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Exit the Maze: One Addiction, One Cause, One Solution (1)
In this easy-to-read revised and expanded edition of Exit the Maze , Dr. Donna Marks makes the revolutionary claim that there is only one addiction with many faces, and the key to overcoming addiction is self-love.
Millions of lives are lost to addiction every year, causing more direct and indirect deaths than any other illness. In a world where many things are uncertain, we do know There are many kinds of addiction, and in spite of treatment and everything else we’re doing, addiction is only increasing.
Dr. Donna Marks, a renowned psychotherapist, addictions counselor, and teacher of A Course in Miracles for more than thirty years, merges her professional experience and her own personal history of substance dependency to offer a single revolutionary solution to all addictions in this expanded and revised edition of Exit the Maze . No matter what someone is addicted to—alcohol, prescription or illegal drugs, smoking, working, gambling, and so forth—loving yourself is the key to recovery. This doesn’t mean the road is easy or a few acts of self-care will do the trick; the journey to true self-love includes delving deep into your past trauma to understand where your addiction began, addressing those fear-based traumas with compassion and forgiveness, exchanging bad habits with beneficial ones, and staying committed to the recovery process. Allow love to guide you through the maze of addiction and back to living your best life.
Millions of lives are lost to addiction every year, causing more direct and indirect deaths than any other illness. In a world where many things are uncertain, we do know There are many kinds of addiction, and in spite of treatment and everything else we’re doing, addiction is only increasing.
Dr. Donna Marks, a renowned psychotherapist, addictions counselor, and teacher of A Course in Miracles for more than thirty years, merges her professional experience and her own personal history of substance dependency to offer a single revolutionary solution to all addictions in this expanded and revised edition of Exit the Maze . No matter what someone is addicted to—alcohol, prescription or illegal drugs, smoking, working, gambling, and so forth—loving yourself is the key to recovery. This doesn’t mean the road is easy or a few acts of self-care will do the trick; the journey to true self-love includes delving deep into your past trauma to understand where your addiction began, addressing those fear-based traumas with compassion and forgiveness, exchanging bad habits with beneficial ones, and staying committed to the recovery process. Allow love to guide you through the maze of addiction and back to living your best life.
208 pages, Paperback
Published December 13, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 13, 2020
A comprehensive, clear-cut book that approaches addiction from a simple, logical angle; with a focus on love and support. Addiction is a chemical problem, of course, but it’s also a personal problem. A lot of addiction books discuss the problem, but rarely a solution that satisfies – Dr. Marks offers answers, reasons, and advice that can change your life; maybe even save your life, if you are one of the millions caught up in the maze of addiction. It’s a revolving door, and this author pulls back the curtain to show what the addiction/recovery industry is really like behind the scenes–greedy, malfunctioning, and misguided. Besides backing up her model with years of experience, case studies, and data, she offers something a lot of addiction treatment specialists don’t, and that is real hope for lasting recovery.
One advantage this book has over other self-help, addiction books is that it’s easy to follow, and appeals to common sense. So many books on dependency are laden with facts, figures, charts, and world-weary modes of treatment, that they don’t connect with the readers who need help the most: Those struggling with substance use. What good is a book on addiction if those living with the problem can’t relate to it?
Although this book is a great tool for addiction specialists or counselors, it’s also perfect for the layperson. It’s all about loving yourself enough to see what’s really going on in your heart and in your life. Why make addiction or recovery harder than it has to be? I especially like her take on the nature of addiction; that it comes in many forms. You will appreciate the anecdotes, as they lend a human component to the science. We are all born with a void that needs to be filled. Some fill it with education, or career, or sports, sex, entertainment, etc. Love and self-love is meant to fill this void, but if you aren’t aware of this, or go looking for satisfaction in the wrong place, drugs/alcohol can end up there instead.
“Exit the Maze: One Addiction, One Cause, One Cure,” by Donna Marks, is an unexpectedly touching book on addiction and recovery that you must put on your reading list.
One advantage this book has over other self-help, addiction books is that it’s easy to follow, and appeals to common sense. So many books on dependency are laden with facts, figures, charts, and world-weary modes of treatment, that they don’t connect with the readers who need help the most: Those struggling with substance use. What good is a book on addiction if those living with the problem can’t relate to it?
