Often the best recovery stories can be found in documentaries. These powerful movies can captivate viewers, giving them a new frame of reference to help shape their opinions.
Documentaries about substance use disorders can help you understand the good and the bad involved with addiction and recovery — from the strength patients find while rebuilding their lives into something even better than before they were addicted, to the stigma and misinformation about this disease.
Here are eight documentaries about SUD and recovery that were created recently, are available on all different streaming platforms, and are worth watching.
*Please note that some of these may be graphic in nature and show violence, paraphernalia, and individuals using drugs or drinking alcohol.
1. Heroin(e): Netflix
Filmed in West Virginia, this documentary features three women who live and work in the “epicenter” of America’s opioid epidemic. This film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject.
2. Understanding the Opioid Epidemic: https://www.pbs.org/show/understanding-opioid-epidemic/
A powerful documentary that combines stories of people and communities impacted by opioids. It traces the causes behind the unprecedented growth in use of prescription opioids and the devastating impact drugs are having on the United States.
3. Russell Brand – From Addiction To Recovery: Netflix, Amazon
Drawing on his own desperate journey through heroin addiction, this documentary defies conventional theories and social policies about drug use and treatment.
4. Addiction: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/addiction/
Hear firsthand from individuals struggling with addiction and follow the cutting-edge work of doctors and scientists as they investigate why addiction is not a moral failing, but a chronic, treatable medical condition.
5. Drinking to Oblivion: buy on Amazon for $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/Louis-Theroux-Drinking-to-Oblivion/dp/B07BN1YQ6Z
Louis Theroux spends time at King’s College Hospital in London – a specialist liver center – where he immerses himself in the lives of patients in the grips of alcohol addiction and the medical staff trying to make them better.
6. Do No Harm: The Opioid Epidemic: http://www.donoharmdocumentary.com/
Filmed in the opioid epidemic ground zeros of Seattle, Kentucky and New Hampshire, the film features poignant stories from recovering addicts and families with losses; reveals the insights of leading doctors and law enforcement officers; reports the failure of drug companies to take appropriate responsibility for the crisis; traces what monies legislators have received; and focuses on those who fight back with effective, long-lasting treatment programs.
7. Recovery Boys: Netflix
Filmed by the same director who filmed Academy Award Nominated Heroin(e), this documentary follows four men attempting to reinvent their lives, mend broken relationships, and navigate all of the ups and downs that come with recovery. It is intimate and courageous at the same time.
8. Addicted: America’s Opioid Crisis: YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hOyjFyE3Ek
With great fury and determination, this documentary fearlessly confronts the traumatic results of the opioid epidemic – from devastated communities across the United States to the individuals who have been left grieving or dead in its wake.
Change the Ending of Your Story
If you or a loved one are currently struggling with drug or alcohol use, you are not alone. Please seek the help you deserve. BrightView offers comprehensive outpatient treatment that can help you reclaim your life. Please call our team. They’re available 24 hours a day at 888.501.9865,or schedule an appointment online.
