Les Beley recorded these stories of attempts to escape from reality from real interlocutors. The first cigarette after a long break, confession of one's own alcoholism, experiments with various substances, psychedelic experience - such experiences remain unspoken. People addicted to substances are often stereotyped, yet their stories may seem understandable if heard correctly. The book ends with the reverse side of the coin - a story about treatment that gives hope: a person can always be helped to cope with addiction.