Chasing the High: A Firsthand Account of One Young Person's Experience with Substance Abuse | TheBookSeekers

Chasing the High: A Firsthand Account of One Young Person's Experience with Substance Abuse


Adolescent Mental Health Initiative

,

No. of pages 192

Published: 2008

Great for age 12-18 years

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In this book for young people who are struggling with substance abuse, Kyle Keegan recounts his own remarkable story of drug abuse and ruthless addiction. Keegan, now an adult who is in recovery from his addiction, discusses his experience as a well adjusted adolescent who fell victim to heroin and whose life was almost destroyed by the devastating drug. Against the backdrop of these experiences, he also provides useful information that young people struggling with substance abuse need, such as how to recognize and accept that there is a problem, how to find professional help, and how to stay happy and healthy in recovery.

 

 

This book is part of a book series called Adolescent Mental Health Initiative .

There are 192 pages in this book.

It is aimed at Young Adult readers. The term Young Adult (YA) is used for books which have the following characteristics: (1) aimed at ages 12-18 years, US grades 7-12, UK school years 8-15, (2) around 50-75k words long, (3) main character is aged 12-18 years, (4) topics include self-reflection, internal conflict vs external, analyzing life and its meaning, (5) point of view is often in the first person, and (6) swearing, violence, romance and sexuality are allowed.

This book was published in 2008 by Oxford University Press Inc .

Kyle Keegan is a professional diver. He lives in New York with his wife and daughters. Howard B. Moss, MD, is Associate Director for Clinical and Translational Research with the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health.

This book has the following chapters: Foreword Preface 1: Crash and Rescue Above the city, steeped in misery Back from the edge Substance abuse and addiction defined Addiction is a disease A hellish journey 2: The Early Days of Using My not-so-shady past A forbidden sip One puff leads to another My uncertain future Heroin A rite of passage versus the slippery slope to addiction The ride down that slope Who becomes addicted, who does not, and why? 3: The Noose Tightens A moment of truth, and then denial First shot at detoxification Learning the life of an addict Desperate moves Returning to an unfamiliar home "This is your brain on drugs" Different types of drugs of abuse 4: Trying to Get Help Overconfidence and denial: do not mix A minor arrest A major arrest Up, down, up, down-the saga of addiction continues A crucial turning point Substance abuse treatment: what to expect Treatment of co-occurring mental disorders 5: Recovery What does recovery mean for you? If a relapse occurs 6: Looking Back, Looking Ahead "Real" recovery is whatever works for us FAQ Glossary Resources Bibliography Index

 

This book is in the following series:

Adolescent Mental Health Initiative

This book features the following character:

Kyle Keegan
This book features the character Kyle Keegan.

"The book provides a wealth of up-to-date information about the neurobiology of addiction and explains why teens are at a higher risk for drug abuse than adults...short excerpts from other addiction memoirs add to Keegan's wrenching story."--Booklist

 

"This heartfelt, powerfully written book is an easy read and a first choice for all collections."--Lorraine B. Wiener, teacher, in the School Library Journal

 

"Chasing the High is an excellent resource on substance abuse for adolescents and their families. Keegan's personal story captures the experience of addiction and recovery in a compelling manner. The authors even make the neurobiology of addiction clear and accessible. It is difficult to find good

 

resources about addictive drugs for adolescents and this book fills the gap."--Charles Dackis, M.D., Director, Charles O'Brien Center for Addiction Treatment, University of Pennsylvania

 

"Chasing the High is honest and intense, yet also extremely informative. Kyle Keegan has written a brave cautionary tale that takes his readers deep inside the belly of addiction. This book speaks to anyone who has ever felt the deadly grip of drugs and alcohol take hold, but also to those who have

 

watched someone they love disappear into a dark cloud of chemicals. Bravo to Kyle for having the courage to share his painful and inspiring story with the world."--Lynn Marie Smith, author of Rolling Away: My Agony with Ecstasy

 

"While the perils of addiction are often lost in detailed data, there remains a lacuna of information on the personal tolls of substance abuse. In Chasing the High we are given an intriguing and very personal snapshot of the initiation, maintenance, and subsequentbattling of severe chemical

 

dependency-intermixed with factual and useful information about additions. Along with the author, we experience the tribulations of the addition- from the crashes to the euphoria to the rehabilitation and optimism of experiencing life without drugs. Chasing the High provides a unique inside

