I own it, I didn't, not proud that was me, and when I face it a little dignity, not looking for excuses, I just want to be free from power, weakness, head on the sea.

Free, free, free, free, free.

Hello, everyone, and welcome to the bubble hour where real people tell real stories of addiction and recovery.

I'm your host, Jean McCarthy.

I write the blog Unpickled.

I tell my story there, and I invite you to share your stories here.

And what a story is my fair junkie? Amy Dresner's darkly comic memoir of two long decades

in and out of addiction in multiple forms.

Her raw and at times brutally honest book examines her decline from a life of privilege

and of good girl behavior, which led to depression and

eating disorder and then spirals into drug and alcohol addiction. And eventually, another disorder

appeared to take place of the ones she fought to beat, numbing out through risky sexual encounters

that became a new addictive cycle of its own. Now, this may not sound like a book for the

faint of hearts,

but as you get to know, Amy, I'm sure you'll learn, as I did, that the details of how we act

out our pain do not matter nearly so much as the universal truth that they reveal about us all.

And in the hands of a skilled storyteller like Amy, this tale of extremes is peppered with humor

and insights that will have you saying, ah, yes, I can completely relate, even as you're

reading about the most outrageous moments and the lowest of lows. Former stand-up comic,

writer for the fix, and psychologytoday.com, and author of My Fair Junkunkie Amy Dresner, well to the bubble hour.

Hi, Jean.

Thanks for having me.

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