What happens when the life you built begins bleeding from places no one else can see?In Stop the Bleeding: Building a Life from Addiction to Recovery, Russell Harding tells the unfiltered story of a life shaped by insecurity, addiction, ambition, faith, loss, recovery, and the relentless need to keep moving.Growing up in a small Illinois town, Russell learned early how painful it could be to feel different. Bullied for his size and desperate to belong, he discovered ways to make people laugh, give them what they wanted, and hide what he was feeling. Over time, candy became alcohol, alcohol became marijuana, and cocaine became the false confidence he had spent years searching for.What began as escape eventually cost him trust, relationships, money, and nearly his life. After a devastating medical crisis and a moment with his father he would never forget, Russell entered treatment in South Florida and began the difficult work of rebuilding himself one honest decision at a time.But recovery was never a straight line.As Russell rebuilt his life, he also built a career in construction, rising from plumbing into major project leadership, learning to solve complex problems, lead under pressure, and earn his place at the table. Yet even professional success could become another place to hide. Work, control, anger, pride, and the need to be needed created battles of their own.Years later, another painful reckoning forced Russell to confront alcohol with the same truth he had once faced about cocaine. October 31, 2021, became the day he finally said, "That was it."Stop the Bleeding is not a story about a man who got everything right. It is about a man who finally learned that strength is not pretending you are fine, recovery is bigger than giving up a substance, and asking for help can be one of the strongest decisions a person ever makes.With raw honesty, hard-earned humor, faith, and lessons drawn from both construction sites and recovery rooms, Russell shares what it means to stop hiding, tell the truth, accept help, rebuild what can be rebuilt, and keep going.If you have ever struggled with addiction, shame, grief, anger, self-worth, or the exhausting pressure to prove yourself, this book is a reminder that the bleeding can stop, and rebuilding can begin.
