Abstract
Ten stories of addiction and recovery have been presented. The authors of these are all very different. They include men and women from different cultural backgrounds, who were born or reside in one of eight different countries, and at the time of writing ranged in age from 19 to 70. The common factor that brought these 10 individuals together is they have a history of addiction, are now in recovery and have a story to tell about their experience. Each story is remarkable, recounting the deep unhappiness that is wrought by addiction, but also the remarkable capacity people have to change, to create a better life for themselves, where they live authentically to safeguard their future.