The Addicted Mind Podcast

In this episode, Mike Collins talks to us about sugar addiction. Mike is the chairman of the Food Addiction Institute, a non-profit which has been around since 2005. Their stated goal is to get chronic sugar use elevated to a substance use disorder. Mike found recovery from his drug and alcohol addiction a little more than 34 years ago when he was 28. Over the years, he got married and had a normal career and business life. Yet, as he progressed with his sobriety, he started to recognize that his patterns with sugar were almost identical to his using patterns with drugs and alcohol. If he didn't have it he suffered withdrawals and became anxious, and irritable. Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>In his intensive studies of addiction over the last five years, Mike has noticed that the sugar cravings in recovery seemed to revolve around the brain's reward system. He saw that many people, in their first year of recovery, would gain huge amounts of weight and he realized that they were getting an alternative dopamine rush from sugar. Sugar is an easy way to make ourselves feel better, so it often becomes a substitute for other addictive substances. And although sugar is a powerful psychoactive, it gets no respect as an addictive drug because it is a habit that we've had since we were children. It's freely available, so instead of dealing with the pain and discomfort of the withdrawals, most of us simply reach for more sugar. With its continued use, life becomes only about fighting off withdrawals, so all of us need to connect the dots and realize how sugar affects the brain. Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/73Mike has been off sugar, flour, and caffeine for the last thirty years. It was a drawn-out and lonely struggle for him in the beginning, and it took a while to get off them, but once he managed to do it, he stuck to it. Mike has never seen anyone go for 90 days without sugar and then go back to it.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Eli Nash, founder of the Mic Drop public speaking training program whose purpose is to help people articulate their stories. Eli has recently gained recognition from his TEDx video about escaping his porn addiction, and he hopes the Mic Drop program provides a platform for others to find connections through being vulnerable enough to speak their truth.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>At a young age, Eli started scouring through his family’s mail to find any catalogs with a lingerie section and hiding those catalogs in secret stash places all around his house. When his family got a computer, his secret stashes became hidden computer folders containing pornographic images, and even when he knew he needed to stop this behavior, he simply couldn’t stop. This demoralizing process of wanting but failing to stop consuming this content just fed into the downward spiral, necessitating retreating back into porn even more.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessWhen Eli finally hit his emotional rock bottom, he reached out to his therapist for 5 years and finally came clean about the behavior that he had been hiding in shame for most of his life. His therapist put him in touch with another one of his clients who was having a similar struggle with porn addiction, and Eli became a part of his new friend’s 12-step support group. Through this group, he was finally able to break the shame cycle and realize that he was not alone in his struggles. Brené Brown defines shame as “the fear of not being worthy of connection,” and Eli found this definition to be completely accurate in his own life. When he started to feel worthy of connection, his shame started to break down, and while it was not an overnight change, it was not as overwhelming.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/72Through this support group, he learned that telling his story brought him some freedom and connection that he had not known for so long. He realized that other people had similar stories and struggles that they had been hiding as well. In 2018, Eli launched Mic Drop as a resource for training people to tell their stories in a way that could aid their recovery journeys from the traumas or addictions in their past and also potentially use them as a jumping-off point for those listening who have similar struggles. Everyone has a story, but we will never know how alike we are until we are open about sharing what we have gone through.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Dr. Ellie Katz has spent the past 35 years working in the area of addiction treatment, using her holistic approach and real talk with compassion to work with her clients. She joins us on this episode of the Addicted Mind podcast to discuss her experiences and observations about the field and about human nature.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Ellie has been living in Israel for 40+ years and she began her career in psychological linguistics, but she always had a desire to help people directly. Even as an adolescent, people recognized her deep intuition about those around her, calling her the Earth Mother and coming to her for advice and guidance. Ever since she transitioned to helping people with their addiction treatment, her focus has been on helping her clients and their families sort through the irresistible urges that had been ruling the addicts’ bodies.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessEllie went through a traumatic surgical procedure when she was 5 years old, which caused her to develop an addiction to food that her mother did not know how to handle. Having experienced these psychological ramifications of eating for several years, she can recognize where the addicts that come to her treatment facility are struggling. Patients spend between 7-12 months in the therapeutic rehab community where Ellie works, and she teaches them how to interact with each other and do the internal work necessary to heal the impacts of their addictions.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/71She created a model that she calls “The Six Essentials”, which are building blocks for personal success: Some of them are good mood, love, and kindness, discipline, flexibility, and forgiveness.Ellie is not afraid to call her clients out when she sees them say or do something that they said they wouldn’t say or do and she provides them with the support to help them change. She believes in caring for everyone without judgment because she recognizes that it could have just as easily been her struggling with the addiction. She wants the best for her clients who are really just wounded people in need of someone to help them pick themselves up and head in the right direction.Ellie wants everyone to know that as long as you are drawing breath, change is possible. