Between Breaths
A Memoir of Panic and Addiction
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $19.18
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Elizabeth Vargas
-
Written by:
-
Elizabeth Vargas
About this listen
Books for a Better Life, First Book winner, 2017
Beloved former ABC 20/20 anchor Elizabeth Vargas shares the truth about her alcohol addiction and anxiety disorder in a shockingly honest and emotional memoir.
From the moment she uttered the brave and honest words, "I am an alcoholic," to interviewer George Stephanopoulos, Elizabeth Vargas began writing her story, as her experiences were still raw. Now, in Between Breaths, Vargas discusses her accounts of growing up with anxiety—which began suddenly at the age of six when her father served in Vietnam—and how she dealt with this anxiety as she came of age, eventually turning to alcohol for a release from her painful reality. The now-A&E Network reporter reveals how she found herself living in denial about the extent of her addiction, and how she kept her dependency a secret for so long. She addresses her time in rehab, her first year of sobriety, and the guilt she felt as a working mother who could never find the right balance between a career and parenting. Honest and hopeful, Between Breaths is an inspiring listen. Winner of the Books for a Better Life Award in the First Book category Instant New York Times and USA Today best seller.
©2016 Elizabeth Vargas (P)2016 Hachette AudioYou may also enjoy...
-
Blackout
- Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget
- Written by: Sarah Hepola
- Narrated by: Sarah Hepola
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A memoir of unblinking honesty and poignant, laugh-out-loud humor, Blackout is the story of a woman stumbling into a new kind of adventure - the sober life she never wanted. For Sarah Hepola, alcohol was "the gasoline of all adventure". She spent her evenings at cocktail parties and dark bars where she proudly stayed till last call. But there was a price. Publicly, she covered her shame with self-deprecating jokes, and her career flourished, but as the blackouts accumulated, she could no longer avoid a sinking truth.
-
-
yes! finally! something relatable
- By Jennifer A on 2021-07-16
Written by: Sarah Hepola
-
Glorious Rock Bottom
- Written by: Bryony Gordon
- Narrated by: Bryony Gordon
- Length: 5 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bryony Gordon is a respected journalist, a number one best-selling author and an award-winning mental health campaigner. She is also an alcoholic. In Glorious Rock Bottom Bryony opens up about a toxic 20-year relationship with alcohol and drugs and explains exactly why hitting rock bottom - for her, a traumatic event and the abrupt realisation that she was putting herself in danger, time and again - saved her life.
-
-
good listen
- By AM on 2023-05-07
Written by: Bryony Gordon
-
Push Off from Here
- Nine Essential Truths to Get You Through Sobriety (and Everything Else)
- Written by: Laura McKowen
- Narrated by: Laura McKowen
- Length: 7 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Push Off from Here, McKowen delves deeply into each of her nine points: what they mean, how they work, and how every person can live them. She addresses topics such as the correlation between trauma and addiction, the importance of radical honesty, letting go of the illusion of control, the value of community, a reminder that healing is a continual process, and that the process is a gift. Whether you’re just starting out or have been sober for decades, McKowen instructs us to be kind to ourselves: Change is messy and progress is rarely linear, but we can always push off from here.
-
-
Great messages
- By Samantha D on 2023-10-23
Written by: Laura McKowen
-
The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober
- Discovering a Happy, Healthy, Wealthy Alcohol-Free Life
- Written by: Catherine Gray
- Narrated by: Catherine Gray
- Length: 10 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ever sworn off alcohol for January and found yourself drinking by the 7th? Think there's 'no point' in just one drink? Welcome! There are millions of us. This inspirational, aspirational and highly relatable narrative champions the benefits of sobriety with a three-pronged approach combining the author's personal experience, factual reportage and contributions from expert sources and self-help advice for anyone who wants to reduce their alcohol intake or eliminate it completely.
-
-
Compelling.....but
- By Elizabeth Watson on 2021-06-20
Written by: Catherine Gray
-
A Happier Hour
- Written by: Rebecca Weller
- Narrated by: Rebecca Weller
- Length: 4 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Rebecca Weller’s pounding, dehydrated head woke her at 3:00 am, yet again, she stared at the ceiling, wondering why the hell she kept doing this to herself. At 39 years of age - and a health coach, no less - she knew better than to down several bottles of wine per week. Her increasingly dysfunctional relationship with alcohol had to stop, but after decades of social drinking, she was terrified of what that might mean. How could she live a joyful existence, without alcohol? How would she relax, socialize, or celebrate - without wine?