Although this book is a great tool for addiction specialists or counselors, it’s also perfect for the layperson. It’s all about loving yourself enough to see what’s really going on in your heart and in your life. Why make addiction or recovery harder than it has to be? I especially like her take on the nature of addiction; that it comes in many forms. You will appreciate the anecdotes, as they lend a human component to the science. We are all born with a void that needs to be filled. Some fill it with education, or career, or sports, sex, entertainment, etc. Love and self-love is meant to fill this void, but if you aren’t aware of this, or go looking for satisfaction in the wrong place, drugs/alcohol can end up there instead.
“Exit the Maze: One Addiction, One Cause, One Cure,” by Donna Marks, is an unexpectedly touching book on addiction and recovery that you must put on your reading list.
March 15, 2020
AUTHOR Marks, Donna
TITLE Exit the Maze: One Addiction; One Cause, One Cure
DATE READ 03/03/20
RATING 4.5/B+
FIRST SENTENCE To overcome the addiction epidemic, the 1st thing we need to let go of is the idea that there are multiple addictions. The truth is there is only one. It's time to stop fooling around with people's lives and get right to the point. Addicton is addiction. We need to recognize that once someone has become addicted, simply ending an addictive behavior does not mean that the specific addiction is cured. It means only that the behavior has stopped.
GENRE/ PUB DATE/PUBLISHER / # OF self help/2019/Westward/206 pgs
SERIES/STAND-ALONE
CHALLENGE Good Reads 2020 Reading Goal 38/120; Self-Help/Inspirational Books 2/3 A Curious Mind by Brian Grazier; Exit the Maze by Donna Marks
GROUP READ
TIME/PLACE 2019/FL
CHARACTERS NA
COMMENTS Supports beliefs I adhere to on this topic -- self-esteem, self-love being root issues. I do think there is a physical/chemical/genetic factor that was overlooked in this book. I understand she is not an MD and this may not be her emphasis. Maybe a bit of semantics but believe she focuses on abuse over trauma… yes she draws from her story/experience and from my standpoint in people I am close to it is trauma rather than abuse that is a root issue with a genetic factor.
TITLE Exit the Maze: One Addiction; One Cause, One Cure
DATE READ 03/03/20
RATING 4.5/B+
FIRST SENTENCE To overcome the addiction epidemic, the 1st thing we need to let go of is the idea that there are multiple addictions. The truth is there is only one. It's time to stop fooling around with people's lives and get right to the point. Addicton is addiction. We need to recognize that once someone has become addicted, simply ending an addictive behavior does not mean that the specific addiction is cured. It means only that the behavior has stopped.
GENRE/ PUB DATE/PUBLISHER / # OF self help/2019/Westward/206 pgs
SERIES/STAND-ALONE
CHALLENGE Good Reads 2020 Reading Goal 38/120; Self-Help/Inspirational Books 2/3 A Curious Mind by Brian Grazier; Exit the Maze by Donna Marks
GROUP READ
TIME/PLACE 2019/FL
CHARACTERS NA
COMMENTS Supports beliefs I adhere to on this topic -- self-esteem, self-love being root issues. I do think there is a physical/chemical/genetic factor that was overlooked in this book. I understand she is not an MD and this may not be her emphasis. Maybe a bit of semantics but believe she focuses on abuse over trauma… yes she draws from her story/experience and from my standpoint in people I am close to it is trauma rather than abuse that is a root issue with a genetic factor.
February 23, 2023
This book.
This book could change your life or the life of someone you love or know. By the time, you realize you have an addiction and have to "control it" or hide it, you're addicted according to Dr. Donna Marks. The psychoanalyst breaks down addiction (to alcohol or to drugs or to food or to sex or to gambling or anything you have lost your sense of control to) to one thing--an invisible hole inside that you are forever trying to fill. This invisible hole could be a trauma from childhood or a particular loss or something that someone once said to you as a young child or teen that you now believe to be true without really understanding it. And yet, the invisible hole tears away at you and you do whatever you can to fill it. You self-medicate with alcohol or drugs or food or sex to try and take the pain away and fill the invisible hole, but Dr. Marks contends it doesn't work. It never works. Yet, she points out, addiction takes over your life. You can lose your family, your friends, your family, your love, your job, and your life to addiction. And until you come to terms with the trauma causing the invisible hole inside you by learning to "love yourself", you will never be healed, and addiction will continue to control you and rule your life.
