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Pill Head: The Secret Life of a Painkiller Addict
This compelling, honest book investigates the growing epidemic of prescription painkiller abuse among today's Generation Rx. Through gripping profiles and heartbreaking confessions, this memoir dares to uncover the reality--the addiction, the withdrawal, and the recovery--of this newest generation of pill poppers.
Joshua Lyon was no stranger to substance abuse. By the time he was seventeen, he had already found sanctuary in pot, cocaine, Ecstasy, and mushrooms--just to name a few. Ten years later, on assignment for Jane magazine, he found himself with a two-inch-thick bottle of Vicodin in his hands and only one decision to make: dispose of the bottle or give in to his curiosity. He chose the latter. In a matter of weeks he'd found his perfect drug.
In the early half of this decade, purchasing painkillers without a doctor was as easy as going online and checking the spam filter in your inbox. The accessibility of these drugs--paired with a false perception of their safety--contributed to their epidemic-like spread throughout America's twenty-something youth, a group dubbed Generation Rx. Pill Head is Joshua Lyon's harrowing and bold account of this generation, and it's also a memoir about his own struggle to recover from his addiction to painkillers. The story of so many who have shared this experience--from discovery to addiction to rehabilitation--Pill Head follows the lives of several young people much like Joshua and dares to blow open the cultural phenomena of America's newest pill-popping generation.
Marrying the journalist's eye with the addict's mind, Joshua takes readers through the shocking and often painful profiles of recreational users and suffering addicts as they fight to recover. Pill Head is not only a memoir of descent, but of endurance and of determination. Ultimately, it is a story of encouragement for anyone who is wrestling to overcome addiction, and anyone who is looking for the strength to heal.
Joshua Lyon was no stranger to substance abuse. By the time he was seventeen, he had already found sanctuary in pot, cocaine, Ecstasy, and mushrooms--just to name a few. Ten years later, on assignment for Jane magazine, he found himself with a two-inch-thick bottle of Vicodin in his hands and only one decision to make: dispose of the bottle or give in to his curiosity. He chose the latter. In a matter of weeks he'd found his perfect drug.
In the early half of this decade, purchasing painkillers without a doctor was as easy as going online and checking the spam filter in your inbox. The accessibility of these drugs--paired with a false perception of their safety--contributed to their epidemic-like spread throughout America's twenty-something youth, a group dubbed Generation Rx. Pill Head is Joshua Lyon's harrowing and bold account of this generation, and it's also a memoir about his own struggle to recover from his addiction to painkillers. The story of so many who have shared this experience--from discovery to addiction to rehabilitation--Pill Head follows the lives of several young people much like Joshua and dares to blow open the cultural phenomena of America's newest pill-popping generation.
Marrying the journalist's eye with the addict's mind, Joshua takes readers through the shocking and often painful profiles of recreational users and suffering addicts as they fight to recover. Pill Head is not only a memoir of descent, but of endurance and of determination. Ultimately, it is a story of encouragement for anyone who is wrestling to overcome addiction, and anyone who is looking for the strength to heal.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2009
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2,837 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
January 21, 2011
Eh.
I hate being disappointed by books. In the case of this one, that's what happened. Severe disappointment.
I'll admit, I have a thing for drug addiction memoirs. I find them fascinating--it's a sneak peak into a taboo world where I've chosen not to walk. At the same time, I've watched a lot of my friends and family members jump on trains bound for this taboo world, so I guess I feel like these memoirs give me some sort of insight into their hearts and minds.
That said, this wasn't one of the better memoirs I've read. It's kind of disjointed...it doesn't really lack any kind of resolution. Towards the end I kind of got the feeling that the author is proud of the life he lives, and that though he says he wants to get clean, he doesn't really mean it...and honestly, it irked me a bit.
Besides having a clumsy story line, the author throws in a lot of statistics and facts. While those are useful to understand the story line, they're much more digestible in smaller doses. I found myself bored as the book rattled on and on about all the mundane facts that the readers really could do without knowing. If I wanted statistics, I'd go find a book about statistics of pill users, you know?
I guess what I wanted and what I got were two completely different things in this case. I can honestly say I'd never recommend this book to anyone...it's not really worth the time.
I hate being disappointed by books. In the case of this one, that's what happened. Severe disappointment.
