Readers' rating:
Published Dec 2008
352 pages
Genre: Science, Health and the Environment
Publication Information
What if you found out there was a cure for addiction? A medication that eradicates the need for a fix? This is the story of Olivier Ameisen, a brilliant physician and cardiologist who developed a profound addiction to alcohol. He broke bones with no memory of falling. He nearly lost his kidneys; he fractured ribs and suffered a hemopneumothorax that left blood and air in the sac around his lungs. He gave up his flourishing practice and, fearing for his life, invested himself in Alcoholics Anonymous and, later, rehab.
Nothing worked. So he did the only thing he could: he took his treatment into his own hands. Searching for a cure for his deadly disease, he discovered baclofen, a muscle relaxant that had proven effective in curing rats addicted to every substance from nicotine and alcohol to cocaine and heroin. Ameisen prescribed himself the drug and, over a two-year period, experimented with the dosage until he reached a level high enough to leave him free of any craving for alcohol.
That was four years ago. The End of My Addiction is both a memoir of Ameisen’s own struggle and a groundbreaking call to action—an urgent plea for research that can rescue millions from the scourge of addiction, and spare their loved ones the collateral damage of the disease.
"As a trained physician who is evidently well connected, Ameisen is not a typical patient, yet his work is brave, insightful and sure to be significant." - Publishers Weekly.
This information about The End of My Addiction was first featured
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Olivier Ameisen, MD, was once the personal physician of the prime minister of France. He came to the United States to join the prestigious cardiology team at New York's Weill-Cornell Medical Center. He currently lives in Paris.
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