Comments for QVOF http://qvof.com Quiet Voice On Fire Wed, 10 Mar 2010 06:36:48 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 Comment on Beat Sugar Addiction Now!: The Cutting-Edge Program That Cures Your Type of Sugar Addiction and Puts You on the Road to Feeling Great – and Losing Weight! by Steven Sponaugle http://qvof.com/2010/03/10/beat-sugar-addiction-now-the-cutting-edge-program-that-cures-your-type-of-sugar-addiction-and-puts-you-on-the-road-to-feeling-great-and-losing-weight/comment-page-1/#comment-4910 Steven Sponaugle Wed, 10 Mar 2010 06:36:48 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/10/beat-sugar-addiction-now-the-cutting-edge-program-that-cures-your-type-of-sugar-addiction-and-puts-you-on-the-road-to-feeling-great-and-losing-weight/#comment-4910 Carbohydrate craving is a major cause of obesity. Dr. Teitelbaum is the world's foremost chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia expert and has encountered the four main causes of sugar and carbohydrate addiction in many of these patients. The four main types of sugar addiction are easily identified with the questionaires in this workbook. More importantly, effective treatments for the four main causes of sugar addiction are explained. <br /> <br />I was especially pleased to read the explanation of estrogen deficiency as a cause of low serotonin and carbohydrate craving. Estrogen is needed to open the female Serotonin receptor and many estrogen deficient women are self treating their Serotonin deficiency with carbohydrates which provide a brief Serotonin increase. <br />Sadly, over publicized, poorly designed studies using overdoses of horse estrogens (Premarin) have misled many people to overgeneralize problems with horse estrogens, to human estrogens. <br /> <br />We frequently encounter the hypoglycemia, adrenal exhaustion, fungal overgrowth and Estrogen deficiency versions of sugar addiction at Florida Detox and Wellness Institute and agree with Dr. Teitelbaum that they are hidden causes of sugar addiction. <br /> <br />This book is very readable, even for non scientists. Dr. Teitelbaum reveals he was once a sugar addict and provides sugar addicts an effective compassionate solution in this book. <br /> <br />If you are a sugar addict read this book and take your life back. <br /> <br />Steven Sponaugle <br />Research Director, Florida Detox and Wellness Institute Rating: 5 / 5 Carbohydrate craving is a major cause of obesity. Dr. Teitelbaum is the world’s foremost chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia expert and has encountered the four main causes of sugar and carbohydrate addiction in many of these patients. The four main types of sugar addiction are easily identified with the questionaires in this workbook. More importantly, effective treatments for the four main causes of sugar addiction are explained.

I was especially pleased to read the explanation of estrogen deficiency as a cause of low serotonin and carbohydrate craving. Estrogen is needed to open the female Serotonin receptor and many estrogen deficient women are self treating their Serotonin deficiency with carbohydrates which provide a brief Serotonin increase.

Sadly, over publicized, poorly designed studies using overdoses of horse estrogens (Premarin) have misled many people to overgeneralize problems with horse estrogens, to human estrogens.

We frequently encounter the hypoglycemia, adrenal exhaustion, fungal overgrowth and Estrogen deficiency versions of sugar addiction at Florida Detox and Wellness Institute and agree with Dr. Teitelbaum that they are hidden causes of sugar addiction.

This book is very readable, even for non scientists. Dr. Teitelbaum reveals he was once a sugar addict and provides sugar addicts an effective compassionate solution in this book.

If you are a sugar addict read this book and take your life back.

Steven Sponaugle

Research Director, Florida Detox and Wellness Institute
Rating: 5 / 5

]]> Comment on The 10 Toughest Questions Families and Friends Ask About Addiction and Recovery by Judy Herzanek http://qvof.com/2010/03/07/the-10-toughest-questions-families-and-friends-ask-about-addiction-and-recovery/comment-page-1/#comment-4907 Judy Herzanek Sun, 07 Mar 2010 21:01:15 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/07/the-10-toughest-questions-families-and-friends-ask-about-addiction-and-recovery/#comment-4907 <a href="http://www.amazon.com/review/R21CSYBTFJBKQM">Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R21CSYBTFJBKQM</a> This trailer gives you an idea of how this DVD speaks to friends and families of someone struggling with substance abuse. <br /> <br />When you need answers and hope. . .and do not have a lot of extra time to wade through volumes of material, it will quickly walk you through some of the most-asked questions, point you in the right direction and give you the hope you need to persevere. <br /> <br />For more in-depth but user-friendly info on each of these 10 questions, read the companion book "Why Don't They Just Quit?" by Joe Herzanek. Rating: 5 / 5 Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R21CSYBTFJBKQM This trailer gives you an idea of how this DVD speaks to friends and families of someone struggling with substance abuse.

When you need answers and hope. . .and do not have a lot of extra time to wade through volumes of material, it will quickly walk you through some of the most-asked questions, point you in the right direction and give you the hope you need to persevere.

