Russell Brand, comedian, actor, director and author has published one of the most authentic books about dealing with recovery entitled ‘Recovery: Freedom from our Addictions’. The book discusses drug addiction, but also addresses other common addictions like pornography, sex, eating disorders and impulsive lying, some of things Brand himself has struggled with in his past.
Many people got to know Brand after his movie ‘Get him to the Greek’, where he plays a musician whose life is dependent on a downward spiral of drugs, sex and booze. Brand stated that he used his past experiences as inspiration for the role. In his book, we learn how Brand went from being a heroin addict in the gutters to where he is now – successful, influential and 17 years sober. The book follows the 12 steps AA program to deal with addiction, but Brand has reinvented it with a mixture of empathy, edginess and cunning insight. Brands version of AA goes something like this: Step 1: Are you a bit fucked up? Step 2: Could you not be fucked? Step 3: Are you on your own going to unfuck yourself?
For the people who have not yet watched Brand’s stand-up comedy, you will realise that he likes to use a vast range of vocabulary and is actually quite the intellectual. So be prepared to have a dictionary on hand when reading the book. You will also become aware quickly that he uses a lot of vulgar language, so for the faint-of-heart you’ve been warned and try not to judge his book based on his way of expressing himself. For those who like to write down their thoughts while reading or answer the questions the book asks, you will be excited that he leaves room to answer the question to help you deal with your addiction.
Addiction is not only about drugs and sex, it can be small things that we look past because we assume them to be lesser evils, but it the long run all addictions find a way to affect you or the people around you. I urge everyone to read the book with an open mind and if you like it, share it with others, because they might be dealing with something that you are unaware of and this book really does offer authentic ways to improve our lives through honesty and self-reflection.
“We have been taught that freedom is the freedom to pursue our petty, trivial desires. Real freedom is freedom from our petty, trivial desires.” (Brand, 2017)
Phakula 