Candace Plattor’s addiction guide wins Gold in Readers’ Favorite contest

Candace Plattor’s Loving an Addict, Loving Yourself won Gold Medal recognition in the 2026 Readers’ Favorite International Book Award Contest in the Non-Fiction — Social Issues category. The win lands during National Recovery Month and spotlights the role families play in addiction recovery.

Why it matters: - The award gives fresh visibility to a book aimed at families who are trying to support a loved one with addiction without losing their own stability. - The recognition arrives during National Recovery Month, when recovery support and family well-being are already in focus. - The book’s message centers on boundaries, self-care and reducing the cycle of enabling.

What happened: - Loving an Addict, Loving Yourself: The Top 10 Survival Tips for Loving Someone with an Addiction won Gold Medal in the Non-Fiction — Social Issues category of the 2026 Readers' Favorite International Book Award Contest. - Candace Plattor is the book’s author and a Calgary-based addiction counsellor, family addiction expert and founder of Love With Boundaries. - Readers' Favorite also gave the book a 5-star professional review before the award announcement.

The details: - The book focuses on what family members can change: their own choices, boundaries, behaviours and day-to-day lives. - Plattor does not frame the book as a guide to make a person stop using drugs or alcohol. - The book uses 10 survival tips, real-life examples and direct guidance. - The content explains the difference between helping and enabling. - The review from Readers' Favorite called the book “a timely self-help guide and a supremely honest and helpful resource for those who love someone in active addiction.” - Reviewer Jamie Michele wrote that Plattor “pairs tough truth with practical self-respect” and called the book “Well written and loaded with answers... Very highly recommended.” - Plattor said recovery is not only about the person with addiction and that loved ones need support, boundaries and a life not controlled by someone else’s addiction.

Between the lines: - The award reinforces a broader shift in addiction support toward helping families protect their own mental health and avoid over-functioning for a loved one. - The recognition also suggests demand for practical, nonjudgmental resources that speak directly to caregivers and relatives. - Plattor has spent years promoting that message through writing, counselling, speaking and her work with Love With Boundaries.

What’s next: - The Love With Boundaries team is offering a complimentary 30-minute consultation for people who want help sorting out what is helping, what may be enabling and what to do next. - Plattor is expected to continue using the award to expand the reach of her message to families affected by addiction.

The bottom line: - The Gold Medal win turns a family-focused addiction guide into a higher-profile resource at a moment when recovery and caregiver support are both in the spotlight.