For more in-depth but user-friendly info on each of these 10 questions, read the companion book “Why Don’t They Just Quit?” by Joe Herzanek.
Rating: 5 / 5

]]> Comment on The 10 Toughest Questions Families and Friends Ask About Addiction and Recovery by Lorne McAndrew http://qvof.com/2010/03/07/the-10-toughest-questions-families-and-friends-ask-about-addiction-and-recovery/comment-page-1/#comment-4906 Lorne McAndrew Sun, 07 Mar 2010 18:03:24 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/07/the-10-toughest-questions-families-and-friends-ask-about-addiction-and-recovery/#comment-4906 I found this DVD to be of great help at a time when help was needed. It answered questions that covered the full range of 'must know' topics. I agreed with the solutions that were posed and it validated what my 'gut' was telling me. It has given me a great sense of 'not being alone' and that is of tremendous relief to me. I recommend watching it with all family members and keeping a copy on hand for anyone who wonders if they may have a family member in distress. Rating: 5 / 5 I found this DVD to be of great help at a time when help was needed. It answered questions that covered the full range of ‘must know’ topics. I agreed with the solutions that were posed and it validated what my ‘gut’ was telling me. It has given me a great sense of ‘not being alone’ and that is of tremendous relief to me. I recommend watching it with all family members and keeping a copy on hand for anyone who wonders if they may have a family member in distress.
Rating: 5 / 5

]]> Comment on Anti Adiction Amino Acid Supplement / Once a day anti craving clinical formula by S. Azevedo http://qvof.com/2010/03/04/anti-adiction-amino-acid-supplement-once-a-day-anti-craving-clinical-formula/comment-page-1/#comment-4903 S. Azevedo Thu, 04 Mar 2010 09:13:04 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/04/anti-adiction-amino-acid-supplement-once-a-day-anti-craving-clinical-formula/#comment-4903 I take my packet everyday, It helps me banish the cravings on days when it hardest ~ especially weekends. Make sure to have plenty of water with these so they absorb better. Good work. Rating: 5 / 5 I take my packet everyday, It helps me banish the cravings on days when it hardest ~ especially weekends. Make sure to have plenty of water with these so they absorb better. Good work.
Rating: 5 / 5

]]> Comment on In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction by Konrad Baumeister http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/comment-page-1/#comment-4902 Konrad Baumeister Wed, 03 Mar 2010 22:30:27 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/#comment-4902 There is a lot of information in this book, a great deal of it painful, important, informative and eye-opening. There is some that isn't, too. <br /> <br />Mate addresses addiction to substances and behaviors both legal and illegal in a variety of different ways. The first section of the book is taken up by encounters with addicts primarily street people, patients of Dr Mate on Vancouver's skid row, its addict colonies. He goes into their back stories, their addictions and behaviors, and their prospects for the future. Generally he treats them with patience, a great deal of empathy, sometimes frustration, but generally sympathetically. How these people came to develop as they did is important, and in fact I felt his sensitive treatment of these people - and they remain people - was just about the strongest part of the book. <br /> <br />He moves on to the chemistry of the drugs, and of the brain, and how they interact, and what makes a substance addictive or attractive. The fact is, Mate points out, that it's the person who is addictive, the drug itself is not by itself the addiction. It is a vehicle recruited to satisfy the craving already existing in a person. Many people take drugs or alcohol and do not become addicted; why is it that others do? <br /> <br />There is a good deal of additional information on the development of the brain itself, from the very beginning through childhood through adulthood, as well as its ability is some cases to partially self-heal, to continue growing and to adapt to sudden changes. This information will make the reader give some very serious consideration to parenting, to child development, and the like, even in the absence of drug or addiction issues. I also felt this section of the book to be well explained, perhaps a little too technical, but very powerful stuff. <br /> <br />On the other hand, the author has a tendency to make himself the subject of the book a little bit too often, at least for this reviewer. Dr Mate discusses issues that have affected, and continue to affect himself (and his family by extension) in the realm of behavioral addiction or compulsion - ADD, and a compulsion for purchasing classical music CDs. I must confess I don't know if I think this is helpful or not. On the one hand, he clearly wants to make the point that addictions come in various guises, and wants to be able to relate to his patients as being one of them in at least some small way, and hopefully being more accepting and non-judgemental and understanding as a result; on the other hand, if addictions are by their nature destructive, unhealthy compulsions, roads to personal ruin, then while an extremely large and highly unwieldy collection of Beethoven works may run to money, this is hardly going to bankrupt the author, a very successful practitioner, author and speaker, and hardly falls otherwise into the category of anything other than something of an expensive hobby. His son may have felt somewhat neglected as a result; but it seems likely that if not for this reason, then he may well have felt neglected for another in its absence. Nobody ever feels as though they were treated precisely as they would have liked by their parents. <br /> <br />Further, like a great number of Canadians, Mate doesn't care for the United States, and hates George Bush. And, like a great number of Canadians, he also wants to make sure we all know it, and obviously thought it important enough to insert this information in various locations in his book. Criticism of the US attitude to drug addiction is certainly a valid topic for discussion in this book; but even in a tome of 450 pages, I don't know that it is absolutely imperitive to address the issue of Bush in a flak jacket on an aircraft carrier saying stupid things unrelated to anything else in the book, least of all its ostensible topic. <br /> <br />The author finishes by discussing suggested treatments for addicts, from harm reduction techniques, to a suggested vastly improved political/health approach to addiction in contrast to the highly destructive War On Drugs that has clearly failed on every level (no disagreement there). His discussion on approaches loved ones and friends can try reveals just how difficult this aspect of the problem is - criticism and guilt, while they seem to be the tough-love one considers virtually the default mode for approaching an addict, are much more likely to exacerbate the situation than love, acceptance and constructive engagement. For many - most? - no approach is going to work to 'fix' the problem, and one must move to a harm reduction mode. <br /> <br />Mate knows a great deal about addiction in various forms, and the reader will take away from this book some understanding of the various issues that combine to make an addict an addict, and will hopefully also learn how to reduce the risks of inducing the same needs and cravings in others, particularily their own children. That said, the book is very long, and occasionally the reader feels taken on detours that are of lesser interest and relevance. Rating: 4 / 5 There is a lot of information in this book, a great deal of it painful, important, informative and eye-opening. There is some that isn’t, too.

