Beating Addiction

Because everything starts in the brain, my brain's opinion is that beating addiction starts by learning something about the brain and choosing a mindset of recovery. One resource I use is The Chemical Carousel: What Science Tells Us About Beating Addiction by Dirk Hansen. He explains in easy-to-understand language what happens in the brain when a molecule of cocaine or gin or THC finds its way there. And outlines the combination of molecular messengers (serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, glutamate, and CRF) that hit the brain reward system; pointing out that “everything that follows, from behavioral problems to broken marriages, from jail time to rehab, is a result of changes in infinitesimally small amounts of these chemicals in the brain.” Addictive behaviors represent a ‘disease’ in my brain’s opinion and need to be dealt with like all other diseases. Sooner than later, as they always result in negative outcomes . . .