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Addicted Like Me: A Mother-Daughter Story of Substance Abuse and Recovery

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As a person suffering from an eating disorder, I always feel a special connection with memoirs on addiction and recovery. I feel as though it takes a special courage to actually open up and tell your story and it is thanks to these people sharing their stories that other people can feel as though they are not alone AND also find hope at the same time.

Addicted Like Me is one of the most touching and honest memoirs on addiction that I have read. Based on the story of the mother and the daughter, both sharing their lives of addiction - showing us that addiction DOES, in many cases, run in families.

Addicted Like Me is a very difficult book to read. Both mom and daughter are extremely honest about their lives of substance abuse and you can definitely see the spiral in which daughter Lauren is finding herself in - while mom's story is just as scary.

I loved that both of these women found the strength to write this memoir and I am grateful to them.

Their ongoing recovery being from chemical dependencies is touching and full of hope.

This book is an important book to read - although different generations are represented here - it is obvious that addiction does not discriminate.

I have probably read almost every book that is out there on addiction trying to find a way to "fix" my husband which I now know that I cannot do and to find a way to relate to other people going through the same hell that I have gone through reguarding living with someone in active addiction.

Addicted Like me is one of the best books I have read on addiction. It gives one an open and honest look at what a parent goes through trying to help a child that is addicted to drugs and finally letting go to allowing her child to hit bottom and face the consquences of using drugs. Even though the addict in my life is not my child, I could still very much relate to what the author was dealing with when she wrote about her daughter.

Then I read Lauren's story and now I think I finally understand the nature of my husbands disease and what I need to do for myself in order for me to heal.

I would highly recommend this book to any parent that is struggling with their childs addiction or if they just want to talk to their child about drugs..

The previous book reviews of "Addicted Like Me," offer outstanding descriptions of this often gut-wrenching, often beautiful story of their family's shared cycles of addiction.

As a clinician, I am truly impressed by the tools/recovery strategies the authors outline, following their personal stories of grief, loss, and healing. In Part Three of the book, "Watching Us Recover: A Mother-Daughter Guide to Recovery Strategies and Hope," Karen and Lauren outline very real ways of detecting if a child may be suffering from a substance abuse problem, creating cohesive support teams to help those who are addicted or abusing substances, behaviors/rationalizations that can be detrimental to the person's recovery (and to the family involved), and sound advice as to how to behaviorally manage and emotionally cope with a loved one's addiction.

I plan to use this book in my practice so that families may better understand and connect to the emotional and behavioral dynamics they may be facing when addiction arises. I also plan to use the tools presented to benefit them in learning healthy boundaries and coping strategies to hopefully provide some structure and education during such a chaotic ride.

Inside the pages of this book you will find a heart rendering tale of two women who have overcome obstacles in their lives that have had their roots deep within their souls. Mother and daughter, Karen and Lauren had addictions to drugs and alcohol that was literally destroying their lives and those they touched.
Now I know that there are many books out there that have testimonies of overcoming such addictions, and they are very good and needed. However, what I personally liked about this book was the way the authors fully understood and told how the addiction was not just a personal problem, but a family problem. I am a firm believer that many things are passed from parent to child, both good and bad. Many of the trials we encounter are generational and need to be dealt with at the core. This mother and daughter recognized this and understood that this was the root of the problem and it had to stop with them. I was impressed.
Their battle was not an easy one, and they are quite frank and honest with all that they did to continue on with the lifestyle that had become theirs. However, they also share quite blankly what it took and will take to overcome this enemy. They leave out very few details in their battles but that is the beauty of their stories, This book could well be a life savior for anyone battling addictions, or those who are standing by watching,not knowing how to help someone they love. They will have more insight as to why this is happening, and knowledge is always a plus in any situation. I highly recommend this ,' tell it like it is' book and thank our two authors for having the courage to lay their lives before others in hopes of bringing them recovery and healing. Well done.

"An addicted child is at risk for insanity, death, or suicide." ~ pg. 254

While "Addicted Like Me" will be the most useful to those who are caught up in a drug addiction, this is also a good book to read if you have a teen who is using drugs.

This book is written by a mother-daughter team so it gives unique perspectives. Karen (the mother) used drugs to numb emotional problems that were the result of her father's alcoholic rages. Unfortunately she married someone just like her father except he also beat her.

Her daughter Lauren had a troubled childhood and while she made some conscious decisions not to become like her father she ended up becoming addicted to a number of drugs (marijuana, alcohol and crystal meth). She in turn also got involved with abusive men, which made her life spiral out of control. Both women seemed to use drugs to escape from their abusive relationships. Once they were back in control they started to make better decisions and ended up with men who truly loved them.

Karen and Lauren eventually decided to no longer be a victim of their negative family legacy. While other people in their family died from drug related causes they decided to choose life. This book is their story of how they went from a totally hopeless situation to being totally sober.

