Broken: My Story of Addiction and Redemption by William Cope Moyers

Mar 25, 2012 Michelle Robinson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction, autobigraphical

I found this book t be interesting, sad and disturbing.

I have never read a first person narrative of addiction that I found more interesting.
Honestly, I did get really aggravated with Moyers when he continued to throw away chances at recovery. It was hard to reconcile this man from a privileged background deliberately placing himself in harms way just to get at crack cocaine. It was also hard for me to sympathize with him, at times, when he was surrounded by people who loved him and were willin...more I found this book t be interesting, sad and disturbing.

I have never read a first person narrative of addiction that I found more interesting.
Honestly, I did get really aggravated with Moyers when he continued to throw away chances at recovery. It was hard to reconcile this man from a privileged background deliberately placing himself in harms way just to get at crack cocaine. It was also hard for me to sympathize with him, at times, when he was surrounded by people who loved him and were willing to help him and see him not just disregard their overtures but find ways to see himself as a victim, as opposed to a willing participant in his own downfall.

This is a hard book to go through. I took several breaks when the content got to be too much for me.

I liked Moyers, as a person, I was sad for his ordeal but I felt even worse for his family and children.

I understand that addiction is considered to be a disease, however, I will say honestly, that at the end of the book when he continued to equate his addictions to cancer (breast cancer, skin cancer) I was offended deeply by that. I can honor his issues but for me they are not the same at all. He made decisions that led to prolonging his addictive behavior. No one wakes up and gets a diagnosis of crack cocaine addiction. There are personal choices that come in to play. With breast cancer, one just finds a lump or a doctor does. When Moyers or anyone else makes this comparison, it feels as if they are diminishing the real tragedy of cancer and diseases that are not tied to personal choices in the same way that addiction is.

As a person that has lost a family member to cancer, as many of us have, I just could not respect that part of the book. It made me really uncomfortable and I'm sorry, I don't agree with Mr. Moyers' comparison. I know many people with disagree with me but I am just writing about my feelings with the book and his insistence on categorizing addiction as a disease like cancer. It put me off, I don't agree. I am not judging addiction I just don't think one should try to legitimize the issue by diminishing the unintended tragedy of a cancer that is more than likely not related to lifestyle choices.

Overall, I found this to be an interesting read related to a devastating chronic issue that affect many people.
The letters that are interspersed all throughout the book, give insight into the thought process of Cope and his father.

I did feel that Cope was really hard on himself in more of the narratives.
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May 18, 2011 JoAnn/QuAppelle rated it 4 of 5 stars

Excellent and chilling book by Bill Moyers's son, who abused drugs and alcohol and was a full blown addict by the time he graduated from college. He often held responsible jobs in the journalism field and managed to hide his addiction from his family, his wife, friends, and co-workers for many years.

It took three relapses for him to get straight and clean and this did not happen until he was in his thirties, married with two children. He lost his first wife, his house, everything to crack. He wa...more

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Oct 17, 2010 Nitya rated it 4 of 5 stars

Almost done with this riveting tale of one man's journey into the darkest depths of addiction. Despite a loving family, a wife who loves him, a good job as a journalist, and a spritual upbringing as the son of Bill Moyers, Cope Moyers found himself unable to refrain from his addiction to crack.
As he recounts his journey, (beginning with being summoned from an Atlanta crackhouse by his father, who has arrived with 2 off duty policemen to yet again, rescue him from his disease), the author uses...more

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May 09, 2009 Anne rated it 3 of 5 stars