 

perspective on addiction that is often lost in academic texts."--Timothy E. Wilens, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital & Harvard Medical School

 

"Chasing the High by Keegan and Moss is wonderful first-hand account of a young person's development with addiction. With powerful descriptions of the events that led to drug use, abuse, and addiction the authors succeed in weaving a primer on addiction within the developing saga. Engaging and easy

 

to read, this book should be an enormous help for those individuals and families struggling with this disorder to understand addiction. Particularly poignant for this researcher is the repeated focus on the "dark side" of addiction. The author states, 'In fact, you're taking drugs now not so much to

 

feel good as to keep from feeling bad.' The authors illustrate so clearly that seeking drugs to fill emotional holes creates even bigger emotional holes that in turn need to be filled. This phenomenon is the core feature of addiction."--George F. Koob, Ph.D., Professor, Committee on the Neurobiology

 

of Addictive Disorders, The Scripps Research Institute

 

 

"The book provides a wealth of up-to-date information about the neurobiology of addiction and explains why teens are at a higher risk for drug abuse than adults...short excerpts from other addiction memoirs add to Keegan's wrenching story."--Booklist

 

"This heartfelt, powerfully written book is an easy read and a first choice for all collections."--Lorraine B. Wiener, teacher, in the School Library Journal

 

"Chasing the High is an excellent resource on substance abuse for adolescents and their families. Keegan's personal story captures the experience of addiction and recovery in a compelling manner. The authors even make the neurobiology of addiction clear and accessible. It is difficult to find good resources about addictive drugs for adolescents and this book fills the gap."--Charles Dackis, M.D., Director, Charles O'Brien Center for Addiction Treatment, University of Pennsylvania

 

"Chasing the High is honest and intense, yet also extremely informative. Kyle Keegan has written a brave cautionary tale that takes his readers deep inside the belly of addiction. This book speaks to anyone who has ever felt the deadly grip of drugs and alcohol take hold, but also to those who have watched someone they love disappear into a dark cloud of chemicals. Bravo to Kyle for having the courage to share his painful and inspiring story with the world."--Lynn Marie Smith, author of Rolling Away: My Agony with Ecstasy

 

"While the perils of addiction are often lost in detailed data, there remains a lacuna of information on the personal tolls of substance abuse. In Chasing the High we are given an intriguing and very personal snapshot of the initiation, maintenance, and subsequentbattling of severe chemical dependency-intermixed with factual and useful information about additions. Along with the author, we experience the tribulations of the addition- from the crashes to the euphoria to the rehabilitation and optimism of experiencing life without drugs. Chasing the High provides a unique inside perspective on addiction that is often lost in academic texts."--Timothy E. Wilens, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital & Harvard Medical School

 

"Chasing the High by Keegan and Moss is wonderful first-hand account of a young person's development with addiction. With powerful descriptions of the events that led to drug use, abuse, and addiction the authors succeed in weaving a primer on addiction within the developing saga. Engaging and easy to read, this book should be an enormous help for those individuals and families struggling with this disorder to understand addiction. Particularly poignant for this researcher is the repeated focus on the "dark side" of addiction. The author states, 'In fact, you're taking drugs now not so much to feel good as to keep from feeling bad.' The authors illustrate so clearly that seeking drugs to fill emotional holes creates even bigger emotional holes that in turn need to be filled. This phenomenon is the core feature of addiction."--George F. Koob, Ph.D., Professor, Committee on the Neurobiology of Addictive Disorders, The Scripps Research Institute

 

 

 

"The book provides a wealth of up-to-date information about the neurobiology of addiction and explains why teens are at a higher risk for drug abuse than adults...short excerpts from other addiction memoirs add to Keegan's wrenching story."--Booklist

 

"This heartfelt, powerfully written book is an easy read and a first choice for all collections."--Lorraine B. Wiener, teacher, in the School Library Journal

 

"Chasing the High is an excellent resource on substance abuse for adolescents and their families. Keegan's personal story captures the experience of addiction and recovery in a compelling manner. The authors even make the neurobiology of addiction clear and accessible. It is difficult to find good resources about addictive drugs for adolescents and this book fills the gap."--Charles Dackis, M.D., Director, Charles O'Brien Center for Addiction Treatment, University of Pennsylvania

 

