Craving To Quit with Judson Brewer
Craving To quit » Listen Now
Date: August 28, 2017
Episode Description for “Craving To Quit“
“In their quest for happiness, people mistaken excitement of the mind for real happiness.”
-Sayadaw U Pandita.
Discussing Judson Brewers book “The Craving Mind: from cigarettes to smartphones to love, why we get hooked and how we can break bad habits” this interview explores addiction in a new way. From cigarettes, to love, he helps people get to the root of their addiction using mindfulness techniques.
Dr. Risk’s Thoughts
I don’t think that anyone can say they haven’t struggled with cravings. Whether it’s cigarettes, sugar, or behaviour, we all have a tendency to give into those nagging feelings that temporarily make us feel better. In clinic, it seems to be one of the most difficult battles that patients face, and I can’t say that I am immune. I remember the days of quitting sugar and alcohol and pacing the house looking for some way to alleviate the discomfort. Most of us know that even if we make it that first hard day, we are likely to give in in the days to come.
Guest Information
Judson Brewer MD PhD
Judson Brewer MD PhD is the Director of Research at the Center for Mindfulness and associate professor in medicine and psychiatry at UMass Medical School. He also is adjunct faculty at Yale University, and a research affiliate at MIT. A psychiatrist and internationally known expert in mindfulness training for addictions, Brewer has developed and tested novel mindfulness programs for addictions, including both in-person and app-based treatments (www.goeatrightnow.com, www.cravingtoquit.com). He has studied the underlying brain mechanisms of mindfulness. He has presented to the US President’s Office of National Drug Control Policy, trained US Olympic coaches, been featured on 60 minutes, at TED (4th most viewed talk of 2016), in Time magazine (top 100 new health discoveries of 2013), Forbes, Businessweek, NPR and the BBC among others. He is the author of The Craving Mind: from cigarettes to smartphones to love, why we get hooked and how we can break bad habits (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2017).
