Pulling The Thread with Elise Loehnen

On Reducing Harm & Saving Lives (Maia Szalavitz): ADDICTION

Dec 18, 2023

In this thought-provoking discussion, Maia Szalavitz, a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times and author, argues that addiction should be viewed as a learning disability rather than a moral failing. She emphasizes the importance of harm reduction strategies like needle exchanges and prescribed heroin, while also shedding light on the complexities of trauma and individual susceptibility. With her personal journey intertwined, Maia advocates for compassion and understanding in addressing addiction, pushing back against harmful stereotypes and misconceptions.

59:07

Episode guests

Maia Szalavitz

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Addiction is often wrongly attributed to poor parenting, while trauma can arise from various sources unrelated to upbringing.

Harm reduction strategies prioritize sustaining lives and promoting informed choices over the traditional focus on immediate abstinence in addiction treatment.

Cultural attitudes are shifting to view addiction as a chronic condition impacted by multiple factors, advocating for a compassionate approach.

Deep dives

Understanding Addiction Through the Lens of Trauma

Addiction is often misunderstood as being solely tied to poor parenting, but it's essential to recognize that trauma can stem from diverse sources and not all trauma is a result of a parent's actions. Many individuals who struggle with addiction have experienced significant trauma that can be independent of their upbringing, and various personal temperaments can also contribute to susceptibility to addiction. This perspective encourages a more compassionate approach, emphasizing that excellent parenting does not exempt a child from the potential impact of external traumas or their inherent sensitivities. Ultimately, understanding the multifaceted nature of addiction and the complexities of the individual's background fosters a more supportive environment for recovery.

Intro

2min

Understanding Addiction: Compassion and Complexity

17min

Exploring Human Dignity and Harm Reduction in Addiction Treatment

4min

Rethinking Addiction: A Medical Perspective

6min

Navigating Addiction and Mental Health

26min

Exploring Addiction and Harm Reduction Through Personal Experience

3min

“I think it's really important for, you know, people to realize that you can totally be an absolutely excellent parent of a traumatized child and the trauma had nothing to do with you and you couldn't possibly have prevented it. So I think, you know, assuming that there is trauma in somebody's addiction history, which is not always the case, but if there is, you should not immediately assume that it was bad parenting because sure, that could be the case sometimes, but again, there's so many different ways that people can be traumatized by so many different people. And it's also the case that so much of addiction has to do with people's temperament that will set them up for things. So, if you are incredibly sensitive to stimuli, something that wouldn't traumatize someone else might traumatize you. And again, that's not your parents fault. That's just how you were born.”

So says Maia Szalavitz, a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times and author of two fantastic books about addiction. Her New York Times bestseller, Unbroken Brain, tells the story of her own heroin and cocaine addiction as a student at Columbia University in the ‘80s—she was expelled for dealing and barely escaped prison time—woven together with the decades of work she’s done as a journalist in the addiction space after entering recovery in her early ‘20s. In it, Maia offers a compelling case for why addiction should be thought of as a learning disability, in part because so many people “grow out of it.”

Maia’s latest book—Undoing Drugs: The Untold Story of Harm Reduction and the Future of Addiction—taught me so much and challenged so many of the stories about addiction I was holding onto. Ultimately, it’s an optimistic book in the face of what feels like an overwhelming cultural challenge, a challenge that only seems to get worse every month—Maia explains why we’re trending in this direction, and more importantly, what we can do to shift our collective fate toward recovery. And what an expanded idea of recovery might mean.

MORE FROM MAIA SZALAVITZ:

Undoing Drugs: How Harm Reduction is Changing the Future of Drugs and Addiction

Unbroken Brain: A Revolutionary Way of Understanding Addiction

The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog

Read Maia on The New York Times

Maia’s Website

Follow Maia on X

Further Listening on Pulling the Thread:

PART 1: Holly Whitaker, “Reimagining Recovery”

PART 2: Carl Erik Fisher, M.D., “Breaking the Addiction Binary”

ADDICTION: Anna Lembke, M.D., “Navigating an Addictive Culture”

TRAUMA: Gabor Maté, M.D., “When Stress Becomes Illness”