We All Fall Down: Living with Addiction

I had to read this, as I had already read Beautiful Boy, then Tweak, so I had to find out how Nic was progressing. I did notice that a lot of the writing was in three'scrying, crying, crying.... or breathing, breathing , breathing. OK, that was all thru the book.But, none the less, I did enjoy this book. Nic seemed to fall in love, or at least he thought it was love at almost any girl he saw.The girl from the airport that came up to him out of no where, and others.Zelda, she was toxic for him.He does admit that while he is at these schools he is not sober.I did like the ending, which i wont spoil for anyone.

This book made me sad for Nic, and a little mad about being deceived, but I highly recommend you read this book. I do hope that Nic is truly 'sober for 8 years' as claimed on the internet. Most people have no clue about what it takes to overcome addiction, or that the addict's brains has truly been hijacked. This is an enlightening journey through the insanity of addiction.I actually met Nic and his Dad David Sheff (author of Beautiful Boy, a great book) during their joint book tour (2008?) near my and their home in CA. I am knowledgeable and mental health and addictions and have a family member who has struggled with addiction for 15 years. My immediate impression of Nic, even at a distance, was that he was 'hiding.' A mop of hair covered most of his eyes, his head was often down. He had little to say. I thought it odd. He seemed depressed and withdrawn, not just 'shy,' and like a typical stoner. So, huge kudos to Nic to admit in this book that he was not sober at that time. That takes incredible courage. In fact, he is not sober in this book either, but what he reveals with brutal honesty as we journey with him opens the reader's eyes to the crazy thinking and behavior of the addict, their bizarre rationalizations, and complete lack of insight. Nic also hints at other issues, but they are not well explored.P.S. In case you are looking for information about diagnosis and treatment--I do agree with Nic's rather scathing take on many of the high-priced treatment programs run primarily by unlicensed 'counselors,' who know next to nothing about co-morbidity of mental illness with addictions. It is a national disgrace. See his dad's book 'Clean' (David Sheff, 2013.) It bothered me that Nic never apologizes for his cringe-worthy, disrespectful descriptions towards those who tried to help him, which says more about him than them.I hope Nic eventually got on the right medications. But if one still feels depressed and even suicidal at times, as he describes, one is not on the right meds. Also, NO provider should ever start a patient on 3 medications at once. Start low, go slow, and one at a time.

Before purchasing this book, I read the reviews on it and was worried it would be a disappointment compared to Tweak and Beautiful Boy. I had read that Nic was completely narcissistic in We All Fall Down, and whined about the recovery process. All that aside, I am very glad I purchased this book.Nic's story is heartwrenching. The way he writes may come off as narcissistic at times, but I honestly read his words as having a sarcastic tone; as though he's looking back at the past and how his mind was working at that point in time and is saying, "oooh no, I have a grip now.. I'm completely dependent on alcohol but hell, I can handle it this time" and then rolling his eyes at his own addict mentality. Nic writes in a very honest way, and I have a ton of admiration for him and his father for having the courage to show the world such destruction.This second book of Nic's shows more of his bipolar (in my opinion). When reading Tweak, I kept wondering if he was bipolar or not (I'm a graduate student in mental health), and was glad to read that he had finally been diagnosed and was having some success with medication. This second book, shows his dark side much more than Tweak and less mania.Personally, I connect very well with Nic and his writing. At times, his writing is a trigger for me and I think those reading this for their own addiction recovery should be aware of that potential. I read a comment on here about how he was whining about being in recovery on his 21rst birthday. Obviously, the writer of that comment had not been an addict, or had not been an addict at such a young age. That was one of my hardest obstacles to face in my own recovery - watching everyone my age experimenting with alcohol and knowing that I simply could not. That was the single most important factor in my relapses. It made me angry that I couldn't be "normal", and reading Nic's words reflected those same feelings back to me. I didn't see him as whining about it whatsoever, just being open and honest about how he was thinking/feeling. Alcohol wasn't his drug of choice, and as any addict knows coming to the realization that the drug doesn't matter so much as the process is difficult, painful and a daily struggle. Realizing that you cannot partake in social events deemed age appropriate, or even just socially appropriate, and AVOIDING those events is a whole process in itself... I think Nic effectively shared this struggle and hope that others connected with it as much as I did.

Worth a read if you've read 'tweak'. Quite repetitive and I didn't like the 'chat' way the author writes. Ending feels rushed but good content.

One of the most gripping story’s of all time from a truly inspiring man.

Love this book

Nic Sheff prosegue il racconto del suo percorso attraverso le dipendenze, iniziato con la precedente autobiografia Tweak, in maniera più matura e consapevole. La storia continua esattamente da dove l'ha lasciata, con la consueta schiettezza e onestà. Anzi forse il tono franco che caratterizza la scrittura dell' autore appare ancora più marcato, sia nel rivelare tutti gli altarini che stanno dietro la scrittura del suo primo libro sia nell'espressione dei propri sentimenti in merito a relazioni e situazioni. Non teme di sconcertante il lettore, va dritto per la sua strada raccontando la cruda verità, spesso scontrandosi con il senso comune, ritrattando le proprie opinioni, sbagliando e rialzandosi.Buona lettura!

“We All Fall Down: Living with Addiction” traz a continuação das memórias de Nic Sheff iniciadas no livro “Tweak: Growing Up on Methamphetamines”. Ambos, juntamente com o livro “Beautiful Boy” de David Sheff trazem a história verídica e devastadora do poder das drogas em destruir pessoas e famílias. Especificamente neste livro, Nic traz a continuação de suas memórias enquanto um viciado. Um livro que traz a verdade, por mais difícil e dura que seja de ser lida e escrita, mostrando que a vida de um viciado em drogas é um problema extremamente sério. Mesmo em momentos de sobriedade, recaídas ocorreram na recuperação de Nic e elas são descritas neste livro. Um livro altamente recomendado para usuários de drogas, pessoas que conhecem e/ou convivem com usuários de drogas e, também, para aqueles que têm interesse em saber mais sobre o assunto. Uma obra que traz uma lição fundamental aos usuários de drogas: existe luz no fim do túnel. Com devido tratamento e auxílio de amigos e familiares é possível sim buscar uma forma de não depender das drogas para seguir a vida. O filme “Beautiful Boy” (“Querido Menino”) faz um apanhado geral destes livros e merece ser visto. Todos estes livros são altamente recomendados, assim como o filme.