Mate addresses addiction to substances and behaviors both legal and illegal in a variety of different ways. The first section of the book is taken up by encounters with addicts primarily street people, patients of Dr Mate on Vancouver’s skid row, its addict colonies. He goes into their back stories, their addictions and behaviors, and their prospects for the future. Generally he treats them with patience, a great deal of empathy, sometimes frustration, but generally sympathetically. How these people came to develop as they did is important, and in fact I felt his sensitive treatment of these people – and they remain people – was just about the strongest part of the book.

He moves on to the chemistry of the drugs, and of the brain, and how they interact, and what makes a substance addictive or attractive. The fact is, Mate points out, that it’s the person who is addictive, the drug itself is not by itself the addiction. It is a vehicle recruited to satisfy the craving already existing in a person. Many people take drugs or alcohol and do not become addicted; why is it that others do?

There is a good deal of additional information on the development of the brain itself, from the very beginning through childhood through adulthood, as well as its ability is some cases to partially self-heal, to continue growing and to adapt to sudden changes. This information will make the reader give some very serious consideration to parenting, to child development, and the like, even in the absence of drug or addiction issues. I also felt this section of the book to be well explained, perhaps a little too technical, but very powerful stuff.

On the other hand, the author has a tendency to make himself the subject of the book a little bit too often, at least for this reviewer. Dr Mate discusses issues that have affected, and continue to affect himself (and his family by extension) in the realm of behavioral addiction or compulsion – ADD, and a compulsion for purchasing classical music CDs. I must confess I don’t know if I think this is helpful or not. On the one hand, he clearly wants to make the point that addictions come in various guises, and wants to be able to relate to his patients as being one of them in at least some small way, and hopefully being more accepting and non-judgemental and understanding as a result; on the other hand, if addictions are by their nature destructive, unhealthy compulsions, roads to personal ruin, then while an extremely large and highly unwieldy collection of Beethoven works may run to money, this is hardly going to bankrupt the author, a very successful practitioner, author and speaker, and hardly falls otherwise into the category of anything other than something of an expensive hobby. His son may have felt somewhat neglected as a result; but it seems likely that if not for this reason, then he may well have felt neglected for another in its absence. Nobody ever feels as though they were treated precisely as they would have liked by their parents.

Further, like a great number of Canadians, Mate doesn’t care for the United States, and hates George Bush. And, like a great number of Canadians, he also wants to make sure we all know it, and obviously thought it important enough to insert this information in various locations in his book. Criticism of the US attitude to drug addiction is certainly a valid topic for discussion in this book; but even in a tome of 450 pages, I don’t know that it is absolutely imperitive to address the issue of Bush in a flak jacket on an aircraft carrier saying stupid things unrelated to anything else in the book, least of all its ostensible topic.

The author finishes by discussing suggested treatments for addicts, from harm reduction techniques, to a suggested vastly improved political/health approach to addiction in contrast to the highly destructive War On Drugs that has clearly failed on every level (no disagreement there). His discussion on approaches loved ones and friends can try reveals just how difficult this aspect of the problem is – criticism and guilt, while they seem to be the tough-love one considers virtually the default mode for approaching an addict, are much more likely to exacerbate the situation than love, acceptance and constructive engagement. For many – most? – no approach is going to work to ‘fix’ the problem, and one must move to a harm reduction mode.

Mate knows a great deal about addiction in various forms, and the reader will take away from this book some understanding of the various issues that combine to make an addict an addict, and will hopefully also learn how to reduce the risks of inducing the same needs and cravings in others, particularily their own children. That said, the book is very long, and occasionally the reader feels taken on detours that are of lesser interest and relevance.
Rating: 4 / 5

