriety.

I didn’t stop reading after the first five. I was a stalker on Amazon weekly — always searching for another to keep me in the non-drinking conversation.

The following five books not only boosted my confidence, but I cried, laughed, and was cheered by the recognition that I was not alone in my struggle and quest for a sober life.

Knowing that other women fought against the insidious temptation of that poison known as alcohol bolstered my resolve for sobriety.

Five books that are inspiring, encouraging, and will resonate with you (whether male or female):

• Unwasted — My Lush Sobriety by Sacha Z. Scoblic
• Mrs. D is Going Without by Lotta Dann
• The Sober Revolution by Lucy Rocca and Sarah Turner
• Blackout — Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget by Sarah Hepola
• A Happier Hour by Rebecca Weller

It’s been a few years since I read these, and I recall how I shuddered when one author after another revealed the antics they partook in during their drinking days.

My initial thought was — thank goodness I wasn’t that bad!

That is until I did a bit of rearview mirror searching and took a hard look at the behavior in which I engaged.

I had to admit that my nerve and audacity were appalling to think I was above their behavior. Perhaps I didn’t participate in the same exact activities, but I was not Lilly-white.

I certainly had many shameful and humiliating scenes that I would like to forget. No point in regret. The fact is change is the only forward motion to go toward.

Finally, a bonus recommendation is Laura McKowen’s book — We Are the Luckiest.

I read this book two years into my sobriety. When this book was released, I felt somewhat stable and secure in my abstinence.

Laura tells her unique and, at the same time — not uncommon story. What a great reminder of why I quit drinking and the reasons to continue (not that I had any notion of picking up a drink).

Like the other books — this one is filled with knock-your-socks-off honesty and reminders of why we quit.

For those of you contemplating quitting drinking — I encourage you to pick up any of these books.

Many have gone to AA or other treatment centers or programs and had success, and I say — fabulous. Whatever works for you is the route to take.

These books can help you remain alcohol-free.

I chose to do it on my own — due to embarrassment and denial that I was an alcoholic.

Reading was my cure. I know of others who also traveled the DIY road.

Reading some of these books could be the perfect segue for those who are still on the fence about quitting drinking.

What have you got to lose but a few bucks at your local bookstore?

I reiterate the first three on my list were the catalyst for me giving up the drink.

I had several false starts, or maybe I wasn’t ready to part with my beloved cocktails — but I surrendered, and these books saved my life.

Perhaps not literally — but for sure, my life was heading for the gutter as I was not truly living. I merely existed from one happy hour to the next.

Now I am excited to wake up every day knowing I have a purpose — to love my family and friends, grow, excel, and tell my story.

Life is grand.