I'll admit, I have a thing for drug addiction memoirs. I find them fascinating--it's a sneak peak into a taboo world where I've chosen not to walk. At the same time, I've watched a lot of my friends and family members jump on trains bound for this taboo world, so I guess I feel like these memoirs give me some sort of insight into their hearts and minds.
That said, this wasn't one of the better memoirs I've read. It's kind of disjointed...it doesn't really lack any kind of resolution. Towards the end I kind of got the feeling that the author is proud of the life he lives, and that though he says he wants to get clean, he doesn't really mean it...and honestly, it irked me a bit.
Besides having a clumsy story line, the author throws in a lot of statistics and facts. While those are useful to understand the story line, they're much more digestible in smaller doses. I found myself bored as the book rattled on and on about all the mundane facts that the readers really could do without knowing. If I wanted statistics, I'd go find a book about statistics of pill users, you know?
I guess what I wanted and what I got were two completely different things in this case. I can honestly say I'd never recommend this book to anyone...it's not really worth the time.
February 7, 2017
Huh! This book was a great read and also very educational. The author, Josh, works for 'Jane' magazine and comes up with a story idea- to see just how easy it is to get drugs online. His magazine even gives him 600 bucks to buy these drugs! Inevitably, he cannot resist taking the bottles of Xanex and Vicodin he acquires online and thus, an opiate addiction was born. He spends the next few years ingesting more milligrams of painkillers than I thought humanly possible, but explains the WHYs of it all, and also interviews other opiate abusers along the way for this book- all while high himself. Since he is an actual writer by profession, this is one of the best written memoirs on addiction I have ever read. It didn't read like a LEARN FROM MY STORY OR ELSE! sort of memoir either, which I appreciated as a reader. If you enjoy a good memoir, a great story and also want to learn some sobering (researched) facts about just how EASY it is to get pills in America, do yourself a favor and get this book. (PS) True story- I have an American friend who, a few weeks ago sprained her ankle, and left the hospital with a prescription for OXY that she did not even want or ask for! There is no way this would occur where I live in Canada! WTF, USA!?
January 3, 2011
Even though this book was written by a friend of a friend of mine, life got in the way of me reading it when it first came out, and so I picked it up when I saw it in an airport before Christmas.
For a book about addiction, it's a fun read. Josh Lyon keeps a sense of humor as he combines his own experiences as an addict with relevant research about opiate addition. He's not just echoing other people's research: he filters the perspectives of the scientists and the government agencies and even the harm reduction activists through his insight as an addict. He keeps it real, and keeps the people he interviews honest.
As well as his own story, Josh includes stories about other opiate addicts and their paths (successful or not) to recovery. Interestingly enough, I found myself having little to no sympathy for the people in this book, even as they struggle with their addictions. They all seemed like hyper-privileged hipsters, which Josh seems to be aware of, especially as he keeps reminding himself that he is no "better" than the meth or crack heads he (or the other addicts in the book) meet in their respective recovery programs.
All in all, it was a quick and interesting read, and includes resources at the end for opiate addicts and their loved ones, which readers might need at the end of the book, since the beginning really left me wanting to take a pill or two.
For a book about addiction, it's a fun read. Josh Lyon keeps a sense of humor as he combines his own experiences as an addict with relevant research about opiate addition. He's not just echoing other people's research: he filters the perspectives of the scientists and the government agencies and even the harm reduction activists through his insight as an addict. He keeps it real, and keeps the people he interviews honest.
As well as his own story, Josh includes stories about other opiate addicts and their paths (successful or not) to recovery. Interestingly enough, I found myself having little to no sympathy for the people in this book, even as they struggle with their addictions. They all seemed like hyper-privileged hipsters, which Josh seems to be aware of, especially as he keeps reminding himself that he is no "better" than the meth or crack heads he (or the other addicts in the book) meet in their respective recovery programs.
All in all, it was a quick and interesting read, and includes resources at the end for opiate addicts and their loved ones, which readers might need at the end of the book, since the beginning really left me wanting to take a pill or two.