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Leslie Cole, an addiction medicine physician at a clinic outside of Nashville, Tennessee, and author of the book “Quit Pain Pills.” Leslie spent the first 20 years of her medical career as an internist. The journey of self-discovery stemming from realizing she had been struggling with an eating disorder led her down a different path. She found hope and healing through recovery literature during that time. When an addiction clinic called her out of the blue to offer her a job, she knew that she had found her sweet spot, helping others find hope and healing.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Leslie is a firm believer in providing an environment to patients where they feel welcomed, accepted, loved, and safe. People struggling with addiction are used to the shame heaped onto them from themselves and others, but they are not used to a provider listening to them without judgment. As a part of her clinic’s program, patients fill out an Adverse Childhood Event questionnaire, which is likely to indicate that they experienced Traumas (big T) and traumas (little t) as they were growing up that they had just accepted as normal. This experience at Leslie’s clinic may be the first time they realize how these traumatic events continue to impact them even in adulthood.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessDuring Leslie’s recovery from an eating disorder, her therapist pointed out to her that the most important relationship in all of life is your relationship with yourself. This colors how to interact with others and with the world. This realization is the basis for Leslie’s approach with patients at the clinic because they probably don’t know how impactful this primary relationship is in their own life and recovery journey.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/70In 2017, Leslie was diagnosed with breast cancer, which resulted in chemotherapy and a mastectomy. She found that during her battle with cancer, she received so much support and encouragement from those around her. When she went back to work at the clinic, she was struck by the stark contrast between how she had been treated as a cancer patient and how addiction patients are treated. This contrast prompted her to write her book, “Quit Pain Pills,” to provide hope without judgment and helpful resources to anyone struggling with addiction who has never been greeted with optimism by their family members, friends, or healthcare providers.Leslie wants to make sure that everyone knows that you are not beyond help. You can always make a change, so give yourself every possible chance.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Cynthia Schmit is an advocate for medication-assisted treatment of addictions who would love to see healthcare providers informing their patients of all of the options for treating their addictions. On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, Cynthia talks with us about the physiology of addiction and the need for education regarding medication-assisted treatment.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>In her early 20’s, Cynthia found herself using every recreational drug that someone put into her hand, quickly progressing from marijuana to heroin and beyond. She found herself wanting to quit often, attempting to detox on her own at least 5 times before she completed a 28-day methadone detox and a 6-month 12-step recovery program. During her time in rehab, the knee-jerk reaction of providers was “you don’t treat drug addiction with drugs,.” Medication-assisted treatment was not presented as an option to her. She got married a few years into her recovery.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessShe then moved to the east coast where she completed her bachelor’s degree in behavioral science and her master’s in social work at Columbia. While at Columbia, she started volunteering at the buprenorphine program, of which she eventually became the managing director. With her experience working with treatment providers and drug manufacturers, Cynthia came to understand precisely how drugs like buprenorphine and methadone can assist in treating drug addictions.Physiologically, consuming drugs is tied to the rewards circuitry of the brain, which was intended to support behaviors that support survival, such as eating. Drugs, of course, do not promote survival, but since they are tied to the rewards center of the brain, the brain develops a belief that they are necessary for survival, which is why withdrawals are so difficult and painful.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/69This is why medication-assisted treatment can be so effective in immediately providing moments of clarity to individuals who are addicted as well as helpful in avoiding potential relapses. Every person is different, and Cynthia’s goal is to have every healthcare provider and treatment center educated about all of the options available for individuals’ treatment plans so they can make the best decisions and recommendations for each patient. This involves the proper way to use medications like buprenorphine as well as how to effectively get off of those medications if and when the time comes.Cynthia wants everyone to know that there is hope. Advocate for yourself by being well-informed and committing to putting in the work necessary to get into and remain in recovery. You are worth recovery.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, Duane interviews Dr. Ursula Whiteside, a clinician, researcher, and trainer in the area of suicide prevention. Ursula struggled with her suicidal thoughts throughout her life, and in 1999, she moved to Washington state to learn from Marsha Linehan, the creator of DBT (dialectical behavior therapy). Suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death in some age groups and is more prevalent than car accidents, homicides, and breast cancer. Beyond these statistics, it is estimated that 10 million Americans every year have suicidal ideation.