-
-
HIGHLY RECOMMEND
- By Amazon Customer on 2021-12-24
Written by: Rebecca Weller
-
The Sober Diaries
- How One Woman Stopped Drinking and Started Living
- Written by: Clare Pooley
- Narrated by: Karen Cass
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Like many women, Clare Pooley found the juggle of a stressful career and family life a struggle, so she left her successful role as a managing partner in one of the world's biggest advertising agencies to look after her family. She knew the change wouldn't be easy, but she never expected to find herself an overweight, depressed, middle-aged mother of three who was drinking more than a bottle of wine a day and spending her evenings Googling 'am I an alcoholic?'
-
-
Strong in the beginning, peters out in the end
- By libragal on 2019-04-06
Written by: Clare Pooley
-
Blackout
- Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget
- Written by: Sarah Hepola
- Narrated by: Sarah Hepola
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A memoir of unblinking honesty and poignant, laugh-out-loud humor, Blackout is the story of a woman stumbling into a new kind of adventure - the sober life she never wanted. For Sarah Hepola, alcohol was "the gasoline of all adventure". She spent her evenings at cocktail parties and dark bars where she proudly stayed till last call. But there was a price. Publicly, she covered her shame with self-deprecating jokes, and her career flourished, but as the blackouts accumulated, she could no longer avoid a sinking truth.
-
-
yes! finally! something relatable
- By Jennifer A on 2021-07-16
Written by: Sarah Hepola
-
Glorious Rock Bottom
- Written by: Bryony Gordon
- Narrated by: Bryony Gordon
- Length: 5 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bryony Gordon is a respected journalist, a number one best-selling author and an award-winning mental health campaigner. She is also an alcoholic. In Glorious Rock Bottom Bryony opens up about a toxic 20-year relationship with alcohol and drugs and explains exactly why hitting rock bottom - for her, a traumatic event and the abrupt realisation that she was putting herself in danger, time and again - saved her life.
-
-
good listen
- By AM on 2023-05-07
Written by: Bryony Gordon
-
Push Off from Here
- Nine Essential Truths to Get You Through Sobriety (and Everything Else)
- Written by: Laura McKowen
- Narrated by: Laura McKowen
- Length: 7 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Push Off from Here, McKowen delves deeply into each of her nine points: what they mean, how they work, and how every person can live them. She addresses topics such as the correlation between trauma and addiction, the importance of radical honesty, letting go of the illusion of control, the value of community, a reminder that healing is a continual process, and that the process is a gift. Whether you’re just starting out or have been sober for decades, McKowen instructs us to be kind to ourselves: Change is messy and progress is rarely linear, but we can always push off from here.
-
-
Great messages
- By Samantha D on 2023-10-23
Written by: Laura McKowen
-
The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober
- Discovering a Happy, Healthy, Wealthy Alcohol-Free Life
- Written by: Catherine Gray
- Narrated by: Catherine Gray
- Length: 10 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ever sworn off alcohol for January and found yourself drinking by the 7th? Think there's 'no point' in just one drink? Welcome! There are millions of us. This inspirational, aspirational and highly relatable narrative champions the benefits of sobriety with a three-pronged approach combining the author's personal experience, factual reportage and contributions from expert sources and self-help advice for anyone who wants to reduce their alcohol intake or eliminate it completely.
-
-
Compelling.....but
- By Elizabeth Watson on 2021-06-20
Written by: Catherine Gray
-
A Happier Hour
- Written by: Rebecca Weller
- Narrated by: Rebecca Weller
- Length: 4 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Rebecca Weller’s pounding, dehydrated head woke her at 3:00 am, yet again, she stared at the ceiling, wondering why the hell she kept doing this to herself. At 39 years of age - and a health coach, no less - she knew better than to down several bottles of wine per week. Her increasingly dysfunctional relationship with alcohol had to stop, but after decades of social drinking, she was terrified of what that might mean. How could she live a joyful existence, without alcohol? How would she relax, socialize, or celebrate - without wine?
-
-
HIGHLY RECOMMEND
- By Amazon Customer on 2021-12-24
Written by: Rebecca Weller
-
The Sober Diaries
- How One Woman Stopped Drinking and Started Living
- Written by: Clare Pooley
- Narrated by: Karen Cass
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Like many women, Clare Pooley found the juggle of a stressful career and family life a struggle, so she left her successful role as a managing partner in one of the world's biggest advertising agencies to look after her family. She knew the change wouldn't be easy, but she never expected to find herself an overweight, depressed, middle-aged mother of three who was drinking more than a bottle of wine a day and spending her evenings Googling 'am I an alcoholic?'