]]> Comment on In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction by JackOfMostTrades http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/comment-page-1/#comment-4901 JackOfMostTrades Wed, 03 Mar 2010 22:16:27 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/#comment-4901 Hungry ghosts is a great metaphor. If you think about addiction, those who are labeled as addicts really have a simple problem brought on by a complex world. It goes back to the pleasure principle, is an early psychological concept, and because it is, it has a spiritual dimension. Psychological thought grew out of a century that saw the person as conflicted between civilization and its discontents, as Freud said. Since then, of course, we're not supposed to be discontented so much as coming up with the next big thing that will make everyone happy--there's even a program for it called 'Positive Psychology' about which there is no need to mention. If we are all economic units and we are labeled in digitalized terms, i.e., good/bad, and you fall for that bizarre Western idea, your not going to like a psychologist who is closer in philosophy to philosophers and writers: 'Our problems lie not in the stars, Horatio..." Any reasonable person should figure out a basic principle. Whatever you may be addicted to is the result that you are happier taking or doing whatever you do than not. If you're happy with things as they are, no addiction. Check just about any World Health Organization report, and you'll see these days people aren't happy with things as they are, and it's not owing to being weak willed or not getting with the program--like AA, which, from my knowing a number of people in that group, seems to be very close to another form of addiction--and I don't mean coffee and donuts. What Mate is suggesting is that addiction plays a homeostatic role in our attempt to be one with the universe: that is what all religions teach, but when religion is scoffed at and perverted, well, maybe you need something else. Personally, I loathe the idea of being 'addicted' to anything. I don't want my reality filtered through some consciousness-changing substance or behavior. The people Mate describe are not so lucky. I'm no better than they. Such people simply have a problem with living, NOT a 'mental problem' unless it's a rare case in which the individual has some organic disorder. Mate has his own problems, and it can be easy to say simply, "Doctor, heal thyself." But his compulsions, admitted to here and elsewhere as in his book 'Scattered' don't dismiss his insights. Mate describes people who see a world where little makes sense; if something dulls you to the senselessness to help you get by, should we be surprised. I bet you have your own pet 'habit' that does the same. I'd venture to say some people might balance their intellectual, emotional, and spiritual selves by writing customer reviews on Amazon for free. Rating: 4 / 5 Hungry ghosts is a great metaphor. If you think about addiction, those who are labeled as addicts really have a simple problem brought on by a complex world. It goes back to the pleasure principle, is an early psychological concept, and because it is, it has a spiritual dimension. Psychological thought grew out of a century that saw the person as conflicted between civilization and its discontents, as Freud said. Since then, of course, we’re not supposed to be discontented so much as coming up with the next big thing that will make everyone happy–there’s even a program for it called ‘Positive Psychology’ about which there is no need to mention. If we are all economic units and we are labeled in digitalized terms, i.e., good/bad, and you fall for that bizarre Western idea, your not going to like a psychologist who is closer in philosophy to philosophers and writers: ‘Our problems lie not in the stars, Horatio…” Any reasonable person should figure out a basic principle. Whatever you may be addicted to is the result that you are happier taking or doing whatever you do than not. If you’re happy with things as they are, no addiction. Check just about any World Health Organization report, and you’ll see these days people aren’t happy with things as they are, and it’s not owing to being weak willed or not getting with the program–like AA, which, from my knowing a number of people in that group, seems to be very close to another form of addiction–and I don’t mean coffee and donuts. What Mate is suggesting is that addiction plays a homeostatic role in our attempt to be one with the universe: that is what all religions teach, but when religion is scoffed at and perverted, well, maybe you need something else. Personally, I loathe the idea of being ‘addicted’ to anything. I don’t want my reality filtered through some consciousness-changing substance or behavior. The people Mate describe are not so lucky. I’m no better than they. Such people simply have a problem with living, NOT a ‘mental problem’ unless it’s a rare case in which the individual has some organic disorder. Mate has his own problems, and it can be easy to say simply, “Doctor, heal thyself.” But his compulsions, admitted to here and elsewhere as in his book ‘Scattered’ don’t dismiss his insights. Mate describes people who see a world where little makes sense; if something dulls you to the senselessness to help you get by, should we be surprised. I bet you have your own pet ‘habit’ that does the same. I’d venture to say some people might balance their intellectual, emotional, and spiritual selves by writing customer reviews on Amazon for free.
Rating: 4 / 5

]]> Comment on In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction by Michael McKee http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/comment-page-1/#comment-4900 Michael McKee Wed, 03 Mar 2010 19:49:58 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/#comment-4900 Taken as a whole, I found this book moving and real. The stories of addicts pull no punches and the comparison of our addictive tendencies in everyday life to hardcore drug addiction works for me. As a former psychiatric social worker, I've had some contact with the same population as Dr. Mate and share his belief that our "war on drug" is a failure in both conception and implementation. He states clearly that people take drugs to avoid pain. I've seen so many clients self-medicate on illegal substances that I have no option but to agree. How do you declare "war" on that? <br /> <br />He offers some possible solutions or at least approaches. Those show both deep compassion and an understanding of the underlying dynamic of addiction. Whether they would work or not, I couldn't say. But the value of the book is not in solutions but rather in Mate's ability to make the suffering and situations real, to help us relate to people who are addicted not as them, as addicts, but as real individuals who take the only path they see to escape their pain. It's a "there but for the grace of God, go I" attitude, which de-demonizes the self-destructive behaviors. In that, it succeeds. <br /> <br />The book is not linear. It's more an extended questioning of the addiction process, and as the process is complex and convoluted the exploration becomes so too. The stories Mate tells are heart rending and well told. He is a true witness for addicts and deserves to be read. Rating: 4 / 5 Taken as a whole, I found this book moving and real. The stories of addicts pull no punches and the comparison of our addictive tendencies in everyday life to hardcore drug addiction works for me. As a former psychiatric social worker, I’ve had some contact with the same population as Dr. Mate and share his belief that our “war on drug” is a failure in both conception and implementation. He states clearly that people take drugs to avoid pain. I’ve seen so many clients self-medicate on illegal substances that I have no option but to agree. How do you declare “war” on that?

He offers some possible solutions or at least approaches. Those show both deep compassion and an understanding of the underlying dynamic of addiction. Whether they would work or not, I couldn’t say. But the value of the book is not in solutions but rather in Mate’s ability to make the suffering and situations real, to help us relate to people who are addicted not as them, as addicts, but as real individuals who take the only path they see to escape their pain. It’s a “there but for the grace of God, go I” attitude, which de-demonizes the self-destructive behaviors. In that, it succeeds.