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>The exciting thing is that this overwhelming emotional crisis that can lead to suicidal ideation is not sustainable in the brain for more than 48 hours. So while people are within this timeframe, it often feels like things will always be this bad and that there is no hope. While it might not be helpful for them to think that they might feel this way for a couple of days, it might be beneficial for them to know that they will only feel this way for a couple of days at most. When Ursula talks with someone amid their suicidal ideation, she tells them to wait until this suicidal period passes before deciding to act on their ideation.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessThere are a few simple things that someone in an overwhelming emotional crisis can do: (1) try to describe what is happening, (2) practice mindfulness by being in touch with your emotions, and (3) submerge your face in cold water for 20 seconds at a time for 3-5 minutes. For friends and family members, it can be helpful to know how to respond to their loved one’s thoughts and feelings. The best way to support them is by listening to them, taking care of them, and just being there for them. Suicidal thoughts are not uncommon, especially during adolescence, and in addition to DBT and ongoing conversations with your physician, the Now Matters Now website is an excellent resource for learning how to cope with difficult emotions and how to get through an overwhelming emotional crisis step-by-step.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/68Ursula wants everyone struggling with suicidal thoughts that you can make plans for things to be different. You don’t have to believe your thoughts, and you can reach out for help in navigating these. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of the Addicted Mind podcast is Maureen Cavanagh, author, and founder of Magnolia New Beginnings. Maureen’s family had a long history of addiction, but since she was not personally prone to addiction, she thought that she knew the formula to help keep her kids away from addiction as well. However, her world was suddenly shaken when one of her daughters came to her to admit that she had been experimenting with heroin.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Even living in an upper-middle-class neighborhood, opioids were not difficult for her daughter to find, and once she tried heroin for the first time, the road to sobriety and recovery proved to be steep. Just when Maureen thought her daughter had a handle on her addiction, it would rear its ugly head again, and she would see just how much of a hold it had on her precious child, who was now an adult. Maureen did what she believed any good parent would do: she dropped everything and rushed to her daughter’s aid, providing her with whatever she needed and paying for her to get into a treatment center again.She found out that her daughter had a “friend” who was providing her with the drugs, protecting her from her family when they came looking for her, and reviving her if and when she overdosed. Even with this barrier between them, Maureen knows of 13 times when her daughter was admitted to the hospital after an overdose, and at least 40 separate stints at treatment centers before something finally clicked.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessMaureen realized that she was on her journey during this time, which was intended to be separate from her daughter’s journey. The more Maureen tried to hold on and help her daughter get out of whatever situation she was in at the time, the farther away her daughter seemed to drift. However, when Maureen was able to let go and provide her daughter with some space, not jumping to her rescue but rather empowering her daughter to rescue herself, that was the moment when her daughter started getting better.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/67Somewhere after treatment center #40, the rehab took, and for the past two years her daughter has been sober with the help of her family, her therapist, her recovery coach, and her community. Maureen went against her instinct to keep family business private when she was approached by a publishing agent about sharing her story, and the hundreds of people who have messaged her since the book came out are proof that the world needed to hear the truth about what it is like to be the parent of an addict. In addition to her book, Maureen provides resources and support groups through her non-profit, Magnolia New Beginnings, which is impacting tens of thousands of people.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Tim Sitt, a clinician at the Freedom to Move Group who shares Duane’s appreciation of Virginia Satir’s work. Virginia Satir was cutting-edge in the 1960s when she moved away from the “traditional” psychoanalytic model and practices that perpetuated the hierarchical narrative that had become the norm in therapy. Her work is still revolutionary in that clinicians using her techniques bring in all of the pertinent members of the person’s family to address every member as having equal value and potentially remove the risk of redacting progress made with the individual during a session when they go back to their home environment, which may have caused them to turn to coping in the first place.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>People struggling with addiction often feel shame and no sense of self-worth, but this model aims to bring dignity to the person rather than harping on their behavior or pattern leading them to addiction. This could be the first safe space where they have been encouraged to explain themselves and evaluate why they are doing what they are doing. It gets down to the roots of the self, life, energy, and value. Perhaps pain or trauma in their past has led them to develop this inner dialogue of disconnection to self because they believe they are worthless. Satir’s work set up a system where the person realizes that they are not the problem and they can feel hopeful in connecting to their true self in the present moment.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessOften, people react to circumstances with “I am…” statements that ultimately draw conclusions from the external stimuli about who the person is. This is frequently very unhealthy and the cause of many underlying issues that lead to addiction or other coping mechanisms. It ultimately comes down to these two questions: What do you believe about yourself? What do you believe about relationships? The way the individual answers these questions shed a lot of light on the presence or lack of self-connection. It is important to create a space between the identity and the behavior in order to truly begin the self-connection journey.