Sober Powered: The Neuroscience of Being Sober

Gill welcomes Dr. Anna Lembke to the podcast. Dr. Lembke is a professor of psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine and chief of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic. Her new book, Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence (Dutton/Penguin Random House, August 2021), an instant New York Times bestseller, explores how to moderate compulsive overconsumption in a dopamine-overloaded world.In this episode, you'll learn: How whatever perceived positives alcohol is bringing to your life (like less anxiety) with repeated use, alcohol causes or worsens the very thing you are trying to improve Why alcohol isn't actually your best friend or the only thing that is helping you  Why a 7-14 day break isn't long enough to see the truth about your drinking How taking 30 days off can significantly improve your mental health for the majority of people Why doctors are hesitant to ask about alcohol and drug use Ways to evaluate the amount of alcohol you're consuming How long does it take to restore balance in the brain  How to set expectations in sobriety  Sobriety obsession: can we get addicted to sobriety? In 2016, she published Drug Dealer, MD – How Doctors Were Duped, Patients Got Hooked, and Why It’s So Hard to Stop (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2016), which was highlighted in the New York Times as one of the top five books to read to understand the opioid epidemic (Zuger, 2018). Dr. Lembke appeared on the Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma, an unvarnished look at the impact of social media on our lives.Get your copy of Dopamine Nation hereWhat to listen to next:E62: Dopamine and AddictionResources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill discusses how sleep changes from when we’re drinking to long term sobriety. She explains how alcohol impacts sleep, how sleep changes in withdrawal and early sobriety, and when you can expect your sleep to fully recover. You’ll learn how lack of sleep while we’re drinking exacerbates the damage alcohol causes to the brain, how insomnia impacts cravings, and 5 strategies for coping with insomnia in sobriety.What to listen to next:E3: Alcohol, sleep and drinking dreamsE59: What to expect when you stop drinkingE60: How alcohol impacts our cognitive abilitiesE22: Why you think alcohol helps your anxietyE64: Alcohol and anxiety (part 2)E69: Alcohol shrinks the brain, but what does that mean?Resources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill discusses resilience. Being able to get through hardship without self-destructing is key for maintaining our sobriety. She explains what resilience is, some research on how this impacts sobriety, and other skills that contribute to resilience and staying sober. At the end of the episode she will go over 5 tips for developing resilience if this is something you struggle with.What to listen to next:E55: How to Power Through When You Want to Give UpE35: Emotional SobrietyResources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill celebrated 2 years of sobriety on November 9th, 2021. In this episode, she will discuss how sobriety has changed for her from the first to the second year, obsessing about sobriety, intrusive thoughts about alcohol, an all or nothing mindset, and how to achieve balance in your sobriety.What to listen to next:E55: How to Power Through When You Want to Give UpE70: How the Brain Balances Reward and ConsequencesE21: I'm One Year Sober! Resources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill continues our conversation about trauma from last week's episode. She discusses a couple interesting studies about how trauma impacts our ability to regulate our emotions, and how not being able to regulate your emotions leads to relapse. You’ll learn how trauma impacts the way the brain responds to emotions, how this can lead to addiction, and what you can do to start working on improving your ability to handle negative emotions.Emotion Regulation Skills Questionnaire (ERSQ)What to listen to next:E46: Neuroplasticity Helps Us Recover Resources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill discusses how trauma increases the risk of developing an addiction. She reviews an interesting study from 2021 that looked at how trauma impacts the amount of pleasure a person will feel from drugs. You’ll learn how childhood trauma changes the way animals and humans experience pain, another reason why we can never become take it or leave it drinkers or drug users, and why science thinks trauma makes us more vulnerable to addiction.What to listen to next:E67: How Alcohol Impacts Cortisol and Causes CravingsE11: Why Alcohol Feels Good (Endorphins and Opioid Receptors) Resources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill discusses the balance between how we believe alcohol is benefitting us and the consequences it's bringing to our lives. This balance is what helps moderate drinkers know when to stop, but sometimes this balance can be disrupted and the negative consequences just don’t seem to be that bad. In this episode you’ll learn about how the brain balances reward and consequences, and some ways this balance can be disrupted to increase the risk of developing a problem with alcohol.What to listen to next:E54: Neuroplasticity and Using Alcohol to Escape or Numb OutE68: How Alcohol Abuse Changes the Way We Make DecisionsE55: How to Power Through When You Want to Give UpE30: Gray Area Drinkers (and positive alcohol expectancies) Resources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill discusses how alcohol shrinks the brain and what that actually means. She explains how alcohol shrinks the brain, how this impacts our cognitive function, and how the brain recovers with sobriety. You’ll learn about some genetic factors that make us more vulnerable to abusing alcohol and what happens when alcohol causes permanent brain damage.What to listen to next:E26: Does the Brain Recover?E17: Alcohol and the HeartE11: Endorphins and Opioid Receptors Resources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill discusses decision making. She explains how the damage alcohol abuse causes to the brain relates to damage caused by a type of traumatic brain injury. You’ll learn how the brain makes decisions, how alcohol abuse changes our decision making, and what you can do to make better decisions and protect your sobriety.Resources I offer: Membership: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Weekly emails on Thursdays where I explain the latest episode in more detail, share images to help you understand the concepts, share announcements, interviews, writing, discount codes and more. https://view.flodesk.com/pages/6107260617e156c4839768b5 Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors. Learn more:https://www.soberpowered.com/sponsors If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gill discusses stress, cortisol and cravings. She explain how our stress response system works, and how alcohol changes this response and our hormones. You’ll learn how alcohol impacts our cortisol levels, how this impacts our cravings for alcohol, and what this means for people trying to stay sober. At the end of this episode you'll see how this topic connects to a lot of other things we’ve discussed on this podcast. This is an episode you don't want to miss!Episodes to listen to nextE40: Why Are We So Angry?E51: Why We Crave Alcohol and What to Do About It Resources I offer: Community & Meetings: Living a Sober Powered Life https://www.soberpowered.com/membership Sober Group Coaching https://www.soberpowered.com/sober-coaching Anger Management Program https://www.soberpowered.com/anger Weekly emails on Thursdays with the sober tip of the week, announcements, interviews, and more. https://soberpowered.myflodesk.com/zzwwfuio1l Free resources https://www.soberpowered.com/free  If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support my work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/soberpoweredSources are posted on my websiteDisclaimer: all of the information described in this podcast is my interpretation of the research combined with my opinion. This is not medical advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices