The Urge

The Urge by Carl Erik Fisher is an enthralling and profoundly human exploration of addiction, examining its roots, evolution, and the societal challenges it poses. This compelling narrative intertwines the author’s personal journey with a rich historical account, offering a nuanced understanding of a condition that has touched innumerable lives across centuries.

At the heart of this book is Fisher’s own story. As a young psychiatrist-in-training, he grapples with a personal crisis of addiction, which nearly derails his career and life. Driven by a need to comprehend the struggles that have plagued his family for generations, he delves into the history of addiction. Through this exploration, Fisher learns that humanity's struggle with addictive behaviours is an age-old battle, one that predates modern medical and scientific advancements.

Amidst the backdrop of a decades-long opioid overdose crisis and heated debates over addiction treatment, Fisher embarks on an intellectual journey to trace the evolution of addiction. He draws on his extensive experience as a clinician, researcher, and recovering alcoholic, using his personal insight to shed light on the controversy and confusion that still surround this affliction.

Rich in scope and depth, The Urge is not merely a medical or scientific treatise. It seamlessly weaves in elements from literature, religion, philosophy, and sociology, revealing how addiction has consistently raised profound questions about the human condition and our capacity for compassion.

Throughout the book, Fisher introduces readers to a cast of characters who have influenced the discourse on addiction over the years. We meet physicians who pioneered early treatments, politicians and activists who fought for policy changes, artists who depicted the struggles of addiction, and researchers who endeavoured to understand its mechanisms. Most significantly, we hear the voices of those directly affected by addiction, whose personal battles provide a poignant and sobering testament to the human cost of this condition.

The Urge also examines the various strategies and treatments that have emerged over the years, highlighting the successes and failures that have shaped our current approach to addiction. Fisher argues that only by understanding and reckoning with the historical context of addiction can we hope to create more effective, humane solutions for those still ensnared by its grip.

This book is a layered narrative that combines a gripping personal story with a broader historical and cultural analysis. It is an urgent call for a more expansive, compassionate view of addiction, one that recognises the complexities and humanity of those who suffer from it.

"The Urge is an absolutely brilliant exploration of humanity's ever-present struggle with addiction, or what psychiatrist Carl Erik Fisher calls 'the terrifying breakdown of reason.' Dr Fisher's firsthand experience, as both a doctor and a patient, gives The Urge a layer of insight that deepens its historical focus. Readers will walk away with a nuanced grasp of the high stakes of our broken medical system and the biases baked into our understanding of addiction and mental illness in general. This book is special - as edifying as it is electrifying, as meaningful as it is humane." - Susannah Cahalan, author of Brain on Fire

"Carl Erik Fisher expertly weaves his own story of addiction into a comprehensive and fascinating narrative. The Urge is an engaging read that also helps us gain a fuller picture of our own nature and how society has capitalised on it to drive addiction. Even as an addiction psychiatrist and researcher, I learned a great deal from this book." - Dr Judson Brewer, PhD, author of Unwinding Anxiety

"Thoughtful, moving, and wonderfully informative, Carl Erik Fisher's The Urge arrives just in time to help us, as a nation, rethink our failed war on drugs. In telling his own story, that of a young physician wrestling with both alcohol and rehab, Dr Fisher humanises the struggles that ensnare so many of us. Addiction, this marvellous book makes clear, is confounding, seductive, and elusive. In facing it without prejudice, we can learn a lot about ourselves." - Dr Mark Epstein, author of The Trauma of Everyday Life and Advice Not Given