-
-
Strong in the beginning, peters out in the end
- By libragal on 2019-04-06
Written by: Clare Pooley
-
We Are the Luckiest
- The Surprising Magic of a Sober Life
- Written by: Laura McKowen
- Narrated by: Laura McKowen
- Length: 7 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What could possibly be “lucky” about addiction? Absolutely nothing, thought Laura McKowen when drinking brought her to her knees. As she puts it, she “kicked and screamed . . . wishing for something - anything - else” to be her issue. The people who got to drink normally, she thought, were so damn lucky. But in the midst of early sobriety, when no longer able to anesthetize her pain and anxiety, she realized that she was actually the lucky one. Lucky to feel her feelings, live honestly, really be with her daughter, change her legacy.
-
-
Changed my life
- By Anonymous User on 2020-02-03
Written by: Laura McKowen
-
Drunk-ish
- A Memoir of Loving and Leaving Alcohol
- Written by: Stefanie Wilder-Taylor
- Narrated by: Stefanie Wilder-Taylor
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For Stefanie Wilder-Taylor, alcohol was the seasoning that could give almost any activity more flavor—from liquor cabinet concoctions in high school to tequila shots in her early stand-up comedy days to grocery store wine in young motherhood. A drink instantly took the edge off and made even the most difficult adversary (be it a tough crowd in a comedy club or a judgmental PTA mom) not just bearable but fun.
-
-
Genuine, thoughtful, honest, extremely relatable
- By James baldry on 2024-02-12
Written by: Stefanie Wilder-Taylor
-
How to Murder Your Life
- A Memoir
- Written by: Cat Marnell
- Narrated by: Cat Marnell
- Length: 11 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From Cat Marnell, "New York's enfant terrible" ( The Telegraph), a candid and darkly humorous memoir of prescription drug addiction and self-sabotage, set in the glamorous world of fashion magazines and downtown nightclubs.
-
-
Awful!
- By Mickey 0909 on 2022-10-13
Written by: Cat Marnell
-
Drinking
- A Love Story
- Written by: Caroline Knapp
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fifteen million Americans a year are plagued with alcoholism. Five million of them are women. Many of them, like Caroline Knapp, started in their early teens and began to use alcohol as "liquid armor", a way to protect themselves against the difficult realities of life. In this extraordinarily candid and revealing memoir, Knapp offers important insights not only about alcoholism, but about life itself and how we learn to cope with it.
-
-
Profoundly moving
- By Gillian on 2019-07-15
Written by: Caroline Knapp
-
Quitter
- A Memoir of Drinking, Relapse, and Recovery
- Written by: Erica C. Barnett
- Narrated by: Jean Ann Douglass
- Length: 10 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A startlingly frank memoir, Quitter documents one woman's struggles with alcoholism and recovery, with essential new insights into addiction and treatment.
-
-
Related more to this story than memoires “Blackout” or “Drinking”
- By Morticia Rose on 2022-01-03
Written by: Erica C. Barnett
-
This Naked Life
- Forty-Eight True Stories of Finding Freedom from Alcohol
- Written by: Annie Grace
- Narrated by: Annie Grace
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This Naked Life offers 48 raw and real stories of people, who have found freedom from alcohol. In this audio, discover how Bryan went from hopeless certainty that drinking would eventually kill him, to absolute peace over the course of a single day. See how listening one book gave Jennifer total freedom after 20 years of binge drinking. Watch Becca thrive in ways she had never thought possible, all because she learned it was okay to question her relationship with alcohol before she hit rock bottom.
-
-
Not what I expected
- By KayMet on 2024-02-06
Written by: Annie Grace
-
Alcohol Explained
- Written by: William Porter
- Narrated by: Nick Jermyn
- Length: 6 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Alcohol Explained is the definitive, ground-breaking guide to alcohol and alcoholism. It explains how alcohol affects human beings on a chemical, physiological, and psychological level, from those first drinks right up to chronic alcoholism. This audiobook provides a logical, easy-to-follow explanation of the phenomenon and detailed instructions on how to beat it.
