In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction by Gabor Mate, M. D.
An addiction specialist combines real-life stories with cutting-edge research to offer a holistic approach to understanding addiction-its origins, its place in society, and the importance of self-compassion in recovery.
Based on Gabor Mate's two decades of experience as a medical doctor and his groundbreaking work with the severely addicted on Vancouver's skid row, this #1 international bestseller radically re-envisions this much misunderstood field by taking a holistic approach to substance abuse and addiction recovery.
In the same vein as Bessel van der Kolk's The Body Keeps the Score, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts traces the root causes of addiction to childhood trauma and examines the pervasiveness of addiction in society. Dr. Mate presents addiction not as a discrete phenomenon confined to an unfortunate or weak-willed few, but as a continuum that runs throughout-and perhaps underpins-our society. It is not a medical "condition" distinct from the lives it affects but rather the result of a complex interplay among personal history, emotional and neurological development, brain chemistry, and the drugs and behaviors of addiction. Simplifying a wide array of brain and addiction research findings from around the globe, the book avoids glib self-help remedies, instead promoting a thorough and compassionate self-understanding as the first key to healing and wellness.
Dr. Mate argues persuasively against contemporary health, social, and criminal justice policies toward addiction and how they perpetuate the War on Drugs. The mix of personal stories-including the author's candid discussion of his own "high-status" addictive tendencies-and science with positive solutions makes the book equally useful for lay readers and professionals.
Format: Paperback | 536 pages
Dimensions (cm): 22.4 x 15.3 x 3 | 834g
Publication Date: 05 Jan 2010
Publisher: North Atlantic Books
Publication City/Country: Berkeley, United States
Language: English
Illustrations note: b&w photos
ISBN10: 155643880X
ISBN13: 9781556438806
Condition: Good
A book that has been read but is in good condition. Very minimal damage to the cover including minor scuff marks and creasing along the edges, but no holes or tears. The majority of pages are undamaged with minimal creasing but no tearing. No pencil underlining of text, no highlighting of text and no writing in margins. No missing pages.