This episode is brought to you by Momentous, Cozy Earth, and Levels.

In today’s world, addiction takes many forms—whether it’s alcohol, drugs, social media, or people-pleasing. Certain key factors drive these behaviors and make breaking the cycle incredibly challenging. Today’s guest offers powerful insights into brain health and psychology, explaining why these patterns emerge and how we can begin to unhook from them.

On this episode of The Dhru Purohit Show, Dhru sits down with psychologist and addiction expert Dr. Adi Jaffe. Dr. Jaffe breaks down the “hook” that keeps us stuck in addictive behaviors and explores the root causes that draw us back to them. He takes a deep dive into shame—the true fuel behind addiction—and explains why people-pleasing is one of the hardest patterns to break. He also shares his own powerful journey of overcoming addiction and highlights the importance of holding onto beliefs that serve us—and letting go of those that don’t.

Dr. Adi Jaffe is a UCLA-trained psychologist and a leading expert on mental health, addiction, and relationships. Once a meth addict and drug dealer, his life changed after a SWAT arrest and jail sentence. Now the author of The Abstinence Myth and Unhooked, Dr. Jaffe challenges traditional addiction treatment and leads IGNTD, an organization helping former inmates find support for addiction and mental health. His work has been featured on CNN, Fox, NBC, and Psychology Today.

In this episode, Dhru and Dr. Jaffe dive into:

The hook beneath addiction (00:00)
What you gain by holding onto your addiction (5:47)
The deeper roots of people-pleasing (7:15)
Dhru and Dr. Jaffe's personal stories with people-pleasing (11:58)
The SPARO Method explained (19:38)
Dr. Jaffe's personal addiction story and how Unhooked was created (24:40)
Why shame is the true fuel behind addiction (36:02)
The hooks and stimulants that fueled Dr. Jaffe's past addictions (41:22)
Fixed mindset vs. growth mindset (50:21)
The capacity for change: being reactive vs. proactive (55:01)
How Dr. Jaffe overcame his addiction (58:30)
Common habits that unknowingly lead to addiction (1:07:34)
Understanding the addiction of self-criticism (1:22:21)
Letting go of limiting beliefs and embracing self-evaluation (1:29:15)
The power of celebrating small wins (1:37:30)
Where to follow Dr. Jaffe’s work (1:44:08)

Also mentioned in this episode:

For more on Dr.Jaffe, follow him on Facebook, Instagram, X/Twitter, Apple Podcast, LinkedIn, his Website, and other platforms, such as IGNTD™.

This episode is brought to you by Momentous, Cozy Earth, and Levels,

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