July 24, 2015
Honest and Casually Reckless
As a therapist who lost her 33 yr. old daughter to an overdose of Oxycodone, I could fully relate to this story. Well written and well researched, and presented in a mix of addicted lives, self disclosure, and excellent research, the book becomes a page turner. Unfortunately, my daughter never wanted to quit, and at the end of her journey did not want to live either. The problem is not the pain killers our pharmaceutical companies have provided to society. I have a chronic pain disease and am very thankful for the relief 3 Percocets offer me daily. The problem is that we still turn a blind eye to the suffering of the addict and we dont have enough or adequate treatment facilities, and the norm 2 weeks, if fortunate 28 days, is only a bandaid covering a diseased brain, heart, and body with revolving doors for constant relapses. Our money must be put into research and evidence-based treatments with after care. Rescuing the addicted is part of the war on drugs, but we must view them with mercy and treat them as lovingly as we do our wounded soldiers, because they are worthy Americans too.
As a therapist who lost her 33 yr. old daughter to an overdose of Oxycodone, I could fully relate to this story. Well written and well researched, and presented in a mix of addicted lives, self disclosure, and excellent research, the book becomes a page turner. Unfortunately, my daughter never wanted to quit, and at the end of her journey did not want to live either. The problem is not the pain killers our pharmaceutical companies have provided to society. I have a chronic pain disease and am very thankful for the relief 3 Percocets offer me daily. The problem is that we still turn a blind eye to the suffering of the addict and we dont have enough or adequate treatment facilities, and the norm 2 weeks, if fortunate 28 days, is only a bandaid covering a diseased brain, heart, and body with revolving doors for constant relapses. Our money must be put into research and evidence-based treatments with after care. Rescuing the addicted is part of the war on drugs, but we must view them with mercy and treat them as lovingly as we do our wounded soldiers, because they are worthy Americans too.
March 10, 2011
This is my daughters book and being as she told me she didn't enjoy it that much I was almost scared to begin reading it. Glad I did though, I found it brutally honest and as an addict myself (not pills) I found it hit very close to home for me in the whys? of why addicts use. It started off strong but then bogged down which really depressed me but I continued on and it picked right back up and never let go. I felt a close connection to Joshua while reading this book and always count myself lucky to feel such when reading a memoir since it usually signals to me that I'm actually finding out something about myself. Glad I took a chance on reading it.
August 16, 2009
This book annoyed me and failed as a substance-abuse fable because Lyon never really hit anything close to "rock bottom", and even his obligatory final chapter in rehab shows him not really caring if he cleans up or not. Far from a cautionary tale, Pill Head mostly just passes along the wisdom that it's expensive to be addicted to pills in New York, and that if you take enough, your friends will be disappointed with you. Blarg. Watch an episode of Intervention if you really want to see how far pill-poppers can fall.
July 21, 2011
Pill Head is more than just a memoir of addiction, it is an investigation into contemporary prescription drug abuse. While I found Joshua Lyon's account of his own twenty-year struggle with drug addiction compelling, it felt redundant at times. Many parts of Lyon's personal story were quite interesting. However, sometimes the plot seemed to drag out, with Lyon engaged in the same self-destructive behavior for weeks and months on end. The most frustrating part, was that he never seemed to learn anything from his mistakes no matter how bad things got. But that's the nature of addiction, right?
Lyon's book is multifaceted and it also covers interviews with several other opiate addicts. I found that these case studies added a lot, not only by breaking up the monotony that could sometimes creep into Lyon's personal account, but also by offering examples of the diversity of experiences and outcomes for people living with drug addiction. Beyond these vignettes, Lyon tackles the history and current uses of the harm reduction model. He explains the latest advances in patient detox and prevention of overdose. Lyon also interviews many experts in the fields of addiction and recovery, and even takes a trip over to DEA headquarters. He also covers the expanding field of pain medicine and the dilemmas faced by doctors trying to treat seriously ill patients with large doses of opiates, without overstepping DEA regulations. All-in-all, these sections of the book are well researched and offer a comprehensive and clear look at the often murky world of prescription drugs.
Lyon's book is multifaceted and it also covers interviews with several other opiate addicts. I found that these case studies added a lot, not only by breaking up the monotony that could sometimes creep into Lyon's personal account, but also by offering examples of the diversity of experiences and outcomes for people living with drug addiction. Beyond these vignettes, Lyon tackles the history and current uses of the harm reduction model. He explains the latest advances in patient detox and prevention of overdose. Lyon also interviews many experts in the fields of addiction and recovery, and even takes a trip over to DEA headquarters. He also covers the expanding field of pain medicine and the dilemmas faced by doctors trying to treat seriously ill patients with large doses of opiates, without overstepping DEA regulations. All-in-all, these sections of the book are well researched and offer a comprehensive and clear look at the often murky world of prescription drugs.
