Long Walk Out of the Woods - by Adam B Hill (Paperback)

About the Book

A physician shares the darkest depths of his depression, suicidal ideation, addiction, and the important lessons he learned through years of personal recovery.

Book Synopsis

A physician shares the darkest depths of his depression, suicidal ideation, addiction, and the important lessons he learned through years of personal recovery.

Pediatric oncologist and palliative care physician Dr. Adam B. Hill suffered despair and disillusionment with the culture of medicine, culminating in a spiral of depression, alcoholism, and an active suicidal plan. Then while in recovery from active addiction, he lost a colleague to suicide, further revealing the extent of the secrecy and broken systems contributing to an epidemic of professional distress within the medical field.

By sharing his harrowing story, Dr. Hill helps identify the barriers and obstacles standing in the way of mental health recovery, while pleading for a revolutionary new approach to how we treat individuals in substance use recovery. In fighting stereotypes/stigma and teaching vulnerability, compassion, and empathy, Hill's work is being lauded as a road map for better practices at a time when medical professionals around the world are struggling in silence.

Review Quotes

(Library Journal) Hill, MD, Adam B. Long Walk Out of the Woods: A Physician's Story of Addiction, Depression, Hope, and Recovery. Central Recovery Press. Dec. 2019. 170p. ISBN 9781949481228. pap. $16.95; ebk. ISBN9781949481235

Oncologist Hill (pediatric palliative care, Indiana Univ. Riley Hospital for Children) shares a deeply personal story of addiction, depression, hope, and recovery in an effort to improve access, treatment options, and resources for all affected by similar conditions. Writing from firsthand experience, he relates feelings of extreme turmoil as well as the disappointments he faced in seeking treatment, emphasizing throughout the important role empathy plays in the process of healing and understanding the suffering of others with addiction issues.

VERDICT Hill's engaging memoir comes with lessons for students and those working primarily in the medical field.--Deborah Bigelow, Dexter District Library, MI

This book is a wake-up call, not only for the medical profession, but for our culture at large.--Eben Alexander, MD, Neurosurgeon and Author of Proof of Heaven

Exposing the stigmatizing and illogical aspects of the culture of medicine when it comes to caring for our own, this book has the power to transform an already shifting culture and should be required reading for all medical trainees.--Christine Moutier, MD, Chief Medical Officer, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

I did not need to read this book to be able to describe the incredible integrity and merits of Dr. Adam Hill. I've had the honor of working with him on some very difficult cases over the years. Reading Long Walk Out of the Woods, however, gives one the insight necessary to gain an understanding of the suffering Adam endured in a way that, hopefully, will help others in the same boat. In reading his words, he is both the fragile man in the book and the amazing man that he has become in recovery. His transparency and integrity will undoubtedly help reduce fear associated with being honest. His commitment to reduce stigma and embrace being a flawed human being as we all are is an example for us all. Thank you, Adam, for the courage and the reminder!--Jim Ryser, MA, LMHC, LCAC, TTS, Chronic Pain and Addiction Specialist, former Arista Records solo artist and guitarist for John Mellencamp

Although about addiction and depression, this is a hope-filled book that speaks directly to those overworked, over-committed and burned out. Dr. Hill is the prototypical wounded healer whose life story exemplifies that in helping others reciprocal healing occurs. For those feeling helpless and hopeless, this book can be life-saving.--Joseph Maroon, MD, Professor of Neurosurgery and Heindl Scholar in Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Author of Square One: The Secret to a Balanced Life

There's no healing without connection, no matter how much we want it to be otherwise. This is the very honest, true, unadorned story of a young man who wants to be a doctor without quite knowing why and who cracks up on the rocks of self-will, depression, and addiction. He very nearly drowns, but happily for him, for his patients, and the rest of us, he does not. He survives and learns how to use his suffering for his own and the greater good, and for more connection, less isolation, and more healing. Thank you, Adam.--Mark Vonnegut, MD

Adam Hill has given us an extraordinary gift. Yes, Dr. Hill is a natural storyteller and the writing is beautiful. Yes, the observations he makes about the isolation of physicians struggling in a system that despises weakness are astonishing and desperately needed. And yes, his suggestions for transforming the culture of medicine, which has grown so ill, are among the wisest and most insightful words on the topic I have read in a decade. These are all gifts, and we should be deeply grateful to him. But the truly extraordinary gift he has given us is the gift of his own honesty and vulnerability. He has offered a hope that heals to those of us who have struggled with depression, addiction, anxiety, or the lonely fear that so many of us experience in the journey called becoming a doctor. By opening himself to us, he has shown us a way out of the woods. I wish every medical student, resident, and attending physician in the country had a copy of this extraordinary book.--Raymond Barfield, MD, PhD, Professor of Pediatrics and Christian Philosophy, Duke University

Long Walk Out of the Woods is a memoir of addiction and redemption told with self-awareness, humility, and candor. Dr. Hill exposes the professional obstacles that doctors experience when they seek help for depression and substance use. --Dr. Judy Melinek, Coauthor of Working Stiff: Two Years, 262 Bodies, and The Making of a Medical Examiner

Stigma is a formidable barrier to mental healthcare. Consequently, despite the availability of effective treatment, many people with mental health difficulties, especially physicians, continue to suffer in silence. Dr. Adam Hill's candid and courageous account of his lived experience as a doctor who recovered from a mental health condition is a watershed moment in medicine and will undoubtedly help to combat stigma and discrimination and break down the barriers to mental healthcare for those who urgently need it. Long Walk Out of the Woods traces Dr. Hill's inspirational recovery journey. His moving story will make you cry tears of joy and sorrow and will provide you with a precious insight into the heart and mind of an extraordinary man.--Ahmed Hankir, MD, Royal College of Psychiatrists award-winning doctor and author of The Wounded Healer

About the Author

Adam B. Hill, MD completed his medical school training at Indiana University School of Medicine and a pediatric residency program at St. Louis University's Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital. He is a Duke University-trained pediatric oncologist and currently serves as the division chief of pediatric palliative care at Indiana University's Riley Hospital for Children. Over the last several years, Dr. Hill has gained national and international attention for his lectures and writing about his own successful mental health recovery. Since sharing his story, Dr. Hill has been awarded the Pediatric Faculty of the Year Award at Indiana University as well as the Hilton Ultimus Brown Award for Distinguished Alumni from Butler University. Dr. Hill has also been recognized for his exceptional patient care and humanistic approach to medicine with inductions into Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society and Gold Humanism Honor Society.