My guest today is a fascinating character and a real Pracademic when it comes to addiction and rehab. Jack Nagle was a teenager with a promising future in sport until recreational drug use turned into an addiction that spiralled into suicide attempts and a near-death overdose.

After going through rehab, he made it his mission to start real conversations about drugs and he now runs sophisticated rehab programs for addicts, as well as a range of social media initiatives.

In today’s episode, we discuss the social, emotional, genetic and epigenetic factors involved in drug use and addiction and explore a wide-range of novel treatment modalities - and the politics holding them back.

You can find out more about Jack's work and programs at realdrugtalk.com.au, and connectionbasedliving.com.au as well as on instagram @realdrugtalk

In this episode we discuss a wide range of topics, such as:

Start: Jack's journey into & out of drugs
6:07 The ravages of ICE / Crystal Meth
12:58 From drug addict to rehab program director
14:35 Is addiction a disease?
19:06 Your brain on drugs
22:30 The role of emotional and spiritual voids in addiction
26:40 The pleasureful side of drugs and alcohol
29:00 Environmental & genetic influences on risk of addiction
35:30 Epigenetics & neuroplasticity
44:20 The effectiveness (or lack thereof) of traditional rehab programs
50:32 The potential for therapist-guided journeys with psychedellics as a treatment
1:04:46 The role of the gut microbiome in treatment
1:07:46 Jack's ultimate rehab program

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Back from the brink - a journey into drugs, addiction, rehab, genetics, epigenetics and Amazonian shamans