"Chasing the High is honest and intense, yet also extremely informative. Kyle Keegan has written a brave cautionary tale that takes his readers deep inside the belly of addiction. This book speaks to anyone who has ever felt the deadly grip of drugs and alcohol take hold, but also to those who have watched someone they love disappear into a dark cloud of chemicals. Bravo to Kyle for having the courage to share his painful and inspiring story with the world."--Lynn Marie Smith, author of Rolling Away: My Agony with Ecstasy

 

"While the perils of addiction are often lost in detailed data, there remains a lacuna of information on the personal tolls of substance abuse. In Chasing the High we are given an intriguing and very personal snapshot of the initiation, maintenance, and subsequent battling of severe chemical dependency-intermixed with factual and useful information about additions. Along with the author, we experience the tribulations of the addition- from the crashes to the euphoria to the rehabilitation and optimism of experiencing life without drugs. Chasing the High provides a unique inside perspective on addiction that is often lost in academic texts."--Timothy E. Wilens, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital & Harvard Medical School

 

"Chasing the High by Keegan and Moss is wonderful first-hand account of a young person's development with addiction. With powerful descriptions of the events that led to drug use, abuse, and addiction the authors succeed in weaving a primer on addiction within the developing saga. Engaging and easy to read, this book should be an enormous help for those individuals and families struggling with this disorder to understand addiction. Particularly poignant for this researcher is the repeated focus on the "dark side" of addiction. The author states, 'In fact, you're taking drugs now not so much to feel good as to keep from feeling bad.' The authors illustrate so clearly that seeking drugs to fill emotional holes creates even bigger emotional holes that in turn need to be filled. This phenomenon is the core feature of addiction."--George F. Koob, Ph.D., Professor, Committee on the Neurobiology of Addictive Disorders, The Scripps Research Institute

 

 

 

"The book provides a wealth of up-to-date information about the neurobiology of addiction and explains why teens are at a higher risk for drug abuse than adults...short excerpts from other addiction memoirs add to Keegan's wrenching story."--Booklist

 

"This heartfelt, powerfully written book is an easy read and a first choice for all collections."--Lorraine B. Wiener, teacher, in the School Library Journal

 

"Chasing the High is an excellent resource on substance abuse for adolescents and their families. Keegan's personal story captures the experience of addiction and recovery in a compelling manner. The authors even make the neurobiology of addiction clear and accessible. It is difficult to find good resources about addictive drugs for adolescents and this book fills the gap."--Charles Dackis, M.D., Director, Charles O'Brien Center for Addiction Treatment, University of Pennsylvania

 

"Chasing the High is honest and intense, yet also extremely informative. Kyle Keegan has written a brave cautionary tale that takes his readers deep inside the belly of addiction. This book speaks to anyone who has ever felt the deadly grip of drugs and alcohol take hold, but also to those who have watched someone they love disappear into a dark cloud of chemicals. Bravo to Kyle for having the courage to share his painful and inspiring story with the world."--Lynn Marie Smith, author of Rolling Away: My Agony with Ecstasy

 

"While the perils of addiction are often lost in detailed data, there remains a lacuna of information on the personal tolls of substance abuse. In Chasing the High we are given an intriguing and very personal snapshot of the initiation, maintenance, and subsequent battling of severe chemical dependency-intermixed with factual and useful information about additions. Along with the author, we experience the tribulations of the addition- from the crashes to the euphoria to the rehabilitation and optimism of experiencing life without drugs. Chasing the High provides a unique inside perspective on addiction that is often lost in academic texts."--Timothy E. Wilens, M.D., Massachusetts General Hospital & Harvard Medical School

 

"Chasing the High by Keegan and Moss is wonderful first-hand account of a young person's development with addiction. With powerful descriptions of the events that led to drug use, abuse, and addiction the authors succeed in weaving a primer on addiction within the developing saga. Engaging and easy to read, this book should be an enormous help for those individuals and families struggling with this disorder to understand addiction. Particularly poignant for this researcher is the repeated focus on the "dark side" of addiction. The author states, 'In fact, you're taking drugs now not so much to feel good as to keep from feeling bad.' The authors illustrate so clearly that seeking drugs to fill emotional holes creates even bigger emotional holes that in turn need to be filled. This phenomenon is the core feature of addiction."--George F. Koob, Ph.D., Professor, Committee on the Neurobiology of Addictive Disorders, The Scripps Research Institute