Sane: Mental Illness, Addiction, and the Twelve Steps »

Marya Hornbacher is a journalist as well as a writer of fiction and memoir. Her first book, Wasted: A Memoir of Anorexia and Bulimia, has become a classic. The Center of Winter is her first novel. She lives in Minneapolis.

In this beautifully written recovery handbook New York Times best-selling author Marya Hornbacher applies the wisdom earned from her struggle with a severe mental illness and addiction to offer an honest and illuminating examination of the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous for those with co-occurring addiction and mental health disorders.

Relaying her recovery experiences, and those of the people with whom she has shared her journey, Hornbacher guides readers through the maze of special issues that make working each Step a unique challenge for those with co-occurring disorders. She addresses the difficulty that many with a mental illness have with finding support in a recovery program that often discourages talk about emotional problems, and the therapy and medication that they require. At the same time, Hornbacher reveals how the Twelve Steps can offer insights, spiritual sustenance, and practical guidance to enhance stability for those who truly have to approach sanity and sobriety one day at a time.

Publishers Weekly

"The difference between now and the years when I lived in chaos is that I now have the knowledge, the tools, and the support to handle any kind of challenge, any kind of change." Hornbacher (Madness) writes with honesty, empathy, and personal experience as someone with Bipolar Disorder who has struggled with addiction. She explores the meaning of the Twelve Steps in daily life to someone struggling with addiction, mental illness, or both. From perceptions of addicts ("that we can, by force of will, gain control over the substance to which we're addicted, and that our failure to do that is simply more proof that we are failures as people") to the "God problem" of the Twelve Steps, Hornbacher reaches out to readers in a clear, surprisingly lyrical voice that seeks to understand, assist, and explain. The Steps, she argues, "help us through the difficult passages, and they teach us to take joy in the discoveries we make as we go. What I am discovering as I work and rework the Steps over time is that there is no end to this journey." For anyone seeking to understand or conquer addiction, her book will be a valuable guide and pocket mentor.

Foreword v

Preface vii

Acknowledgments xi

Step 1 Acceptance 1

Step 2 Sanity 11

Step 3 Surrender 23

Step 4 Honesty 37

Step 5 Humility 51

Step 6 Willingness 63

Step 7 Transformation 75

Step 8 Responsibility 87

Step 9 Restitution 101

Step 10 Commitment 117

Step 11 Power 131

Step 12 Service 145

Epilogue: What It's Like Now 161

Appendix A The Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous 164

Appendix B Peer Support Group Resources 166