The book is not linear. It’s more an extended questioning of the addiction process, and as the process is complex and convoluted the exploration becomes so too. The stories Mate tells are heart rending and well told. He is a true witness for addicts and deserves to be read.
Rating: 4 / 5

]]> Comment on In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction by Antigone Walsh http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/comment-page-1/#comment-4899 Antigone Walsh Wed, 03 Mar 2010 19:01:16 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/#comment-4899 This rather lengthy book presents Dr.Gabor Mate's perspective on addiction. Incorporating research on brain chemistry, neurobiology with politics, religious philosophy and his sympathetic portrayal of the denizens of the Vancouver skid row where he works, Mate attempts to challenge preconceptions about addiction while attempting to make sense of his own personal challenges. The books also features black and white photos of some of his patients...a worn and scruffy looking bunch as well as a single shsot of what looks like a little bike made out of paper clips, a gift from a client. There also is an appendix and footnotes. <br /> <br />I found the sections on brain chemistry and the mechanics of addiction fascinating. Chapter 31 features Mate's adaptation of a method created by Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz to relieve the " brain lock"(where brain mechanisms are stuck causing obssessive copulsives to act out before control can be implemented) makes considerable sense. I would have liked to see more on neuro-plasticity. <br /> <br />The rest of the book,unfortunately, is less successful. Gabor inserts himself invirutally every chapter. He compares his rather minor shopaholic tendencies (he buys massive numbers of classical music CDs)to the addicts, contending that in fact we are all addicted to something and hence should be more compassionate. His points against the war on drugs are darkened by what amounts to an anti-american, anti-police rant.(He also disregards changes made in the criminal justice system, including iplementation of drug treatment and mental health courts as well as repeal of some of the more draconian drug penalties.) His suggestions for addresing addiction, ie legalization, providing clean,safe, shelter are naive. He chooses to minimize the violent, negative and criminal behavior of the addicts as well as the economic constraints challenging governments today. In societies where families are struggling with afordable health care, it is unlikely that Cadillac care for addicts who fail to follow through with treatment or treatment recommendations will be popular. He does not suggest how his plan should be funded. <br /> <br />I found some aspects of this book quite troubling. He relates the story of an HIV infected, pregnant addict who gives birth to an addicted baby which eventually winds up in foster home. It would appear instead of supporting a woman's choice, he would provide his addicts with a shot of Depo Provara instead of condemning a child to the hell of the foster system and the same type of parental neglect which results in the brain chemistry that contributes to addictive susceptability. While acknowledging that addicts are generally poor patients, he fails to fully address the consequences of their irresponsibility, including antibiotic resistant drugs, infecting other people with disease and the trauma of crime. I understand compassion but does he understand responsibility? <br /> <br />This book is a challenging read and is thought provoking in many regards. On the down side, it is a bit disorganized and colored by the author's inflexible bias. <br /> <br /> <br /> Rating: 3 / 5 This rather lengthy book presents Dr.Gabor Mate’s perspective on addiction. Incorporating research on brain chemistry, neurobiology with politics, religious philosophy and his sympathetic portrayal of the denizens of the Vancouver skid row where he works, Mate attempts to challenge preconceptions about addiction while attempting to make sense of his own personal challenges. The books also features black and white photos of some of his patients…a worn and scruffy looking bunch as well as a single shsot of what looks like a little bike made out of paper clips, a gift from a client. There also is an appendix and footnotes.

I found the sections on brain chemistry and the mechanics of addiction fascinating. Chapter 31 features Mate’s adaptation of a method created by Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz to relieve the ” brain lock”(where brain mechanisms are stuck causing obssessive copulsives to act out before control can be implemented) makes considerable sense. I would have liked to see more on neuro-plasticity.

The rest of the book,unfortunately, is less successful. Gabor inserts himself invirutally every chapter. He compares his rather minor shopaholic tendencies (he buys massive numbers of classical music CDs)to the addicts, contending that in fact we are all addicted to something and hence should be more compassionate. His points against the war on drugs are darkened by what amounts to an anti-american, anti-police rant.(He also disregards changes made in the criminal justice system, including iplementation of drug treatment and mental health courts as well as repeal of some of the more draconian drug penalties.) His suggestions for addresing addiction, ie legalization, providing clean,safe, shelter are naive. He chooses to minimize the violent, negative and criminal behavior of the addicts as well as the economic constraints challenging governments today. In societies where families are struggling with afordable health care, it is unlikely that Cadillac care for addicts who fail to follow through with treatment or treatment recommendations will be popular. He does not suggest how his plan should be funded.

I found some aspects of this book quite troubling. He relates the story of an HIV infected, pregnant addict who gives birth to an addicted baby which eventually winds up in foster home. It would appear instead of supporting a woman’s choice, he would provide his addicts with a shot of Depo Provara instead of condemning a child to the hell of the foster system and the same type of parental neglect which results in the brain chemistry that contributes to addictive susceptability. While acknowledging that addicts are generally poor patients, he fails to fully address the consequences of their irresponsibility, including antibiotic resistant drugs, infecting other people with disease and the trauma of crime. I understand compassion but does he understand responsibility?

This book is a challenging read and is thought provoking in many regards. On the down side, it is a bit disorganized and colored by the author’s inflexible bias.

