Refuge Recovery: A Buddhist Path to Recovering from Addiction

In one word: Brilliant. I work as a therapist in a treatment center. We treat 400-500 alcoholics and addicts each year. Many people resist the Judeo-Christian themes in 12 step work. For those people, there are few viable alternative recovery roads. Noah has illuminated for all suffering addicts the Buddhist path as a road to sustained recovery from addictions. He does an excellent job highlighting the truth of addiction, solid and deep inventory to explore, the necessity of abstinence in order to recover, the actions and practices (the path) one can take to contented long term sobriety, and the joy of fellowship and mentorship to sustain us as we travel the recovery and dharma road. Refuge Recovery can serve the purpose of helping newcomers get on the road to recovery, as well as benefit those who have been in recovery for some time but who may have gotten a bad case of so-dryety over the years, and now can re-discover contented sobriety through this powerful pathway. Refuge Recovery seems well suited to those who want to do 12 step programs AND Buddhist recovery/Refuge Recovery - as well as those seeking a different path to recovery than currently dominate the recovery world. There are many wonderful books that create a bridge between meditation, Buddhism and the 12 steps. What has lacked to date is the equivalent of a `Big Book' for recovering people open to Buddhist philosophy and teachings. This book is a great 'Big Book' for the 21st century - keeping the best of what is offered in 12 step philosophy - while removing antiquated aspects and language. Refuge Recovery is a complete recovery program, which if followed, can and has brought about complete recovery from addictions of all kinds. This path laid out in this book provides a way of living that will be compatible for those seeking a non-theistic way of walking the spiritual road of recovery. As an addiction treatment professional, I have extreme gratitude for Noah's efforts, as well as for those who share their stories in the back of this wonderful book. I hope the treatment community embraces this powerful movement. May Refuge Recovery grow and flourish, for the benefit of all beings.

Excellent book, 100% recommend.

Everyone should read this book. It’s a great way to keep you balanced in your life. And to heal from past events by giving your tools you might not have learned before. Life will have ups and downs. That just life. It’s how we accept that and deal with both that makes the difference. We will be get out of sorts at time. And we have to deal with an imperfect world with imperfect people. How we get through that has more to do with us and our own house then expecting them to change. See if you can find a local meeting we’re people read discus and mediate together. If there isn’t one you can take the initiative to start one yourself. Four agreements is another great book to check yourself in any situation. If we all put in a little more work on cleaning our own houses. There will be more clean houses to share with each other.

Great book. Interesting to read the scope of the reviews. Is the book perfect? No, but it's very good. Would I have done things in a different order? Yes, probably. Is it the 12 steps reworked? Definitely not, but the Dharma and the 12 Steps naturally share some core principles. Is it better than the Big Book? ABSOFUCKINGLUTELY. It's clearly filled a void for a lot of people, myself included, and I'm grateful for it. The fellowship is spreading, and later this month we're starting a meeting in our area. If you have any interest in meditation and/or Buddhist principles being integrated into your or a loved one's recovery, this is simply a must read. Get involved. Create the community you seek. If your're reading this and you're stuck in hell, there is a way out my friend, but you have to take a step in the right direction. This can be that. Be well.

I tried to "have more faith" and "trust god" to heal me from addiction for 30+ years to no avail. Refuge Recovery was incredibly empowering for me. It game ME all the tools that I needed to put in the work and start recovering. 18 months sober from my addiction thanks to the four foundations of mindfulness and the heart practices of loving-kindness, campassion, appreciation, and equanimity. You can do this.

Awesome product

Well written, practical, experiential path to Recovery from Addictions. (Not perfect, but revisions are planned in a yet to be announced updated edition) The separate Refuge Recovery support groups spawned by the book combine some of the wisdom & experiences of 12 Step program 'structure' with the proven, transformative directions of the Four Noble Truths & Eight Fold Path. Accessible to all, newcomers & longer term recovery practitioners. Refuge Recovery support groups (non-profit, separate from Refuge Recovery Treatment Center, and the author/publisher of the book) have grown from about 100 in June 2015, to 300 worldwide in October 2017 to well over 600 in October 2018. Update & Clarification: One reviewer indicated that Refuge Recovery, which some people call RR, is pre-empted by Rational Recovery, which was also nicknamed RR, which was essentially a for profit support group created by Jack Trimpey in 1986. They effectively shut their doors in 1998 with this declaration: "The Recovery Group Movement is Over! ... Beginning January 1, 1999, all addiction recovery group meetings for Rational Recovery in the United States, Canada, and abroad are hereby canceled and will not be rescheduled ever again, it's just a waste of time and is completely unproductive." SMART Recovery, a credible & effective treatment program, evolved from the ashes of Rational Recovery.

In 2016 I saw a flyer for Refuge Recovery meeting. By this time I have been sober for many years in 12 step. Well 12 step save my life and had kept me sober, I never felt at home there. The higher power in some areas the extreme religiosity, just didn’t fit for me. By no means am I saying 12 step is bad or doesn’t work it just wasn’t the best fit for me. I used meditation and the Buddhist teachings along with 12 step so when I found Refuge Recovery, I had actually been trying to write a book about recovery and Buddhism. Once I read Noah‘s book I realized I didn’t have to write that book because he had already done an amazing job. This book speaks to me About using the Buddhist teachings to recover from addiction. In an incredibly clear and direct way but not dumb down at all. This book reenergized my recovery and truly in my life. I will always be thankful to Noah for writing this book which began this movement. If you haven’t read it I highly suggest you do

Brought this book on recommendation.we like the structure of the recovery model we are starting our first meeting in Oxford UK. I have been involved in 12 step groups for years, I feel this compliments the 12 steps. But also give people an alternative.

Enlightening, prophetic, amazing, example of my favourite quote from this book, "we are born into a world that is out of touch with reality" - WOW, and this is true for me, and this book allows/ allowed me to find my reality/ my truth.

A very good approach to address addiction and recovery from a Buddhist perspective. Simple and down to earth, yet powerful advise

Noah is a damn tool but this book is great anyway. It was written by a group of people and was supposed to be released without attribution to a particular author (as Noah himself has said in the past) but the publisher demanded Noah attach his star power. The wisdom inside is mostly just ancient Buddhist philosophy and not the work of any one person. The design of the Buddhist wisdom into a modern addiction program was done by a group of people who worked together to o vent their meeting format and their simplifications of the four noble truths and eightfold path into a treatment program. If you are trapped with addiction this book can really help you, as can the Refuge Recovery meetings that happen all over North America as well as the online meetings every day.

Bought for a friend he is made up with it