130 Quotes by David Sheff

Even as all the experts kindly tell the parents of addicts, ‘You didn’t cause it,’ I have not let myself off the hook. I often feel as if I completely failed my son. In admitting this, I am not looking for sympathy or absolution, but instead stating a truth that will be recognized by most parents who have been through this.

But you know, I don’t think I will be so scared to die. I think it’s like today: the end of a vacation when you are ready to go home.

I know there is no point in haranguing him because he will just shut down, but I want to cover every angle.

I have always assumed that vigilance and love would guarantee a decent life for my children, but I.

It may be true that suffering builds character, but it also damages people.

Nic is writing ‘I am sorry’, and I want to cry. No, I think, don’t let him in again. No don’t let him in again. No don’t let him in again.

The miracles do not cancel out evil, but I accept evil in order to participate in the miraculous.

But it conveys the message that addiction is as biological a condition as multiple sclerosis. True brain diseases have no volitional component.

What about people with high cholesterol who keep eating French fries? Do we say a disease is not biological because it’s influenced by behavior? No one starts out hoping to become an addict; they just like drugs. No one starts out hoping for a heart attack; they just like fried chicken.