Rating: 3 / 5

]]> Comment on In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction by Teragram Scavok http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/comment-page-1/#comment-4898 Teragram Scavok Wed, 03 Mar 2010 17:20:49 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/03/03/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts-close-encounters-with-addiction/#comment-4898 This book is flying off the shelves, almost unanimously praised for its compassion and insight. But let the buyer beware. Mate's prose is very seductive and smooth, drawing the reader in like a magnet (much like his profuse apologies for acting like a total boor with his staff: "Oh, poor Gabor, look how bad he feels! We'd better forgive him." Since there are no consequences for his disrespectful and insensitive behaviour, he dodges responsibility and can get away with repeating the abusive behaviour ad infinitum.) <br /> <br />Yes, the man tries, but by his own admission he is pretty screwed up. Racing out to buy CDs has little or nothing to do with sticking a needle in your arm (and it's a compulsion, not an addiction: there is a universe of difference). He's trying the old "see, I'm just like them" trick, another form of ingratiating himself and beguiling his audience, or at least pulling them in enough to feel sorry for him. <br /> <br />His insistence that he has "made progress" with his own addictive patterns is, to say the least, suspect. He writes $100 cheques to placate his office staff (a completely baffling move, as he is literally buying them off: giving them cash, presumably, so he can be as late as he likes), not to mention $1000 cheques to his wife to buffer his voracious appetite for "symphonic recordings". Then he swears it all off, saying he won't buy another CD until 2009. <br /> <br />My guess is that his buying compulsion is now completely out of control. This is because swearing off doesn't work, and Mate lacks any real insight into himself and his problems. Instead he "fixes" everybody else. It makes him feel good, distracts him from his abject self-loathing for a moment, and gives him a sense of power. <br /> <br />And let's not get into his summary of AA and the 12 Steps after attending one meeting. If Mate had attended one class on, say, heart function, would you trust him to treat your angina? Did he, in fact, get away with such slick behaviour in med school through smooth writing and abject apology? <br /> <br />No one seems to be objecting to all this, probably because he has pretty much seduced the reading public. Believe me, when you meet the man, you wonder where all that "compassion" is coming from. He is cold and abrupt, stinging you with nasty little barbs, then acting surprised when you react: must be repressed emotion from childhood, don't you know (for which you must read When the Body Says No). He will dig and dig and dig, pulling out long ribbons of past pain while hiding behind an impenetrable shield. But hey - the man's just trying to help you! <br /> <br />Mate will always get his bread buttered, as he is an opportunist who can use the written word to get what he wants. But readers should beware. This is a man so screwed up that he literally ground his teeth down to stubs. (Was he too proud to go to a dentist?). In short, he does not walk the talk. Myself, I will follow what he advises the minute HE starts doing the same. And it's not likely to happen. As the old saying goes, "Take my advice, I'm not using it." <br /> <br /> Rating: 3 / 5 This book is flying off the shelves, almost unanimously praised for its compassion and insight. But let the buyer beware. Mate’s prose is very seductive and smooth, drawing the reader in like a magnet (much like his profuse apologies for acting like a total boor with his staff: “Oh, poor Gabor, look how bad he feels! We’d better forgive him.” Since there are no consequences for his disrespectful and insensitive behaviour, he dodges responsibility and can get away with repeating the abusive behaviour ad infinitum.)

Yes, the man tries, but by his own admission he is pretty screwed up. Racing out to buy CDs has little or nothing to do with sticking a needle in your arm (and it’s a compulsion, not an addiction: there is a universe of difference). He’s trying the old “see, I’m just like them” trick, another form of ingratiating himself and beguiling his audience, or at least pulling them in enough to feel sorry for him.

His insistence that he has “made progress” with his own addictive patterns is, to say the least, suspect. He writes $100 cheques to placate his office staff (a completely baffling move, as he is literally buying them off: giving them cash, presumably, so he can be as late as he likes), not to mention $1000 cheques to his wife to buffer his voracious appetite for “symphonic recordings”. Then he swears it all off, saying he won’t buy another CD until 2009.

My guess is that his buying compulsion is now completely out of control. This is because swearing off doesn’t work, and Mate lacks any real insight into himself and his problems. Instead he “fixes” everybody else. It makes him feel good, distracts him from his abject self-loathing for a moment, and gives him a sense of power.

And let’s not get into his summary of AA and the 12 Steps after attending one meeting. If Mate had attended one class on, say, heart function, would you trust him to treat your angina? Did he, in fact, get away with such slick behaviour in med school through smooth writing and abject apology?

No one seems to be objecting to all this, probably because he has pretty much seduced the reading public. Believe me, when you meet the man, you wonder where all that “compassion” is coming from. He is cold and abrupt, stinging you with nasty little barbs, then acting surprised when you react: must be repressed emotion from childhood, don’t you know (for which you must read When the Body Says No). He will dig and dig and dig, pulling out long ribbons of past pain while hiding behind an impenetrable shield. But hey – the man’s just trying to help you!

Mate will always get his bread buttered, as he is an opportunist who can use the written word to get what he wants. But readers should beware. This is a man so screwed up that he literally ground his teeth down to stubs. (Was he too proud to go to a dentist?). In short, he does not walk the talk. Myself, I will follow what he advises the minute HE starts doing the same. And it’s not likely to happen. As the old saying goes, “Take my advice, I’m not using it.”

