#19: Anna Lembke - Dopamine and the Web of Pleasure

Dr. Anna Lembke, MD is a psychiatrist, professor, researcher and the medical director of Stanford Addiction Medicine. Dr. Lembke is also the author of Dopamine Nation, a salient book that explores the neuroscience of addiction and the lessons we can learn from those who’ve been caught in its powerful spell. In episode #19 of the How Humans Work Podcast, Anna and show host Jef Szi have a deep and broad ranging conversation from the basics of addiction and how dopamine works in the brain to the greater implications our ancient pleasure and pain circuits have for us individually and collectively in our age of easy and abundant rewards. With a deep clarity and a compassionate heart, Dr. Lembke paints a powerful portrait of what we are up against in the clash between our drive to seek pleasure and avoid pain in a culture that has taken this tendency to the extreme. She shows us how ascetic approaches to our lifestyle (#dopaminefasting) and the willingness to endure hardship, pain and discomfort can bring about a deeper balance in ourselves and generate a more rich and rewarding life. You are invited to drop-in on this conversation, because in this age of addiction we all need to drink from the stream of wisdom flowing from someone like Dr. Lembke...someone who understands the role of dopamine in our lives and the risks that come with the web of pleasure we find ourselves in.***Support the How Humans Work Podcast***