Explore More: The Ignited Life Newsletter
“We’re now living in a world where almost everything has become drugified—engineered to deliver instant gratification and bypass natural reward systems.”
dr. anna lembke
How Addiction Shapes Our Humanity—and What to Do About It
In this deeply thought-provoking episode, Dr. Anna Lembke joins John R. Miles to explore how our modern lifestyles are quietly fueling an epidemic of compulsive behaviors. From doom-scrolling and binge-watching to the relentless pursuit of achievement, many of us are unknowingly trapped in addictive loops that disconnect us from ourselves and others. Drawing from her clinical work and personal insights,
Dr. Lembke breaks down the neuroscience behind addiction, the pleasure-pain balance, and the paradox of why what feels good in the moment often leaves us feeling worse over time. As the host of The Healthier Human Podcast, she also offers practical steps for reclaiming agency in a world of overindulgence—by choosing meaning over numbness, discomfort over dopamine, and connection over control.
In This Episode You’ll Learn:
- Addiction isn’t just about substances — Behaviors like social media use, workaholism, and even seeking validation can activate the same brain pathways as drug use.
- Pleasure and pain live in balance — The more intensely we chase pleasure, the more our brain compensates with pain, leading to emotional numbness or suffering.
- Control fuels compulsivity — Digital interactions that feel human but allow for full user control (like with AI) are especially addictive because they bypass emotional complexity.
- Recovery starts with abstinence — A four-week dopamine fast from your “drug of choice” can help reset the brain and reveal underlying truths about your needs and habits.
- Culture reinforces consumption — Living in a society that treats us as consumers first makes detaching from dopamine-driven habits not only difficult, but often isolating.
- Human connection is the antidote — Real healing happens in community, family, and relationships, where discomfort, reciprocity, and meaning are present.
WHY IS THIS EPISODE A MUST-LISTEN?
Because this conversation doesn’t just inform—it challenges you. Dr. Lembke offers a radical but compassionate lens for understanding how modern life is eroding our mental health, and what we can do to stop it. If you’ve ever felt burnt out, emotionally flat, or overstimulated, this episode gives you both the neuroscience and the hope to change course. Whether you’re a parent, a professional, or simply human, you’ll walk away with powerful insights into what it means to live fully in an age of excess.
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Inside the Dopamine Nation Workbook: A Toolkit for Reclaiming Balance
During the conversation, Dr. Anna Lembke shared the inspiration behind her newest release, The Official Dopamine Nation Workbook: A Practical Guide to Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence. Building on the ideas from her bestselling book Dopamine Nation, the workbook was created in response to the countless people who reached out to her after reading the original—people who resonated deeply with the science and stories but needed more hands-on tools to apply the concepts to their daily lives.
She explained that while Dopamine Nation unpacked the “why” behind our compulsive behaviors, the workbook offers the “how.” It’s designed as a practical, step-by-step guide for anyone looking to reset their brain’s reward system, reduce overdependence on pleasure-seeking behaviors, and find meaning through discomfort.
Throughout the episode, Anna emphasized that the workbook isn’t just for those struggling with addiction in the traditional sense. It’s meant for anyone navigating the overstimulating, always-on world we live in.
She walked listeners through how the exercises and reflective prompts are based on real clinical practices she uses with patients—approaches that have helped people make lasting changes in their relationship with technology, substances, work, and more. If Dopamine Nation opened the door to a new way of thinking, this workbook is the map for walking the path.
Thanks, Dr. Anna Lembke
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RESOURCES FROM THE SHOW WITH DR. ANNA LEMBKE
Please note that some of the links on this page (books, movies, music, etc.) lead to affiliate programs for which The Passion Struck podcast receives compensation. It’s just one of the ways we keep the lights on around here. Thank you so much for being so supportive!
- Dr. Anna Lembke’s Website
- Dr. Anna Lembke’s LinkedIn
- BUY Dr. Anna Lembke’s Book ‘The Official Dopamine Nation Workbook’
- Dr. Lembke’s ‘Dopamine Nation’
- APA’s recognition of mattering as critical to child mental health
- Passion Struck Core Value System: https://passionstruck.com/the-passion-struck-core-belief-system/
- Listen to Passion Struck’s interviews with New York Times bestselling authors Gretchen Rubin and Seth Godin.
- Check out Passion Struck’s Episode Starter Packs on Spotify or Passion Struck starter packs to get started with the podcast.
About Today’s Guest, Dr. Anna Lembke
Dr. Anna Lembke is a renowned psychiatrist, professor of psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine, and chief of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic. She is internationally recognized for her expertise in the neuroscience of addiction and behavioral health, and her work has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, TEDx, and Netflix’s The Social Dilemma.
Dr. Lembke is the bestselling author of Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence, a groundbreaking exploration of how modern life fuels compulsive behaviors. Her latest work, The Official Dopamine Nation Workbook, translates that research into practical, evidence-based strategies for personal transformation. Dr. Lembke also hosts the podcast The Brain in Recovery, where she continues to explore how we can reclaim agency and meaning in a dopamine-saturated world.
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