'Why Don't They Just Quit?'

New Book for National Recovery Month Answers Questions...

With the huge increase in drug manufacturing and alcohol consumption, more people than ever are becoming dependent on these substances - and more families are frustrated, angry and broke trying to help their loved ones and friends to quit.

Colorado resident Joe Herzanek addresses this exploding problem in his new book, "Why Don't They Just Quit?" In it, he offers insights and practical solutions, and identifies the behavior of both addicts and family members that either helps or hurts the chances of quitting and recovering.

Herzanek understands the problem from both sides. From the age of thirteen to twenty-nine, he progressed deeper and deeper into a destructive lifestyle. His future looked hopeless; he had burned all his bridges. But something happened that changed it all. Today, as a certified addiction counselor with over twenty-five years of recovery, Herzanek has counseled thousands of men and women on this topic.

"Why Don't They Just Quit?" is the culmination of Joe's experience - a down-to-earth, practical guide on how to help someone you know break the chains of their addiction and begin the process of recovery. Joe offers words of encouragement: "Addiction is not a hopeless situation," he writes. "Addicts and alcoholics aren't crazy, and they can quit."

Because he has "been there and done that," Herzanek writes with both compassion and grit. "Friends and family need to have empathy, but also help the addict to move past the blame and concentrate on a solution," he suggests. "In some situations, there may come a time when you must pull back, and I mean pull back completely. This is difficult; but when you know it's the right thing to do, you have to do it. The consequences that come down on someone who is abusing alcohol and drugs may be their best teacher."

To many friends and family members of addicts, this is just the book they've been waiting for. It identifies the telltale signs of addiction; offers step-by-step suggestions on how to get them into treatment; and explains what works, what doesn't and why.

"Joe writes with authority and clarity," says Dr. James Russell, American Society of Addiction Medicine. "Its straightforwardness and intimacy as well as its lack of pretense give it a veracity that is genuine. It is an excellent read recommended for family and friends as well as the recovering person."