Review of Gabor Mate’s book: In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction

Just finished reading Gabor Mate’s, “In The Realm of Hungry Ghosts” about addiction. Mate is a physician, who for the last decade, has been working as the resident doctor at The Portland Hotel; a refuge for drug addicts in Vancouver’s notorious Downtown Eastside. In my opinion, this is the best book on addiction ever written and I have read a lot of them. Not only that, but I have taken many courses throughout my schooling on addiction and treatment methods and I think that Mate’s words are some of the wisest I’ve ever heard on the subject.

What I particularly loved about this book was the honesty and soul-searching from a doctor working with the toughest of the tough. Mate doesn’t separate himself from his patients in the typical medical-model way; but rather, searches deep within himself to ask how he is similar to his patients. He discovers that he is an addict as well- his “drug of choice” is not exactly heroin or crystal meth, but classical music CD-buying- a habit he confesses once cost him $8,000 in one shopping trip!

The book is filled with countless scientific research studies which help the reader better understand the true nature of the origins of addiction, as well as point to best practices when treating people with addictions and their loved ones. As a therapist, I found these extremely comforting, as I employ similar methods to the ones Mate purports to be the most helpful and effective. I think the most important message in this part is that we have to remember how much emotional pain people with addictions are in and that, above all else, we need to be humane and compassionate, rather than judging and distant.

I have also worked with many folks from the same population, which Mate describes, both in Vancouver and Toronto and resonated with both the rewarding and frustrating aspects of this kind of front-line work. It can be extremely tough- I had one woman who was detoxing from heroin try to punch me in the head (luckily, I ducked fast enough to escape the blow) and can’t tell you how many times have had people tell me to “F- – -K OFF!” However, I’ve also had incredibly heart-warming connections with people who came from abusive backgrounds with very little economic resources or educational opportunities while teaching anger-management courses and the like.

On a personal level, I have had to deal with severe addictions with close family members over the past number of years, and to put it bluntly- it ain’t no picnic. I did, however, somehow find the ability to remain mostly compassionate, positive, and connected to the addicts in question, and it has served me well. One has even gone through rehab and is now celebrating one year clean and sober and is living a much happier, healthier life. I am so glad that I didn’t stay stuck in judgment and condemnation, and was able to help this person get the help they needed to begin the recovery process.

I suggest you run out  and buy a copy of this fascinating and enlightening book whether you have been touched by addiction personally or not. I think our entire society could use some enlightenment in this era of the “war on drugs”- a war that no one will ever win. For more information on this book, go to: http://www.drgabormate.com/ghosts.php