Rating: 3 / 5

]]> Comment on #1 Bestselling Book – The 7 Keys for Christian Success * Grow Spiritually and Live in Total Victory! * Includes over 101 of the Best Scriptural Prayers and God’s Bible Promises! by Dr Jerry Fowler http://qvof.com/2010/02/28/1-bestselling-book-the-7-keys-for-christian-success-grow-spiritually-and-live-in-total-victory-includes-over-101-of-the-best-scriptural-prayers-and-gods-bible-promises/comment-page-1/#comment-4897 Dr Jerry Fowler Sun, 28 Feb 2010 20:47:15 +0000 http://qvof.com/2010/02/28/1-bestselling-book-the-7-keys-for-christian-success-grow-spiritually-and-live-in-total-victory-includes-over-101-of-the-best-scriptural-prayers-and-gods-bible-promises/#comment-4897 This is the #1 Bestselling Book for your spiritual growth! <br /> <br />The 7 Keys for Christian Success! <br />Positive ae Encouraging ae Inspirational <br /> <br />7 Chapters cover: <br />Ch 1 Pray powerfully and get answers to your Prayers! <br />Ch 2 Learn God's Best Bible Promises for every need! <br />Ch 3 How to multiply your power in Prayer! <br />Ch 4 Reach your Goals and Dreams! <br />Ch 5 Increase Self-Esteem and get Faith for miracles! <br />Ch 6 Grow closer to Jesus - Receive His blessings! <br />Ch 7 Speak Victory! For your health, wealth, success! <br /> <br />* Positive Prayers work! They will work for you! <br />* Prayers are Faith-Filled, Biblical, and focused on solutions! <br />* Praying God's word is the most powerful way to pray! <br />* Praise and Thank Jesus! He is bigger than any obstacle you face! <br />* This Book covers Positive Prayers & God's Bible Promises CD scripts! <br />* Get spiritual, financial, and total Victory! <br />* Makes great inspirational Christian gifts! <br /> <br />We are getting incredible REVIEWS and TESTIMONIES - Samples: <br />The 7 Keys were very motivational <br /> <br />Dr Jerry, <br /> <br />Many thanks for the 7 Keys for Christian Success. They are very motivating. I am a child of God who was originally astray but since 2004 I made a u-turn and, therefore, I intend to get closer to God. For this reason, I always welcome spiritual material because I know it's one way to help my spiritual growth. I would appreciate if you sent me more. I intend to give these keys to my colleagues so that they also benefit like I have done. <br /> <br />Keep doing God's work as you will be blessing more people. <br /> <br />Stay blessed and I look forward to more. <br /> <br />Hilda <br /> <br />Listening has been a Blessing! <br /> <br />I would like to thank you for the Prayer CD with Praying God's Promises that you have been blessed to make. I first bought "Positive Prayers for Christian Success". Last week I purchased the Prayer CD with biblical prayers for Financial Blessings. Listening to these Prayer CDs have been a blessing in my life. I play them early AM - I wear my headset and listen also at night when I go to bed. Once again, thank you! <br /> <br />God Bless you and your family, <br /> <br />Mary Webb <br />San Diego, CA <br /> <br />Changed Prayer Life! <br /> <br />Dear Dr Jerry, <br /> <br />I know my prayer life will never be the same after going through the 7 Keys for Christian Success in your book. You have an awesome system to help people achieve their goals & dreams! Listening to the Prayer CD with Biblical Prayer has been very uplifting. <br /> <br />I think these prayers are Powerful Prayers because they are praying God's Word. God always keeps His word! <br /> <br />Thanks and God bless you, <br /> <br />Della B. <br /> <br /> <br />Inspirational Prayers with Prayer Power! <br /> <br />Dr. Jerry <br /> <br />I listen to the Prayer CDs with God's Favor and Blessings everyday. I'm still trying as hard as I can to get my business off the ground. I need to find one client mid size or larger. I'm trying everything I can do. Your Prayer CD with Powerful Prayers - with the encouraging and inspirational prayers is my only saving grace so I don't have a break down. <br /> <br />Peter <br /> <br /> <br />Praying God's Promises brings more Happiness! <br /> <br />Blessings to you, <br /> <br />I was in a BIG depression... I now have happiness from praying God's Promises everyday with your new system. Things have changed SO MUCH since I started praying to the Lord with these inspirational prayers. My life is so much happier! I am going to buy lots more for gifts. <br /> <br />Thank You, <br />Betty (Tampa, FLA) <br /> <br /> <br />Encouragement with Powerful Prayers! <br /> <br />I received my order yesterday. I put my Prayer CD in the car and listened to the 7 Positive Prayers a bit yesterday - and also on my way to work this morning. My heart is already uplifted greatly. I would like to order another set for my friend. God has blessed me, and I really feel it will help me as I move forward. <br /> <br />Thank You, <br />Diane F. (Pueblo, CO) <br /> <br /> <br />Peaceful listening with Prayer CD! <br /> <br />Dr. Jerry, <br /> <br />Thank You!! I have really enjoyed Praying God's Word with the Positive Prayers and God's Bible Promises for the last 21 Days. I really love the background music too. It is very peaceful. I especially like track 6 on "receiving Financial Blessings." We are trusting God for our own home now. Praise the Lord! <br /> <br />Thanks Again, <br />Stephen (New York, New York) <br /> <br /> <br />Prayer Power brings the Power of Prayer! <br /> <br />Dear Dr. Jerry, <br /> <br />I was heavily "backslidden". My life was totally on the wrong track. I decided to make a dedication. Instead of filling up my mind with "secular" music all the time, I began listen to the "God's Bible Promises" and biblical prayer. This alone has radically changed my life. I am so much closer to Jesus now. These Bible Verses are very inspirational and motivational for me. It is more of a "relationship" now. I am FOREVER grateful for these inspirational prayers!! <br /> <br />Thank You so much for this Positive Prayer CD! <br /> <br />God Bless You, <br />Theresa M. (Atlanta, GA) <br /> <br /> <br />Biblical Prayer with Prayer Power! <br /> <br />Thank God for discovering your website and your ministry. I have been blessed tremendously through this opportunity to learn thus far. I am anxiously waiting for more inspirational prayers. I am expecting Success Keys #5 to #7 and as many other articles or Prayer Power for answered prayers that could help my continuous spiritual growth. <br /> <br />I thank you very sincerely for your service to mankind. God bless you and your Ministry. <br /> <br />Thank you for helping me to have Power of Prayer, <br /> <br />Joshua <br /> <br /> <br /> Rating: 5 / 5 This is the #1 Bestselling Book for your spiritual growth!