-
-
A great tool and reference
- By Nathan Burns on 2019-05-15
Written by: William Porter
-
Stash
- My Life in Hiding
- Written by: Laura Cathcart Robbins
- Narrated by: Laura Cathcart Robbins
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After years of hiding her addiction from everyone—stockpiling pills in her Louboutins and elaborately scheduling her withdrawals between PTA meetings, baby showers, and tennis matches—Laura Cathcart Robbins is running out of places to hide. She has learned the hard way that even her high-profile marriage and Hollywood lifestyle can’t protect her from the pain she’s keeping bottled up inside. Facing divorce, the possibility of a custody battle, and the insistent voice of internalized racism that nags at her as a Black woman in a white world, Laura wonders just how much more she can take.
-
-
Loved her openness!
- By Anonymous User on 2023-06-02
Written by: Laura Cathcart Robbins
-
A Hard Kick in the Nuts
- What I've Learned from a Lifetime of Terrible Decisions
- Written by: Stephen "Steve-O" Glover, David Peisner - contributor
- Narrated by: Stephen "Steve-O" Glover
- Length: 7 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Steve-O is best known for his wildly dangerous, foolish, painful, embarrassing, and sometimes death-defying stunts. At age 48, however, he faces his greatest challenge yet: getting older. A Hard Kick in the Nuts: What I’ve Learned from a Lifetime of Terrible Decisions is a captivating exploration of life and how to live it by an individual who has already lived way more than a lifetime’s worth of extreme experiences. Steve-O grapples with the right balance between maturity and staying true to yourself, avoiding selfishness, and finding the right partner for life.
-
-
His first book is better
- By Amazon Customer on 2024-11-11
Written by: Stephen "Steve-O" Glover, and others
-
Not Drinking Tonight
- A Guide to Creating a Sober Life You Love
- Written by: Amanda E. White LPC
- Narrated by: Amanda E. White LPC, Suehyla El-Attar
- Length: 6 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this honest discussion of mental health, the founder of Therapy for Women explores our reasons for drinking alcohol - and the benefits of taking a break.
-
-
great book even if you're not considering sobriety
- By melissa pilz on 2022-01-17
Written by: Amanda E. White LPC
-
Dry
- A Memoir
- Written by: Augusten Burroughs
- Narrated by: Augusten Burroughs
- Length: 8 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the request (well, it wasn't really a request) of his employers, Augusten lands in rehab, where his dreams of group therapy with Robert Downey Jr. are immediately dashed by grim reality of fluorescent lighting and paper hospital slippers. When Augusten is forced to examine himself, he finds himself in the worst trouble of all. Because when his thirty days are up, he has to return to his same drunken Manhattan life - and live it sober. Dry is the story of love, loss, and Starbucks as a Higher Power
-
-
One of the best
- By Sara Morrison on 2023-06-22
Written by: Augusten Burroughs
-
Alcohol Lied to Me - New Edition
- The Intelligent Escape from Alcohol Addiction
- Written by: Craig Beck
- Narrated by: Craig Beck
- Length: 4 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Craig Beck is a well-regarded family man with two children, a nice home, and a successful media career; a director of several companies and at one time the trustee of a large children’s charity. Outwardly, Craig was a highly successful and functioning professional man in spite of a ‘two-bottles-of-wine-a-night" drinking habit. For 20 years he struggled to control his drinking, all the time refusing to label himself an alcoholic because he didn't believe he met the stereotypical image that the word portrayed.
-
-
Went Nowhere
- By kimby on 2018-07-19
Written by: Craig Beck
What the critics say
"Read this book. If you love the sunrise and you want to see courage—the kind that stumbles and falls but rises and rises again. With love of family. And work that saves. My dazzling friend and colleague, Elizabeth Vargas, has stared straight into the lethal heart of addiction with the eye of a fearless journalist. She has written a book for us all about truth, bravery, and the hope that a new day brings."—Diane Sawyer
What listeners say about Between Breaths
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kim
- 2018-09-20
Raw and honest!
we are all human. very brave to tell the story. Loved the voice of the writer. great narrator of her own story!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2023-01-04
Great !!
I loved this audio book and I didn't want it to end
and Elizabeth's voice is so easy to listen to
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- LKal
- 2019-05-03
'Between breaths' took courage to write!
Elizabeth's memoir is a raw, and honest account of her struggle with alcohol! Well done!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Miss Zaria
- 2022-04-24
Very enjoyable listen
Really appreciate the honesty Elizabeth displayed through her story. I loved watching her on TV so was really happy to hear what had happened in her life when I know longer saw her.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!