Ep 143 Why Addiction Is Not A Disease — Biology of Desire Book Review

Is addiction a disease, a choice — or something in between? 🤔

In this episode, I dive into The Biology of Desire: Why Addiction Is Not a Disease by Mark Lewis, PhD — the book we just finished in our Deprogram Book Club inside the free Deprogram Lounge community. 💬📚

Mark Lewis argues that addiction isn’t a disease or a moral failing — it’s a deeply learned habit rooted in neuroplasticity and desire.

In this video, I share my biggest takeaways from the book, how my view of addiction has evolved since leaving AA, and why I now see addiction as a habit of thought, feeling, and behavior — one that can be unlearned.

We’ll explore:

• Why the “disease model” doesn’t hold up to science
• How neuroplasticity explains both addiction and recovery
• What studies like Rat Park + Vietnam veterans reveal about environment
• Why “recovery” is really just the beginning of something new
• How AA pathologizes normal emotions and replaces self-trust with dogma

Timestamps:

00:54 Core Framework

01:31 Addiction as a Habit

06:03 We Over Pathologize People

07:51 Evidence Against The Disease Model

09:40 Habit Loops

12:23 Our Brains Recover On Their Own

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