The 7 Keys for Christian Success!

Positive ae Encouraging ae Inspirational

7 Chapters cover:

Ch 1 Pray powerfully and get answers to your Prayers!

Ch 2 Learn God’s Best Bible Promises for every need!

Ch 3 How to multiply your power in Prayer!

Ch 4 Reach your Goals and Dreams!

Ch 5 Increase Self-Esteem and get Faith for miracles!

Ch 6 Grow closer to Jesus – Receive His blessings!

Ch 7 Speak Victory! For your health, wealth, success!

* Positive Prayers work! They will work for you!

* Prayers are Faith-Filled, Biblical, and focused on solutions!

* Praying God’s word is the most powerful way to pray!

* Praise and Thank Jesus! He is bigger than any obstacle you face!

* This Book covers Positive Prayers & God’s Bible Promises CD scripts!

* Get spiritual, financial, and total Victory!

* Makes great inspirational Christian gifts!

We are getting incredible REVIEWS and TESTIMONIES – Samples:

The 7 Keys were very motivational

Dr Jerry,

Many thanks for the 7 Keys for Christian Success. They are very motivating. I am a child of God who was originally astray but since 2004 I made a u-turn and, therefore, I intend to get closer to God. For this reason, I always welcome spiritual material because I know it’s one way to help my spiritual growth. I would appreciate if you sent me more. I intend to give these keys to my colleagues so that they also benefit like I have done.

Keep doing God’s work as you will be blessing more people.

Stay blessed and I look forward to more.

Hilda

Listening has been a Blessing!

I would like to thank you for the Prayer CD with Praying God’s Promises that you have been blessed to make. I first bought “Positive Prayers for Christian Success”. Last week I purchased the Prayer CD with biblical prayers for Financial Blessings. Listening to these Prayer CDs have been a blessing in my life. I play them early AM – I wear my headset and listen also at night when I go to bed. Once again, thank you!

God Bless you and your family,

Mary Webb

San Diego, CA

Changed Prayer Life!

Dear Dr Jerry,

I know my prayer life will never be the same after going through the 7 Keys for Christian Success in your book. You have an awesome system to help people achieve their goals & dreams! Listening to the Prayer CD with Biblical Prayer has been very uplifting.

I think these prayers are Powerful Prayers because they are praying God’s Word. God always keeps His word!

Thanks and God bless you,

Della B.

Inspirational Prayers with Prayer Power!

Dr. Jerry

I listen to the Prayer CDs with God’s Favor and Blessings everyday. I’m still trying as hard as I can to get my business off the ground. I need to find one client mid size or larger. I’m trying everything I can do. Your Prayer CD with Powerful Prayers – with the encouraging and inspirational prayers is my only saving grace so I don’t have a break down.

Peter

Praying God’s Promises brings more Happiness!

Blessings to you,

I was in a BIG depression… I now have happiness from praying God’s Promises everyday with your new system. Things have changed SO MUCH since I started praying to the Lord with these inspirational prayers. My life is so much happier! I am going to buy lots more for gifts.

Thank You,

Betty (Tampa, FLA)

Encouragement with Powerful Prayers!

I received my order yesterday. I put my Prayer CD in the car and listened to the 7 Positive Prayers a bit yesterday – and also on my way to work this morning. My heart is already uplifted greatly. I would like to order another set for my friend. God has blessed me, and I really feel it will help me as I move forward.

Thank You,

Diane F. (Pueblo, CO)

Peaceful listening with Prayer CD!

Dr. Jerry,

Thank You!! I have really enjoyed Praying God’s Word with the Positive Prayers and God’s Bible Promises for the last 21 Days. I really love the background music too. It is very peaceful. I especially like track 6 on “receiving Financial Blessings.” We are trusting God for our own home now. Praise the Lord!

Thanks Again,

Stephen (New York, New York)

Prayer Power brings the Power of Prayer!

Dear Dr. Jerry,

I was heavily “backslidden”. My life was totally on the wrong track. I decided to make a dedication. Instead of filling up my mind with “secular” music all the time, I began listen to the “God’s Bible Promises” and biblical prayer. This alone has radically changed my life. I am so much closer to Jesus now. These Bible Verses are very inspirational and motivational for me. It is more of a “relationship” now. I am FOREVER grateful for these inspirational prayers!!

Thank You so much for this Positive Prayer CD!

God Bless You,

Theresa M. (Atlanta, GA)

Biblical Prayer with Prayer Power!

Thank God for discovering your website and your ministry. I have been blessed tremendously through this opportunity to learn thus far. I am anxiously waiting for more inspirational prayers. I am expecting Success Keys #5 to #7 and as many other articles or Prayer Power for answered prayers that could help my continuous spiritual growth.

I thank you very sincerely for your service to mankind. God bless you and your Ministry.

Thank you for helping me to have Power of Prayer,

Joshua

Rating: 5 / 5

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