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Dopesick

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About this listen

A Times book of the year.

Beth Macy reveals the disturbing truth behind America's opioid crisis and explains how a nation has become enslaved to prescription drugs.

This powerful and moving story explains how a large corporation, Purdue, encouraged small-town doctors to prescribe OxyContin to a country already awash in painkillers. The drug's dangerously addictive nature was hidden, whilst many used it as an escape, to numb the pain of of joblessness and the need to pay the bills. Macy tries to answer a grieving mother's question - why her only son died - and comes away with a harrowing tale of greed and need.

©2018 Beth Macy (P)2019 Head of Zeus Mental Health Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Social Sciences Health

Critic reviews

"A shocking investigation...[Dopesick] is essential." (The Times)

"Shifting effortlessly between the socio-political and the personal, Macy weaves a complex tale that unfolds with all the pace of a thriller." (Observer)

"Dopesick is a deep - and deeply needed - look into the troubled soul of America." (Tom Hanks)
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This is a well written and well researched account of the causes and effects of the OxyContin and heroin addiction problems in the US. It is a first person account and I thought that the author read it well. The victims and their families are described with sympathy and compassion. I haven’t seen the Disney drama of the same name, but I think that this focuses on certain chapters of the book. I enjoyed this, particularly the parts dealing with the drug company’s ethics and the complexities of health care in America (I work for NHS in UK). I bought this when it was the daily deal. I am not sure if I would have paid full price.

Gripping journalistic account of America’s opioid crisis

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Beth has investigated the opiate crisis and critically analysed how opioids medicine took over normal lives. Overall, Beth talks about history, marketing, crime and treatment package into this book.

Opiate Crisis

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This should be compulsory reading for everyone. The case studies humanise a very human and misunderstood problem and also lay out the underlying contradictions in treatment approaches and attitudes to addiction in general. The tendency for addicts to be criminalised and taken into the criminal justice and penal systems with devastating consequences is not unique to the US and it was interesting to see how many overlaps there are between treatment approaches globally in spite of a growing problem and little evidence that traditional criminalisation techniques work.

Heartbreaking and illuminating

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Hi just watched Dopesick on Disney and now I`m hooked! (how ironic). The author, Beth Macy reads this and it works. I think this is because its non-fiction but she does a good job and makes the storey compelling. Truly a betrayal of the American people. By industry, the government and by themselves. Its all here in full colour. Oh and the Sackler family? Burn in hell.

Just Watched Dopesick on Disney!

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Brilliant book. Watched the documentary first a long time ago. Would definitely recommend. Especially to families that are struggling with this

Dopesick

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