Episode 2296: Adi Jaffe on how to free yourself from addiction forever

Addiction specialist and former meth addict Dr. Adi Jaffe challenges everything we take for granted about addiction and recovery. Opening our KEEN ON conversation with his own dramatic story of a SWAT team arrest that turned his young life around, Jaffe goes on to deliver some startling insights: nearly half of all Americans are hooked on something, whether it's drugs, porn, social media, or the latest "miracle" weight loss medications. The author of Unhooked: How to Free Yourself from Addiction Forever takes aim at America's puritanical approach to addiction, arguing that complete abstinence isn't the answer and that even Alcoholics Anonymous emerged from failed Prohibition policies. In a particularly provocative segment, he dismisses the common recovery mantra that "you're always one drink away from relapse" as absurd and potentially harmful. The conversation takes unexpected turns into America's complicated relationship with addiction, from Donald Trump's teetotaling narcissism (ie: addiction to himself) to RFK Jr.'s controversial history with heroin. Most surprisingly, Jaffe argues that substance use itself isn't the real problem – it's merely a symptom of deeper "hooks" like trauma, beliefs, and habits that need addressing. His radical conclusion? You don't need to eliminate addictive behaviors; you need to replace them.Dr. Adi Jaffe holds a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He teaches courses at UCLA that address addiction specifically, research statistics or biological psychology and behavioral neuroscience more generally. Well-known for his online and academic writing, Dr. Jaffe’s views on addiction and his research on the topic have been published widely in both academic journals and popular magazines and websites. He has appeared on several television shows including Good Morning America, The Dr. Oz Show, The Doctors and Larry King Now and in numerous documentaries discussing current topics in addiction. He has also been the guest on notable podcasts including Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness, Almost Thirty, Dr. Drew, Cleaning Up the Mental Mess with Dr. Caroline Leaf and many more.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.Keen On is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe