Dealing with Addiction: An OverDrive collection of eBooks & Audiobooks

Posted on November 2, 2017 at 6:00 am

OverDrive, the eBook and Audiobook service, has donated a curated collection of over 60 titles related to addiction, opioid use, and recovery to the Spokane County Library District’s digital collection. It is called “Dealing with Addiction,” and titles are free to check out with your library card.

Just last week, President Trump declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency, as reported on NPR and other news outlets. Back in March 2017, Vox shared 15 maps and charts that provide a visual representation of the rise of opioid addiction and related deaths over the years.

“According to the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), opiates are so addictive because the drugs work in the central nervous system to provide feelings of pleasure and to relieve pain,” reported in the Huffington Post article “Opiate addiction is an ongoing crisis in America.”

In The Heart of Addiction by Lance Dodes, M.D.—one of the titles in the “Dealing with Addiction” collection—Dr. Dodes shares the underlying why of addiction: “Virtually every addictive act is preceded by a feeling of helplessness or powerlessness. Addictive behavior functions to repair this underlying feeling of helplessness. It is able to do this because taking the addictive action (or even deciding to take this action) creates a sense of being empowered, of regaining control—over one’s emotional experience and one’s life.”

You can check out this title and many more that help with understanding and dealing with addition. Also, all OverDrive titles are automatically checked back in on their due date, so you never have to worry about late fees.

Tags: addiction, adults, audiobooks, booklists, books, Dealing with Addiction, digital collection, digital library, eBooks, education, health, medicine, opioid addiction, opioid crisis, opioid epidemic, opioids, overdrive, painkillers, prescription medication addition, reading