William Cope Moyers is the son of journalist Bill Moyers. He grew up believing that he was constantly in his father's shadow, and hoping for the day when he would be more famous, win more awards, and prove himself more worthy than his untouchable dad. But, instead of allowing the pressure to drive him to success, Moyers's unattainable goals resulted in perceived failure and lack of self-esteem. By college, he was binge drinking and using marijuana and cocaine on a daily basis. The first time he...more William Cope Moyers is the son of journalist Bill Moyers. He grew up believing that he was constantly in his father's shadow, and hoping for the day when he would be more famous, win more awards, and prove himself more worthy than his untouchable dad. But, instead of allowing the pressure to drive him to success, Moyers's unattainable goals resulted in perceived failure and lack of self-esteem. By college, he was binge drinking and using marijuana and cocaine on a daily basis. The first time he is arrested, it is plastered all over the national news (because of his father's fame), and so begins a life of addiction spiraling out of control. By day, Moyers holds down a job as a relatively successful journalist, married to his childhood sweetheart. But by night, he is scoring drugs in the seediest NY neighborhoods, unable to prevent the destruction and relishing the escape the drugs and alcohol allow. As an addiction story, Moyers's is not that different from many others that I've read. Given the success and wealth of his family, his inability to appreciate his opportunities in life and to waste away talent that only others can dream of, initially made me really angry. Throughout the book I was tired of his "poor me" attitude, particularly when I think of his life in comparison to my clients who struggle with the same addiction yet come from families of extreme poverty and horrendous abuse. Moyers finds himself in and out of treatment centers. He is deeply religious and promises that he will stay clean, yet repeatedly he finds himself back in crack dens, putting his life at risk as the drugs slowly eat away at him. Ultimately, Moyers is able to find a way to get sober and make it stick. He now speaks across the country about the face of addiction and the power of rehabilitiation. I thought one of his most powerful points was that addiction does not discriminate, and neither should recovery. Yet, because of the shame and stigma attached to addiction, there are so few treatment centers in the country, and very few people have insurance that will cover the expense. Moyers has some interesting ideas about recovery - his faith plays a large role, and his dependence on his AA sponsors. He likens addiction to cancer and other diseases and questions why people cannot accept addiction as a disease - and imagines how much we can help people in need if we could open our hearts and minds to better understand the problem. I still find myself getting angry at people who write these addiction/recovery memoirs - drugs cause people to become so selfish. In addition to destroying themselves, they destroy their parents, their children, and their partners. Yet, they wonder why people cannot have more compasion and stick with them on their time tables. In this reaction, I recognize that I have a lot of prejudice and judgments against addicts - and I am not quite sure how to go about gaining the necessary understanding to overcome this. But, this book, while annoying in the repetition of Moyers' cycle of addiction, did provide some useful steps for those dealing with addiction personally, those dealing with addiction in a loved one, and those who are not touched directly but who see the enormous problem that addiction is for our country and recognize that we all need to do something to help make a change.
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Feb 04, 2013 Abby Frucht rated it 3 of 5 stars

My feelings while reading this crack addiction memoir alternated between an ungenerous disdain for the author's selfishness, shock at his sudden and literally thoughtless propensity to trade family, job, and years of hard won sobriety for 6 days in a crack house, and respect for the fact that addition is an illness. Thus my feelings about Moyer's story mirrored what I might feel for that of a loved one who is in that situation - frustration, dismay, horror, fear, pain, pain, pain, hope, crushing...more

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Aug 03, 2011 Mark rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a good story well told. Like other reviewers who wrote about how Moyers often seems to whine without taking full responsibility for his actions or without truly appreciating his privileged status, I also took note of his self-centered perspective and background. However, I read this book for what I could glean from it and not for what I could criticize. There's a lot of great stuff here! For anyone who might be interested, below I have listed eight basic categories of quotes that I feel...more This was a good story well told. Like other reviewers who wrote about how Moyers often seems to whine without taking full responsibility for his actions or without truly appreciating his privileged status, I also took note of his self-centered perspective and background. However, I read this book for what I could glean from it and not for what I could criticize. There's a lot of great stuff here! For anyone who might be interested, below I have listed eight basic categories of quotes that I feel have much to say to any of us who might fall prey to addictive and compulsive behaviors, or who know others who are addicted and/or recovering from addiction (that would be everyone!):

1. WHY ADDICTS GET ADDICTED AND STAY ADDICTED: Alcohol had become my new best friend, and I came to rely on it, need it, and love it as much as the marijuana...." ( p. 45). Cocaine was my running buddy, my soul mate, my faithful lover, my reliable colleague, my fun-loving playmate who tagged along everywhere I went. "Alcohol and cocaine were always there for me, they never let me down " (p. 185). " The brain cells actually adapt their structure and their functioning-so that when an addicted person feels anxious, nervous, angry, or afraid, the brain sends out a little messenger that says, "Hey, remember how good it was when you used cocaine, let's do that again!" (201).