I cannot fully explain how powerful this book, Exit the Maze: One Addiction, One Cause, One Solution is. I highly suggest you read it for yourself.
This book could change your life or the life of someone you love or know. By the time, you realize you have an addiction and have to "control it" or hide it, you're addicted according to Dr. Donna Marks. The psychoanalyst breaks down addiction (to alcohol or to drugs or to food or to sex or to gambling or anything you have lost your sense of control to) to one thing--an invisible hole inside that you are forever trying to fill. This invisible hole could be a trauma from childhood or a particular loss or something that someone once said to you as a young child or teen that you now believe to be true without really understanding it. And yet, the invisible hole tears away at you and you do whatever you can to fill it. You self-medicate with alcohol or drugs or food or sex to try and take the pain away and fill the invisible hole, but Dr. Marks contends it doesn't work. It never works. Yet, she points out, addiction takes over your life. You can lose your family, your friends, your family, your love, your job, and your life to addiction. And until you come to terms with the trauma causing the invisible hole inside you by learning to "love yourself", you will never be healed, and addiction will continue to control you and rule your life.
I cannot fully explain how powerful this book, Exit the Maze: One Addiction, One Cause, One Solution is. I highly suggest you read it for yourself.
August 25, 2026
Exit the Maze is a thoughtful and eye-opening look at addiction that goes beyond simply telling people to “try harder.” What stood out to me most was Donna Marks’ focus on understanding the underlying cause of addiction rather than treating only the behavior itself.
I found the discussion about willpower particularly interesting. The idea that addiction can be approached by identifying what originally drove the addictive pattern gives the book a much more compassionate and practical perspective. It also made me think differently about why some treatment approaches may fail even when someone genuinely wants to change.
The book is concise, but it packs a lot into its 151 pages. Marks draws from decades of professional experience while keeping the message focused on helping readers understand the maze and, more importantly, find a way out of it. I appreciated that the book doesn't frame addiction simply as a lack of discipline, but as something that requires deeper understanding and meaningful change.
Overall, *Exit the Maze* is a worthwhile read for anyone interested in addiction, recovery, or the psychological roots behind destructive patterns. It offers a hopeful perspective while challenging some common assumptions about what it really takes to break free.
I found the discussion about willpower particularly interesting. The idea that addiction can be approached by identifying what originally drove the addictive pattern gives the book a much more compassionate and practical perspective. It also made me think differently about why some treatment approaches may fail even when someone genuinely wants to change.
The book is concise, but it packs a lot into its 151 pages. Marks draws from decades of professional experience while keeping the message focused on helping readers understand the maze and, more importantly, find a way out of it. I appreciated that the book doesn't frame addiction simply as a lack of discipline, but as something that requires deeper understanding and meaningful change.
Overall, *Exit the Maze* is a worthwhile read for anyone interested in addiction, recovery, or the psychological roots behind destructive patterns. It offers a hopeful perspective while challenging some common assumptions about what it really takes to break free.
February 23, 2023
🫀Exit the Maze is one of the most life changing and beautiful books I have ever read, it’s very simple if we ask someone to quit something they’re addicted to, it’s never going to happen, I feel this book is so convincing, well compiled and highly effective that if a person is reading it, it feels like an one to one conversation with the author where we come across facts based experiments, experiences and science behind the bad effects of any addiction!
I loved how the book proceeds, step by step leading to one of the most life changing decisions one will ever take, the language is easy and even the book is easy to adapt to, it’s truly not something that’s just theoretical but also very practical as well as informative, a great pick for anyone who is trying to exit the maze, this is your book!
I will highly highly recommend it, this book is meant to change lives for better!
Rating: 4.5⭐️
December 14, 2022
I wrote this book to save the lives of those struggling with addiction. My struggle with addiction led to a worldwide search for healing.
March 14, 2023
Excellent book that uses the spiritual concepts of love and connection to overcome addiction once and for all!
January 23, 2023
realistic and spiritual road to recovery
Donna writes from first hand experience of the journey to recovery. Heartfelt and honest reflection that rang true for me.
Donna writes from first hand experience of the journey to recovery. Heartfelt and honest reflection that rang true for me.
March 30, 2021
I wrote this book to save the lives of those struggling with addiction. My struggle with addiction led to a worldwide search for healing. My work in mental health and addictions centers on teaching people how to love themselves, and the more the pain is replaced with self-love, the need for any substitutes is forgotten.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews