ARA Review by Kirsten Schuder of Killing Pain
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Kirsten Schuder
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ARA Review by Kirsten Schuder of Killing Pain
[Following is an OnlineBookClub.org ARA Review of the book, Killing Pain.]
This was a detailed account of the author's struggle to maintain sobriety, and then enter the back pain. Due to hard labor through his landscaping business in which he built a great reputation and had a lot of pride in, his back eventually showed signs of damage, causing him great pain. His doctor prescribed oxycontin, and to him, it seemed not only like the solution to all his pain but a legal way to get high. Because it was doctor-sanctioned and prescribed, his old addiction rose again, and he had to climb out of his addiction once again so he didn't lose the life he built while sober.
This book's title led me to believe that I would be reading something about the opioid epidemic, a more scholarly account rather than a person struggling with addiction. I think it's good to have personal stories out there like this so the medical community can understand the personal toll a problem like addiction to legal prescriptions creates. The level of detail was great because it made me feel like I was following along with the author's thought process blow by blow.
However, I feel that this book's title can be misleading. I appreciate the author sharing his struggles in such good detail, but had I realized this was a book about one person's addiction, I might have had different expectations of what to expect when reading this book. The drawback was that the title had more of an academic feel and tone to it. The opioid epidemic is a complex problem involving a lot of stakeholders, so when I saw the title, I thought that this would have been an explanation, taking into account these different factions. The title led me to believe that this would take a scholarly approach to the problem and an unbiased account and assessment of the problem rather than an individual perspective. While personal insight based on experiences is valuable, personal experiences may not completely speak to the broader implications of this title. In addition, while I do appreciate the unique voice of the author, I wished that the reading experience was different. Moreover, while I do appreciate the details the author included, sometimes they seemed repetitious. It would have been nice to edit this book for conciseness.
For the above reasons, I rate this book a 4 out of 5 stars. Those struggling with addiction will appreciate the insight the author took to understand the causes for his addiction and the progress he made. As the author pointed out, the path to long-lasting sobriety is more of a process rather than one single occurrence. It can involve a series of realizations that occur over the span of many years. Also, I appreciated seeing a full documentation of the author's rationalization process at every step of the way. I did notice how the author had to "rationalize" this doctor-sanctioned, highly addictive drug. I also appreciate the emphasis on how we can get tricked into rationalizing taking this drug in the first place because the doctor said it was okay. These are all points that should not be overlooked as we continue to battle the effects of this dangerous drug.
***
View Killing Pain on Bookshelves
This was a detailed account of the author's struggle to maintain sobriety, and then enter the back pain. Due to hard labor through his landscaping business in which he built a great reputation and had a lot of pride in, his back eventually showed signs of damage, causing him great pain. His doctor prescribed oxycontin, and to him, it seemed not only like the solution to all his pain but a legal way to get high. Because it was doctor-sanctioned and prescribed, his old addiction rose again, and he had to climb out of his addiction once again so he didn't lose the life he built while sober.
This book's title led me to believe that I would be reading something about the opioid epidemic, a more scholarly account rather than a person struggling with addiction. I think it's good to have personal stories out there like this so the medical community can understand the personal toll a problem like addiction to legal prescriptions creates. The level of detail was great because it made me feel like I was following along with the author's thought process blow by blow.
However, I feel that this book's title can be misleading. I appreciate the author sharing his struggles in such good detail, but had I realized this was a book about one person's addiction, I might have had different expectations of what to expect when reading this book. The drawback was that the title had more of an academic feel and tone to it. The opioid epidemic is a complex problem involving a lot of stakeholders, so when I saw the title, I thought that this would have been an explanation, taking into account these different factions. The title led me to believe that this would take a scholarly approach to the problem and an unbiased account and assessment of the problem rather than an individual perspective. While personal insight based on experiences is valuable, personal experiences may not completely speak to the broader implications of this title. In addition, while I do appreciate the unique voice of the author, I wished that the reading experience was different. Moreover, while I do appreciate the details the author included, sometimes they seemed repetitious. It would have been nice to edit this book for conciseness.
For the above reasons, I rate this book a 4 out of 5 stars. Those struggling with addiction will appreciate the insight the author took to understand the causes for his addiction and the progress he made. As the author pointed out, the path to long-lasting sobriety is more of a process rather than one single occurrence. It can involve a series of realizations that occur over the span of many years. Also, I appreciated seeing a full documentation of the author's rationalization process at every step of the way. I did notice how the author had to "rationalize" this doctor-sanctioned, highly addictive drug. I also appreciate the emphasis on how we can get tricked into rationalizing taking this drug in the first place because the doctor said it was okay. These are all points that should not be overlooked as we continue to battle the effects of this dangerous drug.
***
View Killing Pain on Bookshelves