2. HOW IT FEELS WHEN ADDICTS ARE ADDICTED: "I knew exactly what I was doing, but I had no idea why I was doing it" (p. 50). "I felt so dirty, so ugly inside and out" (p. 53). "My guilt was intense, monstrous, and it fed my addiction in ways that I did not and could not understand" (134).

3. ADDICTS AND EMOTIONS: "The demons lurking in the basement of my soul... whatever was down there scared the hell out of me. I wanted to run away from whatever was "bumping" to get out and never think about it again. Escape was what I was after, not confrontation" (p. 64). "I was only dimly aware of these deeper feelings" (145). "The daily routine grounded me: getting up at the same time every day, making my bed, cleaning my room, doing my assigned chores... eating three meals a day, meditating, exercising... but those damn emotions kept tripping me up" (167). "I wanted life to not hurt so much, and I was trying to figure out how to manipulate and control my life so that I could avoid pain" (201). "Things were wearing down inside, but I didn't dare let anyone look under the hood" (206). "While researchers and scientists tell us that our disease originates somewhere in the brain, it also lingers in the deepest regions of the human soul" (348).

4. HOW ADDICTS DECEIVE AND ARE DECEIVED: "I truly believed I could make up for everything by proving that I was stronger and more resilient now that I knew exactly what I was facing... now that I knew what I was facing I could rise above it and move beyond it (p. 134). "Lies and untruths were so deeply woven into the fabric of my everyday life" (p. 140). "Denial is self-deception...there was a deeper level of denial which entailed self-deception. I could not accept the identity that was so clearly mine to claim: addict" ( p. 173). "You are only as sick as your secrets... and you can't afford any more secrets... They're gonna kill you" (225). "I didn't' tell anyone about my cravings because I didn't want them to see the weakness inside me... I had the crazy idea that if I didn't say anything about the craving, maybe it would eventually go away, and I also had my reputation to protect" (211). Stigma and/or Fear of Being Discovered'"What will people think of me if they know I was in treatment? Will I lose my job if my boss finds out I was addicted? Will I lose the respect of my neighbors if I'm honest about my past? Will people in my community question my basic character and core values if they discover that I struggled for years?" "Big trouble wouldn't happen suddenly- it would be a process stretching over a period of weeks or months, starting with one secret and then adding secret upon lie upon secret upon lie until I was so full of secrets and lies that they would destroy me" (335). "Addiction is a disease so cunning and baffling, that when it tell s you that you don't have it, you believe it. Then, when it tells you that you can beat it on your own with no help from the experts, you believe that, too" (343).

5. HOW ADDICTS ULTIMATELY FIND DELIVERANCE: "Without the spiritual side of me, I may as well be a monkey... try to find a little time every day to feed your spiritual self" (p. 95). Recovery happens within a community and not in isolation" (p. 161). "Serenity comes from accepting the things one cannot change" (163). "Learn how to let the emotions come--don't fight them. Let them roll out and then deal with them as they come" (p. 200). "My disease is less about the drugs I took than the reason I took them--to blot out pain, to alter reality, to change perception, to numb my fear- because the deepest truth of my illness is my inability to live with what is right here, right in front of me. Accepting life on life's terms--that's the challenge... When you're trying to escape pain, there's only one thing more difficult than living life drunk, and that's living life sober" (208). "We can learn to live sober with our "issues", but only if we recognize that it isn't the issue that drives the addiction so much as the addiction that latches on to the issue for a free ride straight into the complicated neurological wiring that underlies the craving and the desire for oblivion" (247). "I couldn't run away anymore because whatever I was running from wasn't outside of me... Sit in it. Face it head on. Face the pain, the anger, the fear, loneliness, sadness, and shame. Don't hide. Face it.... Face it without asking for an answer or a solution. Face it knowing the outcome is beyond your control and what matters is accepting that it hurts and the reason it hurts so much is because you can't do anything about it. It just IS. Being human hurts...Face the no, the negative, the emptiness and nothingness that is at the center, because facing it is the act of faith itself, and it is not something we ever complete but a daily struggle to find peace in the midst of the chaos, relief at the heart of the suffering" (299). The willingness to "tell another human being my whole life story, admitting every flaw and "defect of character", holding nothing back" (p. 356). Recovery is not about "I and my" but about using the words we and our". Recovery from addiction at its heart and soul is about becoming part of a bigger whole... a community. We are all broken and the only "cure" for our brokenness is to be broken together" (348).

