From Monsters to Miracles: Parent - Driven Recovery Tools That Work

by Anette Edens

Although it’s probably the most important job many people will have, most of us enter parenthood seriously unprepared. Regardless of how much we believe we know, we raise our children pretty much by what feels like instinct, doing what our parents did or what we wish they had done. When a child veers off course, our parenting approach has to change.

In her book From Monsters to Miracles: Parent-Driven Recovery Tools that Work author Anette Edens, PhD, shares her experience as a parent and psychologist helping families with children who have addictions.

From Monsters to Miracles: Parent-Driven Recovery Tools that Work is a must-read for parents of substance-abusing teens. You’ll learn how to maneuver through the chaos to create a harmonious family life. Even if your teen is not ready or willing to change, there is help and hope.

175 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 11, 2016

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a CASA volunteer, I read this book for my continuing education hours. It is about teenage additions to drugs and alcohol. I found particularly interesting the chapter on the brain and its habits, such as all drugs abused by humans involve increasing levels of dopamine in the brain. it is also helpful to know that it takes up to a year without drugs or alcohol before the brain is completely free of the negative effects of drugs and alcohol. Another key point in this book is the influence of peers on teenagers -- for the good and for the bad. The role of manipulation is also discussed - manipulation by the teen of his family and of normal teens because the normal teen does not recognize the depth of dishonesty and manipulation going on. Programs that are effective require accountability and consistency. The book also had stories of successful recoveries which was heartening after reading about the difficulties in overcoming these addictions.

[Hugh Simonich · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a helping book for the parent who may have a drug addicted teen. It’s helpful and I don’t have any major complaints about how it’s written, but it is a bit superficial. You won’t be getting anything that you wouldn’t necessarily already hear in a good recovery group. I do like Edens’ writing style- clear and logically easy to follow. For a parent or family member who needs a primer to understand the teen addict, to make sense of her behavior and how best to respond, this is a pretty good book. It reminds us - they’re not sociopathic monsters, they’re teens with underdeveloped brains that are addicted. This can be treated with the right resources, given enough time.