Understanding Addiction

In response to my last post, some of you expressed interest in mindfulness/meditation as a means for overcoming addiction. Today I want to relate the calm centre of IFS with the calm place we find in meditation. They are similar in some ways and very different in others. There will be more posts on mindfulness, […] (Read the rest.)

Please note, if you saw an earlier version of this post, that my normal email account is now working again. Which means I can also receive mail from the “contact” field by the right margin. Here’s where I’m thinking of going next with the blog, Feedback welcome! I’ve spent the last 8 posts on Internal […] (Read the rest.)

One problem with my last post was the implication that shaming and soothing both come from outside, from other people. IFS (and some other therapeutic approaches) take a very different stance. It’s what’s inside that counts. The comments on last week’s post were great, and I’m sorry I haven’t had a chance to reply yet. […] (Read the rest.)

We frequently hear about the intimate relation between addiction and shame, and many of us have experienced it. But what is the subjective feeling of shame that makes it not only very unpleasant but a potent trigger for further substance use? Today I want to explore my own experience of shame and get down to […] (Read the rest.)

My blogging days may be winding down. But if they do, as they do, I want to put more energy into methods for helping beat addiction than ideas for explaining it. It’s critical to understand addiction in depth, and I still believe that linking neuroscience with lived experience provides a potent frame of reference. But […] (Read the rest.)