May 17, 2013
This book held my interest, but the momentum lagged in some parts. The scientific information was a good inclusion, but it became difficult to stay focused through it. I also really wish Lyon had included more of his own story in it, I felt that his demons were never fully explored within the book. I wanted to hear more about his repressed memories, dark family secrets, and questionable boyfriends. These topics seemed to not be entirely excavated. Also,the fact that he began writing the book while still an addict made the timeline confusing as he jumped back and forth in time.
Nonetheless, it is an area of drug addiction that hasn't been fully explored yet, so overall it was worth reading. Lyon also has an appealingly self-deprecating voice.
Nonetheless, it is an area of drug addiction that hasn't been fully explored yet, so overall it was worth reading. Lyon also has an appealingly self-deprecating voice.
May 7, 2011
The book I bought had a different cover than the one shown here. I seen it on the shelf at our local bookstore and had to have it. It sounded so promising and I love a good drug memoir. However, this book most definetely did not turn out to be what I thought it would be. I had a very hard time getting into the book, however about 1/3 into the book it finally picked up for me and I devoured it. This book was more research than memoir. There was a lot of techinal terms and such that was hard for me to grasp onto. The idea was very alluring to me however and I learned much from this book. However, I was disappointed as I thought this would be a tale telling book.
September 8, 2009
Hooray! An addiction memoir! One of my favorite genres!!
And honestly, after a run of middle school problem novels, I was pretty pleased to read this one! Being addicted to Vicodin is less painful than losing your best friend/family to divorce/first love. haha.
He combines his own experiences with some pretty good facts about painkiller addiction and I left with a more well-rounded sense of how we become addicted, why I like them, and why quitting them is tough.
This is an excellent fast read, and the authors background as a magazine writer shows through. Recommended!
And honestly, after a run of middle school problem novels, I was pretty pleased to read this one! Being addicted to Vicodin is less painful than losing your best friend/family to divorce/first love. haha.
He combines his own experiences with some pretty good facts about painkiller addiction and I left with a more well-rounded sense of how we become addicted, why I like them, and why quitting them is tough.
This is an excellent fast read, and the authors background as a magazine writer shows through. Recommended!
April 12, 2015
This book is so very important because its subjects' pill addictions can often be sensationalized and stereotyped in mainstream news. Joshua Lyon shows us what being an addict is really like without judgement. Due to the fact that Joshua can relate, his struggle is very real and is the most compelling story in the mix. I loved that it wasn't preachy AT ALL or anything resembling self-help. Joshua's story is a truthful and raw, I absolutely loved it!
July 22, 2015
I liked this book when the author was describing his personal travails as a prescription pain killer addict. Even though I, personally, don't get it. I can understand going overboard with speed, booze or benzos. But Vicodin? I had it once, legally prescribed after a minor surgery, and it just made me feel like my head was packed with cotton. Nothing I'd want to repeat! Still, we are all different, in our temptations and our body chemistry. Lyon responded *very* positively to painkillers, and I can sympathize, just as I can sympathize with his job and relationship uncertainties, and his speculations about what might have happened in his life to make him so susceptible. In any case, if he had stuck to his personal story, and padded it out a bit more, I would probably have rated this one four stars.
But his journalistic tendencies kept taking over, with random chapters about whether or not painkillers are under-prescribed, and pain doctors over-prosecuted, and some stranger who is now in prison for it. Honestly? I don't care. There's a reason I've never read the defunct Jane magazine (the author's former employer), or similar pieces of pop journalism. And as a former employee of one of those over-prescribing "Dr Feelgood" types (whose patients included skinny women getting diet drugs, pain medication junkies who were always early on their prescriptions and confessed to chewing their Fentanyl patches, and Adderall patients who later ended up in rehab), his presentation of the problem seemed a bit over-simplified. And in the end he confesses to not being fully recovered, in that he still identifies with the addict. I wasn't surprised to read that, as I felt he was still playing a bit coy with the reader.
Still, the book is well-written, and it presents the mindset of an addict quite well. I just wish that I felt the author was being truly honest with himself, let alone with the reader. So...three stars. If you enjoy the recovery memoir genre, as I do, this one is worth checking out. Even if a bit frustrating.