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/66Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Dr. Michael Steuer of the Pacific Ketamine Institute in Los Angeles. Dr. Steuer’s training and practice have mainly been in the areas of anesthesia and pain management, but for the past 5+ years, he has shifted his focus somewhat to the use of ketamine to treat depression, mood disorders, addiction, and chronic pain.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Before 2013, when the effectiveness of ketamine for these purposes was discovered, the main drugs to treat depression and mood disorders such as PTSD were SSRIs and SNRIs (Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and Serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors). While these medications were effective in temporarily treating the symptoms of depression and mood disorders, they often took weeks or months for patients to feel their effects and they often came with unpleasant side effects.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessWhile ketamine has been abused by people for its hallucinogenic properties in high doses, it has been found that lower doses have minimal short-term side effects and patients typically begin feeling relief from their symptoms during the infusion or shortly thereafter. Even patients with “treatment-resistant” depression or chronic pain feel better almost immediately, and these feelings are sustained for weeks or months after each infusion. It is recommended that patients have 6 infusions over 2 weeks in order to jump-start their recovery and most patients continue to receive one infusion per month to maintain their results.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/65In the case of chronic pain, many people are prescribed narcotics or opioids, which essentially intercept the messages being sent from the body to the NMDA receptor of the brain which regulates mood and pain and the drugs themselves have addictive potential. Ketamine has proven to be more effective in modulating pain as well as addictive impulses, depression, and mood because it heightens the brain’s ability to recognize the signals being sent. This property causes ketamine to treat the root cause of the pain, rather than masking it like many opioids do. There are no known addictive properties of ketamine, making it safe for use in prescribed doses and frequencies, which may differ from person to person.Dr. Steuer’s message to listeners who are struggling with depression is that you don’t have to be alone or feel like you want to give up. Reach out, because there are people who want to help.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode, Duane interviews Jacob Jones, author of the book “Recovered” and former opioid addict. Jacob has had a very turbulent but not uncommon path from addiction to recovery, and his insights into what drove his attitudes and behaviors over the years are eye-opening to anyone who has never personally experienced addiction.Jacob grew up in Alabama, the son of a University of Alabama football player who spent several years playing professional football, so the desire to perform well athletically was instilled in Jacob at a young age. When he started playing football in 7th grade, it was clear that he had genuine talent, and the desire for acceptance and affirmation through achievement essentially became his first addiction. He was given the scholarship to play at the University of Alabama – a dream come true – and before he even took the field for his first practice, he was already dreaming of playing in the NFL.During his sophomore year, he had to take a medical release from football, essentially ending his football career and any hopes of playing professionally. He got pneumonia that year and became addicted to the hydrocodone cough syrup he was prescribed.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/64The confluence of all of these factors led to Jacob’s compulsive behavior of getting his hands on as many opiates as possible just to feel ok. He realized that he had a problem when he tried to stop taking the pills, and he experienced withdrawals. That day, he called his mom and told her everything. He went home and went through a 30-day rehab program, emerging with a renewed resolve to not get into drugs again. He justified increasing his drinking habit by saying that it wasn’t drugs, but before long, he found himself clutching opiates again.He was arrested for possession and went through a year of drug court, never convinced to stop doing drugs but rather convinced not to get caught again. As soon as his drug court was over, his addiction quickly became all-consuming, and he began to burn relationships with his friends and family in pursuit of getting his next fix.When he reached this breaking point, he gave all of his drugs to his parents and tried to break his addiction cold turkey. He suffered a psychotic break and was admitted to the CCU due to his dangerously high heart rate. He was then sent to the psych ward where he “came to” and realized how out of control things had gotten. After significant advocacy from his parents, the doctors finally released him after 3 weeks there. Just 4 months later, he took a job as a manager of a restaurant, and due to the intense stress and detrimental environment, he ended up getting wrapped up in opiates once again.At this point, his family had been trying to help him for 8-10 years, and despite their unconditional love for him, it was becoming unhealthy for them to continue supporting him. Jacob remembers being shaken to the core when his aunt told him that his family was not always going to be there unless something changed. He immediately went to a rehab facility in Florida, overcoming his fear of admitting he had a problem and reaching out for help.Now, Jacob is 3 years sober, and he is dedicating to helping others who are struggling with addiction by sharing his story. While he would never wish his situation on anyone, Jacob recognizes his journey as the biggest blessing imaginable because he can relate to so many people and share hope with them. He is now very involved in his church and participates in mission trips where he can share his story and just gain perspective on the world.To anyone struggling with addiction, Jacob’s message is: You are valuable and worthy. Your life right now might seem unfair and hopeless, but you can make the choice today to reach out for help. Your worst day can become your best day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.