6. HOW ADDICTS STAY SOBER'"My whole life depends on not taking that first drink" (p. 297). "My disease is progressive, I know that, and I know from my most recent relapse that it's progressed into its late stages--if I relapse again, I don't think I'll get another chance" (320)

7. HOW RECOVERING ADDICTS HELP OTHER ADDICTS: "When we speak out, we become beacons of hope and pathways to help for addicts and alcoholics who don't know where else to turn. People will come out of the woodwork asking "can you please help me?" (367).

8. THOUGHTS ABOUT GOD: "It was clear from my relapses that I wasn't ready to let God control everything in my life" (293). Moyers believes he literally heard God's voice! (p. 300). "Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous" (351).

Other readers will come up with their own insightful categories. Enjoy the book!(less)

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Aug 04, 2011 Barb rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book as I am very interested in people's stories that revolve around addiction. I believe the moral of this story is that, for some people, until they surrender to their addiction, basicly give up on doing it on their own, they will continue to fail is giving up the addiction. No one can do it for them, no amount of pleading, threatening, etc., makes a person decide to go clean. Cope was awful to his loved ones; in a crack house when his wife is home with a child that is ve...more

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Aug 09, 2011 Ryelor rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book was given to me by a friend. I'm glad I read it. The title says it all--a story of addiction and redemption. At times it felt a little repetitive, but I feel like Moyers does a wonderful job at painting a picture on how addiction works. It isn't a question of self-discipline or being lazy, it's an actual illness. You feel the ups and downs he goes through as he struggles to fight the illness. There are gems of wisdom and deep thoughts throughout the text, and when I finally put it down...more

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Mar 02, 2009 MsSmartiePants ...like the candy... rated it 5 of 5 stars

OOOOOOOO, what a story. This is the son of the famed Bill Moyers. This autobiography begins in his childhood and continues into his adult life to present. It is an honest, responsible, dark, sad, surprising story of growing up with an extremely famous father (I had no idea as to the extent!), wealthy, loved, smart, successful, and then falling into drug addiction so severe, it nearly killed him. Shocking, but true.
The book gives a small peak into a world most of us truly know nothing about. Des...more

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Jan 30, 2011 Debby rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

I am drawn to read books about and memoirs of addiction and recovery out of a desire to see if someone else can explain the concept of addiction as a "disease" in a manner that makes sense to me.
William Cope Moyers, his parents (he is the oldest son of journalist Bill Moyers) and eventually Cope's wife and chilfren have quite a roler coaster of a ride in dealing with his addiction to alcohol and smoking crack. Cope is very self-disclosing and brutally honest as he tells his story of addiction,...more

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Sep 24, 2012 Kathy Smith rated it 5 of 5 stars

I just finished reading “Broken: My Story of Addiction and Redemption” by William Cope Moyers (Bill Moyers’ son). I wanted to read it to gain some understanding of the addictions of some of my loved ones, and it spoke to me deeply, loudly and profoundly. His story is of a boy raised in a warm, loving family, even though his father was extremely famous and traveled extensively. He began smoking pot and drinking as a teenager, and eventually became addicted to cocaine, then crack. He was very fort...more

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Mar 05, 2009 kathi rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone with an interest in addiction

Recommended to kathi by: I read about it on e-bay

Shelves: books-read-in-2009

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jun 23, 2011 Annmarie Randazzo added it

I absolutely loved this book. It has been a long time since I have read it but what it showed me most is that the disease of addiction does not discriminate. I admire all sorts of people from the ones who have everything but do not have their sanity, to those who have nothing but Faith. I am not sure if this makes sense or not. My point is that addiction is vicious, sad, depressing, you name it but out of that, if you are willing to surrender, comes experience, strength, and hope. Thank you Will...more

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Jun 12, 2012 Ed rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Overall, this book gives the reader a rare amazing insight into addiction and recovery it will be an eye opener and worth the read.

