The Craving Mind: From Cigarettes to Smartphones to Love - Why We Get Hooked and How We Can Break Bad Habits

by Judson Brewer, Jon Kabat-Zinn Ph.D. (Foreword by)

Overview

A leading neuroscientist and pioneer in the study of mindfulness explains why addictions are so tenacious and how we can learn to conquer them
 
“I found [The Craving Mind] to be one of the best things I’ve read . . . on addiction.”—Ezra Klein, New York Times
 
“Accessible and enjoyable. The Craving Mind brilliantly combines the latest science with universal real-life experiences—from falling in love to spending too much time with our phones.”—Arianna Huffington
 
We are all vulnerable to addiction. Whether it’s a compulsion to constantly check social media, binge eating, smoking, excessive drinking, or any other behaviors, we may find ourselves uncontrollably repeating. Why are bad habits so hard to overcome? Is there a key to conquering the cravings we know are unhealthy for us?
 
This book provides groundbreaking answers to the most important questions about addiction. Judson Brewer, a psychiatrist and neuroscientist who has studied the science of addictions for twenty years, reveals how we can tap into the very processes that encourage addictive behaviors in order to step out of them. He describes the mechanisms of habit and addiction formation, then explains how the practice of mindfulness can interrupt these habits. Weaving together patient stories, his own experience with mindfulness practice, and current scientific findings from his own lab and others, Brewer offers a path for moving beyond our cravings, reducing stress, and ultimately living a fuller life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300234367
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	02/06/2018
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	31,906
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Judson Brewer, M.D., Ph.D., is director of research at the Center for Mindfulness and associate professor in medicine and psychiatry at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. He is also an adjunct faculty member at Yale University and a research affiliate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Table of Contents

Foreword ix

Preface xxi

Introduction 1

Part 1 The Dopamine Hit

1 Addiction, Straight Up 17

2 Addicted to Technology 42

3 Addicted to Ourselves 57

4 Addicted to Distraction 76

5 Addicted to Thinking 91

6 Addicted to Love 117

Part 2 Hitting Up Dopamine

7 Why Is It So Hard to Concentrate-or Is It? 133

8 Learning to Be Mean-and Nice 148

9 On Flow 161

10 Training Resilience 176

Epilogue: The Future Is Now 194

Appendix. What Is Your Mindfulness Personality Type? 205

Notes 211

Acknowledgments 221

Index 223

Interviews

What is mindfulness and what is its power over unhealthy cravings?
 
The word mindfulness can have many different meanings, especially as mindfulness practices become more popular. At its essence, it is about being fully aware of what is happening right now, in this moment. And in particular, paying attention to the tendency to be pulled into reacting (often habitually) out of wanting to hold on to or get more of a pleasant experience than we might be having, or get rid of an unpleasant experience. Seeing the world and our reactions to it more clearly can help us step out from being under the spell of cravings, so that we can consciously choose our actions.
 
You have practiced mindfulness for many years. How does a beginner learn to practice its techniques?
 
In short, it is really helpful to simply begin to notice what cravings feel like in our body. We can even note or label them as a way to experience them more clearly, such as the feeling of tightness or restlessness that arises with a craving.
 
What new developments in your addiction research are most exciting to you?
 
We’re very excited to be testing our new mindful eating app (Eat Right Now), which teaches people to work with stress and emotionally-induced cravings for food. It turns out that we can be addicted to junk food very much in the same way as cigarettes or cocaine.
 
You’ve written that harmful addictions are reinforced by conditions in our world today. Which of those conditions concern you most?
 
The ready availability of technologies that can foster both craving as well as distraction, such as smartphones. These are great technologies that should include a warning label that they too can become addictive.