What I liked about this book was the honesty of the authors. There is also a section that tells parents how to deal with a drug-addicted teen. Some of the information in this book could be life saving. I encourage you to read this book if you have issues with drugs or you know someone who does. Even if you have never taken drugs this book could help you to be sympathetic to people who are seriously addicted. There is only one person in my life who is struggling with alcoholism and this book helped me to understand why they may be addicted.

~The Rebecca Review

I bought this book because I work at a high school and see lots of students fall down the same path as the women that wrote this book. It has a lot of great insight as it is told from the Mother and Daughters point of view. Great book to read to educate yourself on behaviors, patterns and dealings of addicts.

In "Addicted Like Me: A Mother-Daughter Story of Substance Abuse and Recovery," mother/daughter authors, Karen Franklin and Lauren King succeed in telling their very moving and sometimes frustrating story of drug and alcohol addiction from two vantage points that will appeal to both adults struggling with themselves and their addictive children or teens fighting to obtain a niche for themselves that will aid them in their quest to maintain sobriety.

What screams out from the pages written by both these women, is the need we all have as human beings: the desire to be loved and accepted. In simple, readable terms, mother Karen explains that her addiction and that of her two children was genetic in nature. The fact that her father and husband coped with their everyday lives by drinking to escape or anesthetize themselves enabled her to give her pain substance by feeding it whatever chemical she could get her hands on. This "pain beast" took on a life of its own, needing constant "food" to strengthen it and at the same time convince her that what she was doing was her only path. In essence, she filled her pain with substance and while giving that pain a body, became that pain. In addition to this, she had to surround herself with people with the same problem. The beast needs company; subsequently, anyone living without a beast is categorized as someone trying to negate the beast's existence. Quite simply, in the world of addiction this is just not allowed and so the cycle fuels and refuels itself until it spirals out of control for the user.

Karen's motherhood, to a degree, acted as the necessary force to help push her onto her own road to sobriety. When she saw her children as prey to their own "beasts" she knew in her heart of hearts that this was not what she wanted for them or for herself. In the first part of the book, the reader is privy to her private agony as she puts the pieces of an unpalatable puzzle together. Addicts, as daughter Lauren later on explains in her portion of the book, must lie, to themselves, and to their family and friends, in order to cover up the desperation so inherent in their life and its choices. The drug allows a sense of pumped-up denial to prevail. Statements like: "How can I be lonely when I have all these friends who are doing the same thing I am doing?" "Am I not cool--everyone is waiting for my arrival--when I bring my stash, it is me who gets the party going!" are commonplace in the minds of those who have seen the power the drug can give you.

After all, during career day at school, no one gleefully raises their hand and shouts out that their one desire in life is to become a drug addict or alcoholic. The negative connotation associated with addiction suggests a lack of control rather than the so-desired feeling of management that it first induces. Anyone with access to a radio, television set or Internet connection knows that the high a drug delivers feels good at the moment, but as moments are ephemeral, so is the high. The absence of the high brings on feelings of how low your life can go and so instead of the balance of neither high nor low, the addict chases his known high. He/she thinks they can control the beast they awaken, but inevitably the beast becomes so powerful it cannot lose.

In spite of the fact that Karen wants to accept what her children tell her as truth, she knows that the developing "beasts" conjure up lies to protect themselves. She does stumble and fall, succumbing to the pitfalls of not only denial, but of not setting limits, enabling, and personal guilt, but eventually her love for her children supercedes and instead of again meandering down a known and easy path, she faces the issue and looks into possible solution methods. Because of her persistence, her children are able to pursue recovery plans that allow them to break the back of the their beasts.

Lauren's portion of the book rings with the poignancy of a young person trying to fit in. In frank language, she enhances her mother's story from the ground zero of her experience from the perspective of the liar, thief, denier and user. Her salvation is simple, but not easy. She surrounds herself with other recovering addicts, filling her `holes' with character building exercises and fun social activities rather than with planned drug and alcohol usage that furthers her eventual destruction. The strength of her message comes from her ability to clearly and unabashedly admit her desire to be loved and accepted and detail at what lengths she was willing to go to achieve this. Adolescents and adults alike will relate to her story; her power is in her simplicity and her willingness to describe the victories, the pitfalls and her emotional angst.

In a third segment, Karen and Lauren wrap things up by sharing with the reader their strategies and hopes for the future and by extending an invitation to embrace their hard-earned knowledge in addressing addiction and its problems. Their tips will help you gain a needed insight into the mind of the addict, reinforce the positive and refute any negative behavior that will advertently support the addiction beast.

Bottom line? In the very readable "Addicted Like Me: A Mother-Daughter Story of Substance Abuse and Recovery," Karen Franklin and Lauren King share their personal history to help others in need understand the psychiatry behind addiction and the available options to destroy the beast it creates. Their insight will be invaluable to anyone who deals with or has an inclination of the addiction of someone close to them. Recommended as required reading for adolescents and as an "I've Been There" book for recovering addicts that talks the talk and walks the walk.
Diana Faillace Von Behren
"reneofc"

For whatever reason I find myself reading quite a few books about people struggling with various addictions, as it never ceases to amaze me how low people stoop with their addictions, and then (in most of these books) find a way out. Just fascinating. This book is from a mother/daughter team who both went through various addictions (alcohol and drugs).

