Former alcoholics welcome addiction expert Stanton Peele's new book on recovery

Added : ( Sun Jul 25 2004 )

TWO former alcoholics, Lilian and Murdoch MacDonald, a married couple living in Ayrshire, Scotland, have warmly welcomed the publication of a new book written by social psychologist Dr Stanton Peele called 7 Tools to Beat Addiction.

In his latest book, addiction expert Dr Peele once again explodes the myth, prevalent in the United States and becoming more so elsewhere in the world, that alcoholism, drug abuse and other addictions are a disease which is bio-genetic in origin, and for which addicts must seek medical treatment or join a support group like Alcoholics Anonymous.

Dr Peele argues that addiction is not a disease, nor is it limited to alcohol or to drugs - it can include, for instance food, shopping and sex. He maintains that addiction is a pattern of dysfunctional behaviour and experience that is best understood by examining an individual’s relationship with his or her world. Rather than a disease, it is a manifestation of lack of skills for coping with life – a lack that can and should be addressed and rectified.

The book then proceeds to list and describe seven tools, Values, Motivation, Rewards, Resources, Support, Maturity, Higher Goals. These are the tools that will empower addicts to outgrow destructive habits by putting together the building blocks for a balanced, fulfilling, and responsible life.

Lilian and Murdoch MacDonald said today: “We welcome the publication of Dr Peele’s new book 7 Steps to Beat Addiction, not least because once again he debunks the myth that alcoholism and other addictions are a disease. He goes on to quote American government-backed statistics that prove that most addicts recover, and that the majority of those that recover moreover do so without any medical treatment and without the help of Alcoholics Anonymous or other 12-Step programmes.”

Scottish couple Lilian and Murdoch MacDonald are two former alcoholics who have recovered so completely that they now not only lead normal lives again, but are also able to drink in a perfectly sociable manner once more. They are building two websites to help others do the same, and criticise Alcoholics Anonymous for being a quasi-religious cult that has blocked and prevented progress in the field of treatment of alcoholism for the past seventy years.

Many alcoholics CAN recover and drink safely again, if and when they so wish, say Lilian and Murdoch.

This diametrically contradicts the teaching of Alcoholics Anonymous, and of many alcoholism treatment centres throughout the world. But Lilian and Murdoch MacDonald of Ayr in Scotland believe that the 12-step programme of lifelong sobriety is not the solution to alcoholism, as it only treats the symptoms and not the causes of the problem, and is merely a damage-limitation exercise.

Lilian and Murdoch argue that alcoholism, like other self-harming disorders including bulimia, anorexia and self-mutilation, is a behaviour problem, not a disease, often stemming from problems experienced in childhood. And if these problems can be identified and properly addressed, then the problem behaviour can be cured.

And Lilian and Murdoch have just completed the first draft of a book about their experiences, and will shortly start looking for a suitable publisher.

The couple also criticise the private clinics that have jumped upon the AA bandwagon and peddle the 12-step philosophy at an average cost of £3,000 per week in the UK for a typical stay of 5-6 weeks.

They agree with Stanton Peele, who says: “The medical establishment has come to recognize the financial and other advantages of piggybacking on the AA movement, as have many recovering alcoholics. AA members frequently make counselling careers out of their recoveries. They and the treatment centres then benefit from third-party reimbursement. In a recent survey of 15 treatment centres across the US, researcher Marie Bourbine-Twohig found that all of the centres (90 percent of which were residential) practiced the 12-step philosophy, and two-thirds of all counsellors in the facilities were recovering alcoholics and addicts.”

Lilian concludes: “When our ideas about alcoholism - of which we are the living proof - gain more acceptance worldwide, and if more government money is put into preventative measures, not only will alcoholics stand a greater chance of getting back to normality, but we will also have taken the first step towards ensuring that alcoholism can be stamped out altogether.”

Dr Stanton Peele’s new book 7 Tools to Beat Addiction is published tomorrow Tuesday 27 July by Three Rivers Press, an imprint of Random House ($14.00). See Web links below.

STANTON PEELE

Stanton Peele PhD, JD is a psychologist and lawyer who is recognised as a leading expert in the addiction field. He is an adjunct professor at the New York University School of Social Work and a senior fellow at the Drug Policy Alliance.

Beginning in 1975 with the publication of Love and Addiction, he has written a series of well-received books that forcefully present new approaches to addiction. Dr. Peele’s other books include Diseasing of America and The Truth About Addiction and Recovery. As interest in alternative approaches to addiction has grown, more and more books appear that refer to his work.

Dr. Peele has received the Mark Keller Award from the Rutgers Center of Alcohol Studies and the lifetime scholarship award from the Drug Policy Alliance. He lectures nationally and internationally and is often called upon to comment on controversial developments in the addiction arena. He also writes popular magazine and newspaper articles, many of which have been reprinted in collections for college students. He maintains an active website, www.peele.net, in which he answers questions about addiction from readers around the world.

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WEB LINKS:

Information about “7 Tools to Beat Addiction” on Stanton Peele’s website:

http://www.peele.net/7tools/index.html

Random House

http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=1400048737

Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1400048737/102-5349011-3887362?v=glance

Amazon UK

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400048737/qid=1090761933/202-2036468-1904645

LILIAN AND MURDOCH MACDOALD’S WEB LINKS:

Community websites

http://groups.msn.com/Alcoholicsdontneedtostayonthewagon

http://groups.msn.com/AlcoholicsCanDrinkSafelyAgain

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/AlcoholicsCanDrinkSafelyAgain/

Main website in course of construction

http://www.alcoholicscandrinksafelyagain.com

Other links

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2004/6/prweb130243.htm
http://www.pressbox.co.uk/Detailed/15000.html
http://www.pr-scotland.com/releases/040409-02.htm



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