Editorial Reviews

I found [The Craving Mind] to be one of the best things I’ve read . . . on addiction.”—Ezra Klein, New York Times

“It has a lot of practical advice, combining mindfulness training with patient testimonies and clinical practice. . . . [A] great book everyone should read.”—Irvine Welsh, Metro

“[The Craving Mind] is informative, has practical clinical utility, and offers a very realistic view of addictions and an insightful look at a viable treatment option.”—Robert Perna, PsycCritiques

“Accessible and enjoyable. The Craving Mind brilliantly combines the latest science with universal real-life experiences—from falling in love to spending too much time with our phones.”—Arianna Huffington

“This masterful, personal, friendly, compelling, humorous, and erudite book offers us a radically new perspective on learning, on breaking habits of mind not by force or through the application of will power or the desire for a reward, but by truly inhabiting the domain of being.”—Jon Kabat-Zinn, from the Foreword

“Entertaining and profound, Judson Brewer’s book brings our everyday addictions into clear view, helping us see how we get caught up in our habits, and giving us simple, grounded steps that we can take to overcome them. Wisdom infuses his research as he offers us a path of exploration to better our lives.”—Jewel, Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, and author

“The core perception that ‘something is missing’ drives us to addiction and deprives us of the chance to live fully. By bringing together cutting-edge Western science, the radical insights of Buddhist psychology, and mindfulness practices, Judson Brewer offers a direct pathway to freeing our minds from the domination of craving.”—Tara Brach, author of Radical Acceptance and True Refuge

“The Craving Mind is a remarkable book, one that will help free us from the powerful habits of craving and addiction. Brewer lays out a practical and empirically based pathway to greater freedom and ease in our lives. For many readers, this book will be life-transforming.”—Joseph Goldstein, author of Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Awakening
 
“As Co-Chair of the Congressional Addiction, Treatment, and Recovery Caucus, I’ve seen first hand the need for action on addiction and substance abuse. I am thrilled that Judson Brewer has taken his extensive research on mindfulness and outlined its benefits for those battling this terrible disease. This book couldn’t come at a time of greater need.”—U.S. Representative Tim Ryan, Ohio, author of A Mindful Nation
 
“Judson Brewer’s revolutionary approach challenges all of us to look again and really see what gets us stuck in self-destructive habits, and how we can, at last, free ourselves from them.”—Mark Williams, University of Oxford

From the Publisher

“Judson Brewer’s revolutionary approach challenges all of us to look again and really see what gets us stuck in self-destructive habits, and how we can, at last, free ourselves from them.”—Mark Williams, University of Oxford

Mark Williams

"As Co-Chair of the Congressional Addiction, Treatment, and Recovery Caucus, I've seen first hand the need for action on addiction and substance abuse. I am thrilled that Judson Brewer has taken his extensive research on mindfulness and outlined its benefits for those battling this terrible disease. This book couldn't come at a time of greater need."— U.S. Representative Tim Ryan, Ohio, author of A Mindful Nation

U.S. Representative Tim Ryan

“The Craving Mind is a remarkable book, one that will help free us from the powerful habits of craving and addiction. Brewer lays out a practical and empirically based pathway to greater freedom and ease in our lives. For many readers, this book will be life-transforming.”—Joseph Goldstein, author of Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Awakening

Joseph Goldstein

“The core perception that 'something is missing' drives us to addiction and deprives us of the chance to live fully. By bringing together cutting-edge Western science, the radical insights of Buddhist psychology, and mindfulness practices, Judson Brewer offers a direct pathway to freeing our minds from the domination of craving.”—Tara Brach, author of Radical Acceptance and True Refuge

Tara Brach

“Entertaining and profound, Judson Brewer’s book brings our everyday addictions into clear view, helping us see how we get caught up in our habits, and giving us simple, grounded steps that we can take to overcome them. Wisdom infuses his research as he offers us a path of exploration to better our lives.”—Jewel, Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, and author

Jewel

“Accessible and enjoyable. The Craving Mind brilliantly combines the latest science with universal real-life experiences.”—Arianna Huffington 

Arianna Huffington

“This masterful, personal, friendly, compelling, humorous, and erudite book offers us a radically new perspective on learning, on breaking habits of mind not by force or through the application of will power or the desire for a reward, but by truly inhabiting the domain of being.”—Jon Kabat-Zinn, from the Foreword 

Jon Kabat-Zinn