But his journalistic tendencies kept taking over, with random chapters about whether or not painkillers are under-prescribed, and pain doctors over-prosecuted, and some stranger who is now in prison for it. Honestly? I don't care. There's a reason I've never read the defunct Jane magazine (the author's former employer), or similar pieces of pop journalism. And as a former employee of one of those over-prescribing "Dr Feelgood" types (whose patients included skinny women getting diet drugs, pain medication junkies who were always early on their prescriptions and confessed to chewing their Fentanyl patches, and Adderall patients who later ended up in rehab), his presentation of the problem seemed a bit over-simplified. And in the end he confesses to not being fully recovered, in that he still identifies with the addict. I wasn't surprised to read that, as I felt he was still playing a bit coy with the reader.
Still, the book is well-written, and it presents the mindset of an addict quite well. I just wish that I felt the author was being truly honest with himself, let alone with the reader. So...three stars. If you enjoy the recovery memoir genre, as I do, this one is worth checking out. Even if a bit frustrating.
October 28, 2013
Through his own experiences and the experiences of other subjects, Joshua Lyon traces the painful history of his drug abuse and his many attempts at sobriety. He also goes into detail about the drugs and what they can do to the physiology of those who take them. Lyons also goes into detail about his professional and personal lives by describing how his addictions affected both his personal and public life. Lyons also describes the easy access some people have to over the counter as well as street drugs. Much has changed since the book was published in 2009, including more security measures taken by pharmacies. However, Lyons explains how people bent on acquiring over the counter drugs can do so with relative ease.
If you're looking for a book solely about drug use and the effects on him, this is not your book. Lyons describes, in vivid detail, the fast lifestyle of being a young, sexually driven addict in New York city. While it may have added to the texture of the story and gave a greater insight into his personality and mindset, some readers may be turned off by his graphic descriptions. It also seemed as though he may have added some of these stories to draw attention away from his debilitating addiction.
There are also some parts of the book where Lyons describes the effects of the drugs and throws a lot of statistics at the reader. While it does add context to his writing it may bore the reader, particularly if he or she is looking more for a series of personal stories of being high or the story of trying to get off drugs. It is only 265 pages but at the same time only about half of those pages deal directly with Lyon's own drug addiction.
Overall, this was a very good book with a lot of jaw dropping moments. But, the "dead spots" (particularly the statistically driven parts) may have taken away from the book as a whole.
If you're looking for a book solely about drug use and the effects on him, this is not your book. Lyons describes, in vivid detail, the fast lifestyle of being a young, sexually driven addict in New York city. While it may have added to the texture of the story and gave a greater insight into his personality and mindset, some readers may be turned off by his graphic descriptions. It also seemed as though he may have added some of these stories to draw attention away from his debilitating addiction.
There are also some parts of the book where Lyons describes the effects of the drugs and throws a lot of statistics at the reader. While it does add context to his writing it may bore the reader, particularly if he or she is looking more for a series of personal stories of being high or the story of trying to get off drugs. It is only 265 pages but at the same time only about half of those pages deal directly with Lyon's own drug addiction.
Overall, this was a very good book with a lot of jaw dropping moments. But, the "dead spots" (particularly the statistically driven parts) may have taken away from the book as a whole.
March 31, 2013
I really wish I would have Pill Head this while working with substance abuse patients or had it assigned in one of my Psych or Counseling courses. Pill Head goes beneath the surface of theories and discusses the actual experiences people have with medication, and the extreme measures some take to just live with their addiction. It provides a raw, open story of how the author along with other people-in all walks of life-became addicted to prescribed medication.
The book begins with Josh working on an assignment for one of my favorite magazines from high school that folded (Jane). He was trying to see how easy it was to buy opiates and benzodiazepines (Vicodin, Oxycodone, Xanax, etc.) just by going online. Turned out to be very easy-the online pharmacies were sending these pills out by the hundreds as long as the consumer spoke to one of their "doctors" so the doctor could prescribe. When the crackdown on these online pharmacies occurred, one would be shut down and two more would open. People were also getting pills by stealing them from family and friends, trading pills, a few stealing them from his family owner pharmacy...it never seemed to be a problem to get them.
Josh did an excellent job of describing not only why people got addicted, but also how they maintained jobs and family while high (usually didn't work out very well), going through withdrawals (some at rehabs and some by themselves-just the description of the withdrawals is enough to scare you away from pills), and life sober for those who didn't OD.
