Paul Cook
AUTHOR

Paul Cook

Biographies & Memoirs
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Paul Cook is a prime example of making lemonade after life gives you lemons. The longtime St. Louis radio personality found himself laid off during the pandemic and his family dealing with COVID-19 after his lengthy health battles. The two-time survivor of colorectal cancer and former substance abuser now has a new syndicated radio show and a podcast, and continues to speak publicly about addiction. He has been a “sober coach,” helping people deal with addiction and anxiety, since 2004. Today, he focuses on “Resilience, Reinvention and Substance Misuse” as a keynote speaker and author. As someone who trounced cancer for the second time in three years, he said “overcoming” is his new obsession. “I want to create a resilience movement in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic,” he said. Before his 19 years as the afternoon drive-time host on Y98, Cook spent three years on the evening shift before moving to Los Angeles, where he was on the air at KYSR. Caught up in substance abuse during those early years, he wrote his book, “Cooked in LA,” on his first years at Y98 and the year in California. Published in 2009, the book covers three years of his life spent self-medicating. “The book is about leading up to my first daughter, and mostly dealing with anxiety and substance abuse, and trying to make it in radio and TV,” he said. "I was so excited an actual publisher wanted to get my story out there (Kunati Books), and then 5 months after the hardcover release they left the industry. Such is life! So I released a soft cover to keep it out there." Cook has made it his mission to share his experience of substance abuse recovery. “I wanted to reach as many people as possible,” he said. “During the past 16 years, I have talked to thousands of people as a speaker, author, sober coach and as a radio/TV broadcaster.” Cook also does outreach on his website, www.PaulCookTalks.com. Throughout the pandemic, he created online courses, gave virtual speeches and coached parents in helping their kids. “I love supporting parents in helping their kids stay clear of drug experimentation,” he said. “I draw on my personal story and time spent in the schools and recovery centers to help parents be more effective raising kids who don’t experiment with substances.” In 2016, at age 45, Cook was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer. He underwent 12 rounds of chemotherapy and radiation treatment, and had two surgeries. At the one-year checkpoint, a new cancer was found, which led to more surgery. Cook has been cancer free since March 12, 2019. “I have been given a gift,” Cook said of his survival. Written by Lynn Venhaus, Webster-Kirkwood Times (2021)
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  • Cooked in LA cover art

    • Cooked in LA

    • I Shot for the Stars, but Hit Bottom
    • By: Paul Cook
    • Narrated by: Paul Cook
    • Length: 7 hrs and 10 mins
    • Release date: 19-08-2022
    • Language: English
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