Not Yet Too Far Gone- debut book available now!

Some exciting news…A former client of mine asked if I would contribute to his debut book, and I said “yes.” Not Yet Too Far Gone is now available for purchase on Amazon. Here is a brief description of the book in the words of its primary author, Mathias John:

”Hi, I’m Mathias and I’m a recovering alcoholic. I’m not famous and I don’t have a degree in mental health nor am I a professional in the substance abuse disorder field. I don’t have a million followers on social media and this isn’t a book by a guru of any sort. It’s a book by someone who looked very well put together and happy on the outside while killing himself on the inside. It’s a book by someone who could be your friend and if you found out was an alcoholic, you’d respond with “Really?! I never would’ve guessed”. That was the response I got over and over. 

There is some pride in being able to hide my inner chaos, looking like it was all just fine. That’s outweighed by the realization of the level of work and deception it took to do so. It was exhausting and not something I wish on anyone. For those who think, “I’m not that bad, look at what they’re doing,” this book provides common ground to show that the hardest struggles could be the internal ones. And there is no shortcut to fixing those; it takes work and unfortunately a moment of clarity. Like getting in a car accident drunk on a Thursday at 1:30 in the afternoon. Handcuffs and jail can wake a man up. It’s not the most spectacular bottom but that’s the point. High-bottom addicts can remain high-bottom addicts for a very long time prior to running themselves into the ground.  I always thought it wasn’t that bad because I compared myself to others who haven’t lost a lot of their life.  It was coming, but I was lucky to get ahead of it.

I have 5 years of journals that span from newly, happily married to ‘I may have a problem’ to full blown alcoholic to being sober since April 9th, 2021. This provided a lot of material to how an addict thinks and how I tried to reason my way out of being an A word (addict or alcoholic, pick your poison). ‘Not Yet Too Far Gone’ is incredibly unique in its exploration of an alcoholic’s mind as it’s an exploration of the lies one tells themselves in the midst of active addiction from my own writing. Journal entries giving the basis for conversation with myself, and giving insight to non addicts of how we feel. Not just through memories, through actual journal entries along the way.  

In support of the self-analysis, my therapist graciously agreed to join in on the writing and provide her first-hand clinical perspective and expertise. So my story is shared via three voices throughout the book, Mathias in active alcoholism, Mathias in sober mind, and Mathias’s therapist Ashley Boyd (AB). It’s one thing to re-read your journals, it’s another to analyze them in an effort to share them with the world. Writing about how you felt when you were in active addiction, lying to yourself and having your therapist cross-reference her session notes to analyze even further is daunting. Check your pride at the door and lean into humility. It’s also a great practice in sobriety. Writing the book between my 1st and 2nd sober birthdays helped me stay on the path. Never did I think “maybe I can still have a drink” while reading about what it turned me into. Simply put, writing the book helped me stay sober.  

I read a lot of books trying to outsmart my alcoholism. Trying to find a story that didn’t end with extreme consequence and one that showed how manipulative the mind can be. As I started this book journey, the initial task was to write the book I wish I had found. Something that if I picked up in the midst of the worst times, may have gotten me sober. I believe we accomplished that and if it helps one person, then all the time is worth it.”