If you work in the mental health field, or are just looking for a good read (even though the subject matter isn't a laughing matter, Josh is a great storyteller who maintains humor as much as pain and sadness throughout it) pick this one up!
The book begins with Josh working on an assignment for one of my favorite magazines from high school that folded (Jane). He was trying to see how easy it was to buy opiates and benzodiazepines (Vicodin, Oxycodone, Xanax, etc.) just by going online. Turned out to be very easy-the online pharmacies were sending these pills out by the hundreds as long as the consumer spoke to one of their "doctors" so the doctor could prescribe. When the crackdown on these online pharmacies occurred, one would be shut down and two more would open. People were also getting pills by stealing them from family and friends, trading pills, a few stealing them from his family owner pharmacy...it never seemed to be a problem to get them.
Josh did an excellent job of describing not only why people got addicted, but also how they maintained jobs and family while high (usually didn't work out very well), going through withdrawals (some at rehabs and some by themselves-just the description of the withdrawals is enough to scare you away from pills), and life sober for those who didn't OD.
If you work in the mental health field, or are just looking for a good read (even though the subject matter isn't a laughing matter, Josh is a great storyteller who maintains humor as much as pain and sadness throughout it) pick this one up!
March 7, 2016
After reading Pill Head by Joshua Lyon, it really opened my eyes to how much our society abuses pharmaceuticals and many other drugs. This book is about a man living in New York who has an addiction to painkillers and later on has to go to rehab. But not only was he addicted to painkillers, so were every single one of his friends. This book shows a lot about an addicts life and that eventually one day the addict will have to stop whether it's their choice or not. This book is a story of encouragement for anyone who is trying to overcome addiction.
I like how this book went into detail about the different types of drugs and what they do to your body. I liked how the author talked about more than one person because it gave me a better idea of it and made it more exciting. I believe this book is a good read for anyone. It gives the reader a good idea about pain killers and how bad they are for you, but the only bad part is that it talks about how they make a person feel which could cause people to want to do them. Overall, I gave this book a four because it taught me a lot about pain addiction and it was interesting reading about his struggles and how Joshua overcame them.
It would be hard to make this book into a movie because it doesn't just focus on one person's story. This book would be a good book for the school curriculum because drugs kind of interest high schoolers. This book would interest them in a good way by showing them that drugs can ruin a person's life and benefit students by pushing them away from wanting to do drugs.
I like how this book went into detail about the different types of drugs and what they do to your body. I liked how the author talked about more than one person because it gave me a better idea of it and made it more exciting. I believe this book is a good read for anyone. It gives the reader a good idea about pain killers and how bad they are for you, but the only bad part is that it talks about how they make a person feel which could cause people to want to do them. Overall, I gave this book a four because it taught me a lot about pain addiction and it was interesting reading about his struggles and how Joshua overcame them.
It would be hard to make this book into a movie because it doesn't just focus on one person's story. This book would be a good book for the school curriculum because drugs kind of interest high schoolers. This book would interest them in a good way by showing them that drugs can ruin a person's life and benefit students by pushing them away from wanting to do drugs.
July 6, 2010
I enjoy bad-behavior memoirs in the same way that one can't help but slow down and stare at the scene of a car wreck---I'm curious, appalled, and smugly grateful that it isn't me. Plus, me being a child of the late 70s and early 80s *cough*, none of the bad behavior is exactly foreign territory. Joshua Lyon's account of his prescription drug addiction offered a lot more than the usual reminiscences of highs, lows, and struggles with rehab, though; Mr. Lyon is a journalist and he used the story of his addiction--and, very absorbingly, the stories of several of his peers' addictions--as a springboard to tell a much scarier tale about the vast problem of prescription drug use, abuse, and addiciton in America. Having had recent experience with a coworker who had been diverting narcotics (I work in the medical field), it was especially fascinating to me. As he pointed out, precription narcotics, unlike heroin, metamphetamine, or cocaine, are a medical neccessity, which makes their potential for abuse that much more difficult to monitor and control. This was an eye-opening and well-researched book.