"Addicted Like Me: A Mother-Daughter Story of Substance Abuse and Recovery" )279 pages) is essentially 2 books into one: in the first part of the book the mother (Karen) brings her family background (multiple addictions in her family's past) and how she abused herself growing up, marrying an alcoholic and drug-addict with tragic consequences; Karen then brings the story of how she tried dealing with her daughter (Lauren) and son (Ryan) falling into alcohol and drug abuse, and it just tears your heart out. But the better and more instructive part of the book is the second part, where daughter Lauren in essence brings the same story, but from her own (teenager) perspective. After multiple attempts to get better, at one point Lauren comes to the final realization after another drug binge that "Unless I did something to change it, this would be my life, day in and day out. All my life would be doing nothing and then getting high, getting high and then doing nothing." Lauren's road to recovery would be long, with many bumps along the way (some of them tragic--I don't want to give amway too many details, you'll just have to read it for yourself).

When reading this book, it reminded me of the two fascinating books published last year by David Sheff (father) and Nic Sheff (son), equally bringing their perspectives on the same story. The great thing with this book is that you get it all in the same book. Reader beware: this ain't reading for the faint of heart. The last 50 pages or so of the book bring a very nice "Mother-Daughter Guide to Recovery Strategies for Hope" for those families dealing with similar issues (including a bunch of resources), as well as "Discussion Questions" intended for group discussion. The latter (among others) makes me think this book would make great (if not required) reading for high school kids around the country, assuming the proper academic or social setting. Highly recommended!

Most books I read I cannot put down because they are so interesting. This book took me months to read, because its so difficult a subject. Have never been a drinker of alcoholic beverages, and never have used illegal drugs or misused prescription drugs. Probably because I have seem what these things do to others and being a 'snob' internally, I just made up my mind, no matter how tempted, that I wouldn't partake of things that could wreck havoc on my life. And I am so high on life addictive things probably would have made me horrid to be around, and I like being with people who like having me around. Then there is the fact our son was hit and seriously injured by a drunk driver in '87 and the just before Christmas my husband was hit by a .22 BAL drunk driver and left disabled until he died in 2004.

Did appreciate Chapter 10 Stopping The Beast In Its Tracks, because I have always believed in breaking any negative cycles that some believe are from how one grows up, or what one has endured. Chapter 12 Challenges On The Sober Path is also excellent, because it deals with sobriety and how one has to learn to choose the type of people that around them. Again, this is part of breaking the cycle. Because of my experience with drunk drivers, I found myself smiling and agreeing when at the beginning of Chapter 13 My Life On Life's Terms, one reads ' One of the most amazing gifts of sobriety us the ability to experience your own life in all its hardships and glories. The challenges are what make life so rich, because to overcome a hardship is a success that changes the way life feels'. This is one of the best observations you can read of.

In fact it reminded me of Nietzsche's often quoted statement that what doesn't kill us will make us stronger. And having some mega challenges in my life, I know that I am better for worked thru the challenges rather than hide from them or run from them.

This remarkable and inspiring book is a story of drugs and alcohol told by an addicted mother and daughter from both points of view. The last 32 pages contain a guide for parents with drug-addicted children, and I think such parents are the targeted readers. It emphasizes genetic factors in causation, and Twelve Step programs in treatment.
Memoirs like this enter a crowded market that began with Thomas De Quincy's "Confessions of an English Opium Eater." The latest bestseller was Sheff's "Beautiful Boy." In that book also the DoC was crystal meth.
Reviewing this type of book is difficult because they have to be judged by several different criteria. Do we look for entertainment value and literary merit? Are we looking for good advice about how to deal with these afflictions, or for cautionary tales to give the young? Is honesty important? Sometimes the autobiographers get attacked on Amazon for their personal character, or for not having dealt with the situations in the right way.
I can't claim to be able to separate all those issues.
Taken as a story to be read as diversion, I found it less readable and well-written than Sheff's book. One of the reasons was the lack of background about the people and places involved. Karen Franklin goes far back in her family tree but it was only from the back matter that I learned what work she did. The mystery of how she got an education and kept up her earning power was not solved. The book concentrates on the addiction to such an extent that we learn little about the lives of any character who was not addicted. It seems frank and honest, including accepting partial responsibility for a child's death, but names are not named. We are told that one therapist looked like Santa Claus and one had a long ponytail, but not what their degrees and qualifications were. Lauren does not give the names of the high schools she went to or of any of her teachers. The facilities where she was treated are not named. All is a blur. Some of these details would not only have enhanced the literary merit of the story but helped the reader who wants to know what treatment worked best and why.