The Human Upgrade: Biohacking for Longevity & Performance

Tame Your Dragons, Train Your Brain and Take Back Your Happiness – Dr. Daniel Amen with Dave Asprey : 798

Mar 2, 2021

Join Dr. Daniel Amen, a physician and brain health expert, as he dives into the fascinating world of our inner 'dragons'—the psychological issues that impact our happiness. He shares insights from his book, discussing how to recognize these emotional hurdles and transform them into strengths. Learn practical strategies for fostering happiness, like focusing on small joys and cultivating gratitude. Dr. Amen also addresses how past traumas can shape our perceptions and highlights the importance of emotional healing for a fulfilled life.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Books

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Defining Dragons

A "dragon" is a recurring issue your brain focuses on that doesn't help you.
These dragons, like anxiety or insecurity, impact your emotional brain and hinder happiness.

ADVICE

Taming the Insignificant Dragon

To tame the "insignificant" dragon, focus on helping others.
Ask yourself daily, "What can I do today to be helpful?"

INSIGHT

The Inferiority Dragon

The "inferior and flawed" dragon makes you compare yourself negatively to others.
Social media fuels this dragon, contributing to issues like teen suicide.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

This episode of Bulletproof Radio goes deep into the dragon psyche. No, not “Game of Thrones,” but specifically our inner dragons.

“A dragon is an issue you're dealing with, that your brain is listening to, but it's not helping you,” says brain expert Dr. Daniel Amen.

These dragons are the ones that “breathe fire on our emotional brain,” like anxiety, depression, grief, loneliness and more (you can find out what yours are at www.knowyourdragons.com).

As a physician, double board-certified psychiatrist, professor, and author of 30 books, Dr. Amen has a lot to share about taming the beasts that beset us.

In his newest book “Your Brain is Always Listening: Tame the Hidden Dragons that Control Your Happiness, Habits and Hang-ups,” he talks about those dragon origin stories, their triggers, your reactions and how to tame them.

He has a lot of tips for how we can step outside of our mind to distance ourselves from the dragon’s fire, like tuning into your pleasure centers, and how to guide your mind to look for what’s right rather than what’s wrong.

“It's like a little treasure hunt,” Dr. Amen says. “And I look for even the micro moments. What are the smallest things that happened today that just made me happy? And it sets your dreams up to be more positive. These little habits are so helpful if you can make them part of your everyday life. You literally can train your brain. And when you do, your life is happier.”

We talk about the ways past physical and emotional trauma may impact the way we heal, how our dragons are always interacting with other people’s dragons, how this is all affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and much more.

Dr. Amen gives practical tools you can use to stop feeling sad, mad, nervous or out of control and start being happier, calmer, and more in control of your own destiny.

Enjoy! And get more resources at Dave.Asprey/podcasts. Got a comment, idea or question for the podcast? Submit via this form.

SPECIAL OFFER FOR BULLETPROOF RADIO LISTENERS

https://yourbrainisalwayslistening.com book order to get FREE stuff! Ends March 7.

WE APPRECIATE OUR PARTNERS. CHECK THEM OUT!

Better-For-You Brews: https://www.flyingembers.com/DAVE, use code DAVE to save 15%

Light Therapy: https://joovv.com/dave, use code DAVE

Brain Power: https://www.cognibiotics.com/dave, use code DAVE10

DAVE ASPREY’S NEW BOOK!

“Fast This Way: Burn Fat, Heal Inflammation, and Become the High-Performing Human You Were Meant to Be”

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.