Drink Your Way Sober - by Katie Herzog (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Discover a revolutionary and evidence-based method to treat alcohol use disorder--that doesn't require abstinence.

After 20 years of fighting and failing to get sober using abstinence-based methods, journalist Katie Herzog found a simple, inexpensive, and effective way to take control over alcohol.

Part memoir, part guidebook, Drink Your Way Sober shares Herzog's recovery journey as well her keen observations of drinking and life. She dives into the science and history of addiction treatment to discover why we treat alcohol use disorder the way we do--and why abstinence-based programs like Alcohol Anonymous don't always work. Through candid first-person reporting, Herzog outlines a simple guide for others to:

Use an evidence-based protocol to take control of their drinking and break free from cravings Explore alternatives to AA and other abstinence-based programs Gain support from family and friends Reap the benefits of a low-alcohol or sober lifestyle, including improved health, relationships, and mental well-being

Blending humor, heartbreak, and refreshing honesty, Drink Your Way Sober offers a relatable and exhaustively researched account of a transformative approach to recovery with tips on how you can drink yourself sober too.

Review Quotes

"In the emotionally and intellectually charged debate about how to recover from addiction, Katie Herzog has written an enlightened and compassionate book that will help a huge number of people. We need more science and more love, and this excellent book brings both."
--Johann Hari, New York Times bestselling author of Lost Connections

"This book is a game changer in the recovery canon, and possibly the world."
--Sarah Hepola, author of Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget

"Drink Your Way Sober is a humane, candid illustration that there are many pathways to recovery from alcohol addiction. With hard-won wisdom, humility, and acerbic wit, Katie Herzog describes a way out of drinking problems that deserves to be better known. People with drinking problems--and those who treat them--will benefit from Herzog's honest and open-minded account of her recovery."
--Keith Humphreys, Esther Ting Memorial Professor of Psychiatry at Stanford University

"Bold, engaging, and deeply researched, this book is essential for anyone struggling with alcohol--or anyone who loves someone who is. With humor, heart, and hard facts, Katie Herzog takes on the myths surrounding naltrexone with the curiosity of an investigator and the candor of a friend. A must-read for anyone interested in science-backed solutions to problem drinking."
--Gabrielle Glaser, author of Her Best-Kept Secret: Why Women Drink-And How They Can Regain Control

"Read the book, and spread the word about this life-saving method."
--Claudia Christian, founder of Options Save Lives

"As Katie Herzog always does, she takes a subject you think you already understand and then shows you how shallow your understanding actually is. Deeply researched, original, insightful, and hopeful."
--Hadley Freeman, author of Good Girls: A Story and Study of Anorexia

"Only Katie Herzog could write an entire book about a little-known researcher and hard-to-pronounce drug and still make it entertaining and fun. I can't wait for the movie."
--Meghan Daum, author of The Catastrophe Hour: Selected Essays

"Herzog bravely challenges convention and points to a more sustainable way forward for those struggling with alcohol use disorder. This book has me rethinking addiction."
--Scott Barry Kaufman, author of Rise Above

"A self-help book like you've never seen before. With equal parts wit and compassion, Herzog challenges conventional wisdom around abstinence-only alcoholism treatment and explores a neglected route to recovery--one grounded in scientific evidence, as well as her and others' moving stories."
--Camilla Nord, Cambridge neuroscientist and author of The Balanced Brain: The Science of Mental Health

"Katie Herzog is one of the sanest voices in independent journalism."
--Sam Harris, neuroscientist and host of the Making Sense podcast

"A brilliant, often funny addiction memoir and a tour de force of reporting on innovative ways to help problem drinkers gain control over their demons. Katie Herzog may well reinvent how we think about alcoholism, its causes, and especially its cures."
--Nick Gillespie, editor at large at Reason magazine

About the Author

Katie Herzog is a journalist living in the Pacific Northwest. She is the host of the podcast Blocked and Reported and a former staff writer at the Seattle alt-weekly The Stranger.