August 1, 2010
I really enjoyed parts of this book. I emphasize "parts". I feel like this book would have been better served as two separate books, at least two separate sections, like an Act 1 and 2 ?! The whole book felt very disjointed. The author moves around in his auto-biographical timeline far too much. He also rotates in stories of other "Pill Head's" and the crazy things they did to keep their drug addiction going. Every once in awhile he will throw into the mix some interesting facts or interviews from expert sources.
Other than some editing and chronological distractions in the book. The content was great. I am a sucker for memoirs, and really enjoyed hearing the author's stories. This wasn't the typical druggie memoir. There was no prostitution or homelessness. He was a middle-class journalist with an addiction problem. This type of drug use is so prevalent today. Prescription drugs are so easily accessible, and people don't seem to view them as dangerous. "If a doctor prescribed it, it can't be THAT bad!".
Other than some editing and chronological distractions in the book. The content was great. I am a sucker for memoirs, and really enjoyed hearing the author's stories. This wasn't the typical druggie memoir. There was no prostitution or homelessness. He was a middle-class journalist with an addiction problem. This type of drug use is so prevalent today. Prescription drugs are so easily accessible, and people don't seem to view them as dangerous. "If a doctor prescribed it, it can't be THAT bad!".
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November 17, 2015When you imagine the average pain killer addict, you probably picture an overburdened housewife with not much excitement in her life...or maybe you picture Nurse Jackie, who knows? Either way, Josh is not the type of person you imagine when you think of pain killer addicts. He's a bit of a wild child (though his book is far from a celebration of that lifestyle), seemingly too interested in coke and alcohol to bother with pills. Yet, he is drawn into that world, and here is his fascinating journey.
The gory details (which are not so gory, really) are sandwiched between surprisingly intriguing and readable statistics and general bits of useful info. Josh is likable, and his voice is one you want to keep listening to, even if you feel as though you've had enough of the narrative. He does a lot of work for magazines, and it shows. I read this in two big gulps, and I highly recommend this to just about anyone who likes nonfiction and has even a passing interest in how addiction works and what it can lead to.
The gory details (which are not so gory, really) are sandwiched between surprisingly intriguing and readable statistics and general bits of useful info. Josh is likable, and his voice is one you want to keep listening to, even if you feel as though you've had enough of the narrative. He does a lot of work for magazines, and it shows. I read this in two big gulps, and I highly recommend this to just about anyone who likes nonfiction and has even a passing interest in how addiction works and what it can lead to.
July 29, 2011
Pill Head wasn't as great of a book as I thought it was going to be. It was less a memoir of the author than a journalistic approach similar to the way he might have approached writing an article for Jane magazine. "Ok, I'm the author, and I had this experience. Also, these folks over here, let's write about them for a while, they had this other experience. Now what about these other guys? Them too!" It really was teetering between a memoir and an anthropological study... It really could have been turned into a more factual book, or it could have been centered more about the author and his experiences. Either way, I was a bit bored and have definitely read better memoirs about addiction. I just thought this one would be interesting since it was about pills instead of the usual suspects like cocaine or heroin, that's all.
June 13, 2018
What I loved most about this book was the blunt, brutally honest perspective of the author. He painted what seemed to be an honest picture of his struggles regarding relationships, shyness, social anxiety, and our country's drug culture. The end result was an engaging, compelling human story that stuck with me as a reader. Other strengths included the interviews he conducted and his straightforward retelling of events. I think the biggest weakness was that I needed more closure than the book provided. I thought the ending felt a little rushed and evasive as far as his success in recovery. The last few chapters were still interesting, but had a different tone than the majority of the text. It threw me off a bit. I still think it is worth the read, especially if you are a friend or family member of someone who is struggling with addiction, specifically pain medication.
April 16, 2012
A strange mix of straightforward statistics, stories from current and former addicts and the author's own battles with prescription-drug addiction. His sexual exploits take up too much of the narrative and could scare off potential readers who might otherwise benefit from the information included. His jokes often fall flat and his smugness is a major irritant but, to his credit, he identifies the key question that decades of physicians and regulators have failed to address: how does one separate a person with legitimate needs for pain management from the recreational users? The answer has eluded the medical establishment for years. With 50 percent fewer self-aggrandizement, this might have been a great book. As it is, it's a good but deeply flawed look at this epidemic.
