Boca Raton, FL -- (SBWIRE) -- 09/29/2011 -- Dee Cohen understands full well the impact of drug and alcohol addiction on some of the real people who make up the 76 million worldwide who are part of this epidemic, according to the World Health Organization.

As a licensed social worker practicing in Boca Raton, Fla., Dee has shared the heartbreak as well as the victories of many individuals who have been ravaged by addiction.

Different Paths to Recovery

In her new book “Beyond Addiction”, available at Addiction Recovery Interviews, Dee shares many different paths to recovery used successfully by real people in their struggles to break the chains of various addictions.

“I’ve always been interested in what it takes to change a pattern and let go of patterns that are not healthy,” she says.

But unlike so many other books on recovery, “Beyond Addiction” offers many different solutions to the problem -- instead of focusing on a single, one-size-fits-all solution.

“In my book, I am privileged to share the remarkable true accounts of each individual’s journey and their unique ways of overcoming temptations – and keeping clean or sober,” Dee says.

Real Stories, Real Recoveries, Real Diversity

The heart and uniqueness of “Beyond Addiction” is its real stories of real recovery from people with diverse backgrounds and belief systems.

That’s because while Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous are worthy and magnanimous organizations that help millions get and stay sober, they are not for everyone.

In her book, Dee, who believes that personal-experience stories are the most powerful tool for recovery, interviews a variety of now clean and sober individuals -- including several book authors, an artist and a nurse.

Something Better to Say Yes to

In the book, best-selling author and musician Dennis Marcellino tells his story about how playing in famous bands led to his drug addiction along with a break up that had him considering suicide.

“You can’t expect that a person will say no to drugs until they have something better to say YES to,” he is quoted in the book.

Meanwhile, :”Beyond Addiction” also focuses on now clean Amy Lee Coy who by her own admission was admitted to rehab programs seven times because of her drug addiction over a 20-year period.

“People should know that if they do not find help in AA and that way of thinking about addiction, they are not doomed,” Coy says, in the book.

A Nurse’s Story

Probably one of the most riveting stories in “Beyond Addition” is the recovery of Patty Halloran, a nurse who was able to hide her addiction to painkillers from those in the hospital where she worked and even from her husband.

While some of the stories aren’t pretty, they are true and were chosen as the kind of tough-love truth telling that is often the first step in softening the addict or alcoholic’s resistance to treatment.

“I chose the people in “Beyond Addiction” because they don’t hold anything back,” says Dee. “They faced some very dark moments in their lives and have very different approaches in their breakthroughs.”

To read the interviews with these fascinating people stop by and visit http://www.addictionrecoveryinterviews.com