At first, I was fascinated with the journey (an amazingly crazy wild ride) of the author through his life of addiction, the middle 2 or 3 CD's started to trudge along thru the middle of the book and I almost stopped reading because it got sort of repetitive. But it did pick up a lot, and I finished the book last week, and became fascinating again and a great read, I...more

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Jan 01, 2012 Dayna rated it 3 of 5 stars

An interesting read for the first half, but then it gets too much into describing AA; since AA doesn't change, this is virtually the same as many other books/movies. Also, about half-way through the book, the author's selfish ways got on my nerves, and I started empathizing with everyone else in the book other than him. Not a good sign - he has the mic, and I still don't like him?! *sigh* Still, overall I was glad I read at least the first half. It would be a great read for someone who is into p...more

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Jan 20, 2010 Courtney rated it 3 of 5 stars

I borrowed this book from a patient at my work and was quickly able to get through it this past weekend. Well written, honest depiction of addiction. This is a great book for anyone who wants to understand this disease better. I particularly liked how brutally honest the author was about his experience without adding unnecessary raw language or depictions that might have caused the more tenderhearted reader to turn back. Moyers makes a great argument for the treatment of this problem as a diseas...more

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Sep 29, 2012 Lynnette rated it 2 of 5 stars

If you have never known an addict first hand, then this book is the perfect self-indulgent, Jesus loves me, my parents are rich, and everything turns outwonderfully perfect- memoir to start with.
Good:
The story of addiction cannot be shared enough by many different perspectives. Cope has a very particular perspective on addiction and how he maneuvered through life as an addict.
Drudge:
This is the Disney version of addiction. Cope had every opportunity handed to him and he always took the route...more

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Oct 18, 2009 Karen Villanueva rated it 5 of 5 stars

When your father is an esteemed and hugely popular celebrity journalist and you are brought up with the comforts millions of us were not privelged to enjoy, what could possibly turn your life into a personal decline of staggering proportions?

Broken tells the story of William Cope Moyers with brutal honesty. Riches, comfort and support are no match for the damaged interior of the human mind and the wrong turn made into the world of addiction.

Quite possibly the second most riveting book I have eve...more

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Aug 23, 2009 Mikejencostanzo rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

This was one of the books on Mike's reading list for his "Addiction" counseling class. Not your typical text-book fare, rather, it's an autobiography told by someone who has been through addiction first-hand. The story begins with reminiscences of a perfect upbringing, then a few things go wrong. There is the first young exposure to drugs, a few more "harmless" tries, and then author and reader alike are thrown into the headlong frenzy of a cycle of addiction that continues for 300 gripping page...more This was one of the books on Mike's reading list for his "Addiction" counseling class. Not your typical text-book fare, rather, it's an autobiography told by someone who has been through addiction first-hand. The story begins with reminiscences of a perfect upbringing, then a few things go wrong. There is the first young exposure to drugs, a few more "harmless" tries, and then author and reader alike are thrown into the headlong frenzy of a cycle of addiction that continues for 300 gripping pages.

William Cope Moyers skillfully takes the reader through an emotional maze, beginning with pity for a guy who was just plain stupid, and disgust at someone who couldn't learn his lesson the first time around. Later on, even our enthusiasm for him in his recovery is tempered with the aching questions of "Will he relapse" and soon, asked with even less hope, "When will he relapse?" And then when he does, again, and again, we re-enter the emotional torrent, wanting to grab him by the shoulders and shake him until he understands. Our emotions are interrupted every so often by the haunting question "What went wrong?" Moyers parents did everything right, (a solid, Christian home, loving family, parents that genuinely took time for their kids), and yet something went awry.

Moyers tells his story in the past tense, ultimately from a place of recovery. He tells his story with memories, letters from his dad, even pictures. He gives us an understanding of truly what it is like to struggle in utter helplessness with an addiction. He also demonstrates from his experience, his answers to the questions that addicts and those who care for addicts ask: "Is it possible to ever overcome an addiction?" and "If so, how?"

This book has given me insight into the "whys" and "hows" of relapse and ultimately the "hows" of a journey toward recovery. As I interact with friends who struggle with addiction, I have already drawn on some of the lessons from this book, in growing to understand more of where they are coming from, and more of the hope that they have for the future.