April 20, 2021
Pill Head: The Secret Life of a Painkiller Addict by Joshua Lyons (Hyperion Books 2009) (616.86+/-). This is a gripping memoir of one type of drug addict: “The Pill Head.� I had a poor understanding of the drama involved in the Pillhead's dope routine. Pain pills have never been my drug of choice (luckily?). It appears to be a lot of trouble to maintain a pill addiction. Besides, all of the great old pills that were ubiquitous in the seventies and the eighties are gone. Quaaludes, black beauties, some forms of LSD (“Orange Barrels�), are just gone, but man they were good! This book is well written and edited; it is simply a great read! My rating: 7.5/10, finished 1/15/15.
March 2, 2017
Less of a memoir and more of a hybrid on the author's own experiences with addiction, addicts that he interviewed, and research he did. I would've preferred to learn more about his particular experience. He vaguely mentions that he was molested, but never follows up on how he dealt with that. He leaves rehab and then just skips to an epilogue saying he had a relapse before he went to another detox center again. I didn't care for how the 'memoir' was organized; it skipped around constantly. Three stars for the (now dated) interested bits of research findings and the author's personal experiences.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 30, 2010
Another memoir about harsh reality! Woot! Pill Head is very insightful, very objective, and a very interesting account of Lyon's pain killer addicted life. Pill Head adds more on that with other points of addicted teens/adults and builds from everypoint - to getting pills, and to groups on awareness. The story he tells is straightforward and depicts his troubled adolescence/mostly adulthood with his drug usage. It's not just about painkillers - it's a very harsh society depicted with controversial issues from HIV to homosexuality.
January 1, 2012
This was a very interesting read. I read it in a total of about 2 days because I found it so easily read-able. It read half biography, half documentary-style prose. I learned a great deal about the pill society. I would have liked to have seen more about the damages of using pills long-term (besides the obvious - becoming addicted and landing in a hellish rehab ordeal). What effects does is have on the body and brain?
Otherwise, Lyon did a great job bringing you into his own head, and his prose was readable.
Otherwise, Lyon did a great job bringing you into his own head, and his prose was readable.
January 18, 2013
I only read about the 1st 2 chapters in this book to realized it isn't really my cup of tea. The author annoyed me and it seems like he used drugs or his writing to get drugs to better his career. Ended up getting addicted and I am sort of annoyed I enabled him further by purchasing his book. Perhaps it would have gotten better, but with so many books out there I want to read, I didn't want to waste my time with reading the rest of this one.
One more note - it also wasn't as personal as I would have like for high-interest non-fiction too many stats etc.
One more note - it also wasn't as personal as I would have like for high-interest non-fiction too many stats etc.
April 12, 2012
I could not put the book down! I serendipitously picked it up and found myself engrossed. What I found so engaging is Lyon's ability to write as an addict but then switch his focus and use his journalism background to discuss overall epidemic of pharmaceutical pill abuse. I would recommend to anyone looking to further their knowledge on the causes of addiction, the mind-set of an addicted person, and understanding the recovery process- it is not an all encompassing academic piece, but the reader will learn a lot.
January 7, 2013
I have read almost every drug addiction memoir out there, and this has been one of the best. Prescription drug abuse is a huge problem in the US, and Lyon sprinkles statistics and doctors' opinions, as well as other addicts' stories of pill abuse and recovery, throughout his own story of descending into addiction. The only thing I would have liked to see the author add to the book is a more expansive section on his attempt at recovery in rehab. Those are usually the most inspiring parts of these memoirs, and it seemed too short. I applaud Lyon for sharing his story.
January 9, 2013
Having developed a strong interest in memoirs and novels on addiction, self-injury, eating disorders, and other teen/YA issues years ago, I will say this book is near the top of the list of about 50 or so books I have read on the topic. Very engaging, and an emotional journey you can't stop following; you aren't able to decide weather you despise the author for being the delinquent, black mark on society that he is not afraid to admit he is, or if you secretly love him and his story for being so surprisingly relatable. A must-have for any YA book collection.
September 16, 2014
3 1/2 stars! As a fan of both Jane magazine and addiction memoirs, I am surprised that I didn't hear about this book when it first came out. I always enjoyed Joshua Lyon's work in Jane. This book covers his 6 years of pill addiction, and in an interesting twist, admits his addiction began while on assignment for Jane, researching online pharmacies. Lyon also follows the lives of a few other addicts and adds research from doctors, drug specialists, government studies, agencies and experts. This is a solid, interesting and quickly paced memoir.
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