ANC071: addiction is a sweet dark room by Amanda Nicole Corbin
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the softened sound / of clinking glass, the curling / of a stinger embedded in her tongue
Upwards of one in five American men, and half as many women, experience alcohol use disorder—to say nothing of its impact on countless families and society at large. While this behavior was often seen as a moral failure in earlier times, practitioners now view it as a medical disease. Alcoholism develops for most during their adolescent or young adult years, and research finds its causes to be split between genetic and environmental factors. Although a consensus has emerged regarding its origins, debate remains over its management. A diverse range of philosophies, programs, and treatments are available to those who seek support. Regardless the path chosen, commitment and confidence are key.
In addiction is a sweet dark room, Amanda Nicole Corbin shares her own story of recovery, recounting the dark depths of drinking and the light thereafter. She “unlock[s] the cage in her chest and release[s] a thousand flaming moths of her past.” Corbin introduces a teenager creating freedom with abandon, describes the loneliness of apartments full of empty bottles, and tracks the nonlinear journey of her healing. Empathetic but never sentimental, these poems avoid romanticizing her former life and reintroduce her restored self to those who waited. Free from the control of alcohol, she instead chooses to “drink in the sounds of what it means to have meaning.”
For every copy sold, Another New Calligraphy will donate $1 to Maryhaven, a comprehensive behavioral health services provider specializing in addiction recovery for adults and adolescents in central Ohio.
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