--Jen(less)

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Aug 22, 2008 Lysa rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: memoirs-and-biographies

This book is engaging enough to keep you reading but it has serious flaws. For one thing, I think it could have benefitted from some more editing - the author repeats himself a lot and not always even in a markedly different way - sometimes he'll literally say the same thing three times within a chapter. I only need to hear how lonely recovery is or how much harder living sober is than living as an addict once to assimilate, regardless of how long or how much repetition it might have taken for h...more

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Sep 30, 2012 Matthew Kading rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: multi-reads

Knowing Bill Moyers in his capacity as a VP at the Hazelden Foundation, it's hard to believe that it's the same man...but you quickly realize it is, and that he's telling his story from the deepest recesses of his heart....it's the non- fiction equivalent of "A Million Little Pieces"...A good man, a great story and read about the bad disease afflicting him and his recovery and redemption from those dark and dangerous places many of us travel-some never to return.

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Feb 02, 2013 Cameron Ocean rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: personal-library

(372 pages)
Wow this book brings you through some struggles and frustrating parts. It follows the life of a drug addict. If you have ever wondered what addiction is like or even been an addict yourself then read this book. The last chapter or two makes a strong statement towards societies views of addicts and alcoholics. I'm glad the author has made a stand to tell his story. I really hope this social stigma of weakness diminishes as we progress as a society.

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Apr 05, 2010 Melissa rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really loved this book I finally found a book about addiction that isnt pure bs he is actually telling the truth and I can feel everything he does it is very true and real I'd reccomend this book to every addict and for family members of addicts and for anyone who wants to read a really good book, it should be required reading for those who are sick or still suffer from addiction and those friends and family who suffer along with us.

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Apr 08, 2008 Kimberlie rated it 5 of 5 stars

A heart wrenching account of crack cocaine and alcohol addiction, recovery, relapse and recovery again (3Xs) by the son of famous journalist Bill Moyers.

"I hate you," Bill Moyers told his son, William, after picking him up from a crack house where William, a young father of three and a husband, went to smoke himself to death. "I hate me, too," he responded to his father.

The book is a griping account of William's 15-year spiral downward and the recovery community he found that saved his life and...more

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Aug 09, 2011 Sabrina Cohen added it · review of another edition

Great book. It looks at addiction from a different perspective. I respected the author's perspective that addiction is not something to keep a secret, but is something to openly discuss. I see that the author finally conquered his addiction when he decided to stop hiding it, and tell people about it. This I found interesting and contrary to the secrets of AA.

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Sep 22, 2011 Todd rated it 1 of 5 stars

The author needs a 12-step program to deal with his arrogance and elitism. His incessant whining and inability to remember that his recovery behavior and his long-term addiction nearly costs his parents their sanity. I listened to him talk at a training and found him to be an incessant bore, much like I saw the book.

He could learn much from his father.

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Jul 27, 2011 Sparrow rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Read this on a whim so I could learn something about a subject I know nothing about. It was pretty enlightening, I have to say, and the author writes very well and accessibly. You feel like you really know this guy personally after finishing the book. Those are the best kinds of memoirs! And it was very relieving that it had a happy ending for him!

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Nov 21, 2010 DJ rated it 3 of 5 stars

There were times during this story when I wanted to reach in and choke the person doing the things described in it.

Cope Moyers' journey isn't rare. He's just a run of the mill addict, self-centered, self-absorbed and pitying, hell-bent on destruction and arrogance. What I most like about this book is the way it brought out the insanity of addiction, and how pointless it really is. Addiction destroys everything good in one's life and saturates a person with evil, darkness, and feelings of remors...more

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Dec 23, 2009 Pbwritr rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoir

Eye-opening account of a famous son's roller-coaster ride through crack addiction. The failed relationships, jobs, envy of and comparisons to his father, the inner cities where he scored and hung out, the rehabs, the relapses, and finally, his ability to become and stay sober. All told very matter-of-factly.

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Feb 03, 2013 Morgan rated it 3 of 5 stars

A very raw and honest look at ones s struggle with addiction. There are times you want to scream at the author for his complete disregard for his life when, for all intents and purposes he leads a very privileged life, but that is how addiction goes. The only part I couldn't 'get' was his comparison to cancer.

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