Understanding Addiction Drugs/Alcohol/Pornography/Gambling/Eating Disorders

The 2-Part Brain Survival Emotions Moral/Reasoning Thoughts

Limbic System Instincts, Memory & Emotion Basic Instincts: Air, Food, Water, Procreation Prime Directive: Survival Avoiding Pain Seeking Pleasure No shame - No guilt – No morals – No values

Limbic System Instincts, Memory, & Emotion Some suggest that 90-95% of our behavior is automatic and comes from the subconscious Limbic regions of our brain.

Frontal Cortex Thoughts, Meaning, & Morals Higher Functions: Reasoning & Meaning Rational & Logical Morals/Values: Right & Wrong Caring about relationships Guilt/Remorse Consequences

How Addiction Develops In our brain, we have 1 quadrillion connections...

#1 Addiction Neurochemical : Dopamine (DA) All drugs of abuse and potential compulsive behaviors release Dopamine Dopamine is at the heart of all reinforcing experiences DA is the neurochemical of salience (it signals survival importance) DA signals reward prediction error Tells the brain this is “better than expected”

#2 Addiction Neurochemical : Glutamate (Glu) The most abundant neurochemical in the brain Critical in memory formation & consolidation All drugs of abuse and many addicting behaviors effect Glutamate which preserves drug memories and creates drug cues And … glutamate is the neurochemical of “motivation” (it initiates drug seeking)

The Flash Flood Effect of Dopamine & Glutamate

Flash Flood Effect on Brain Frontal Lobe Hijacked (lose moral reasoning) Stimulation>Survival (feel like we will die w/o it) Raises Thermostat (depression & despair) Damages Neuropathways (creates brain disease) Relationships (distorted) Event is Deeply Imbedded (remembered forever)

Frontal Lobe Functions Get Hijacked (disrupting moral and consequential reasoning) Reasoning & Meaning Rational & Logical Morals/Values Right & Wrong Caring about relationships Guilt/Remorse Consequences

Stimulation > Survival Primary Function of the Limbic System: 1. Survival Avoiding Pain Seeking Pleasure

Stimulation > Survival Primary Function of the Limbic System: 1. Drug/Porn Stimulation 2. Survival Avoiding Pain Seeking Pleasure

Raises the Pleasure Thermostat Pleasure Thermostat

Raises the Pleasure Thermostat New Pleasure Thermostat “Once is too much, and a thousand times is never enough.” Why?

Damages Neuropathways Creating A Brain Disease The Medical Disease Model (a CAUSAL model)

Distorts the Function of Relationships Human beings are objectified (viewed as mere objects) Love is replaced by lust Meaningful relationships are over-run by cyber fantasies Promotes isolation Leaves basic human relational needs unfulfilled

Event is Deeply Imbedded in the Memory “Pornographic or erotic stories and pictures are worse than filthy or polluted food. The body has defenses to rid itself of unwholesome food. With a few fatal exceptions, bad food will only make you sick but do not permanent harm. In contrast, a person who feasts upon filthy stories or pornographic or erotic pictures and literature, records them in this marvelous retrieval system we call a brain. The brain won’t vomit back filth. Once recorded, it will always remain subject to recall, flashing its perverted images across your mind and drawing you away from the wholesome things in life” (Elder Dallin H. Oaks, Liahona, May 2005).

Goal: Change Behavior and Nature The change in your behavior will largely be determined by a commitment to small and simple actions that are repeated each day for an extended period of time. A change in our nature (through Christ) happens each time we feel the Spirit: “The only change that really matters is a change of heart. Every other change alters us cosmetically, but not fundamentally. It changes the way we appear, but not who we are. In the end, if we don’t make that change, it will not matter what other changes we have chosen” (C. Terry Warner, Bonds, 00.2).