Dopamine Nation

Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence

By: Dr. Anna Lembke

Narrated by: Dr. Anna Lembke

Length: 6 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES and LOS ANGELES TIMES BESTSELLER

“Brilliant . . . riveting, scary, cogent, and cleverly argued.”—Beth Macy, author of Dopesick, as heard on Fresh Air

This book is about pleasure. It’s also about pain. Most important, it’s about how to find the delicate balance between the two, and why now more than ever finding balance is essential. We’re living in a time of unprecedented access to high-reward, high-dopamine stimuli: drugs, food, news, gambling, shopping, gaming, texting, sexting, Facebooking, Instagramming, YouTubing, tweeting . . . The increased numbers, variety, and potency is staggering. The smartphone is the modern-day hypodermic needle, delivering digital dopamine 24/7 for a wired generation. As such we’ve all become vulnerable to compulsive overconsumption.

In Dopamine Nation, Dr. Anna Lembke, psychiatrist and author, explores the exciting new scientific discoveries that explain why the relentless pursuit of pleasure leads to pain . . . and what to do about it. Condensing complex neuroscience into easy-to-understand metaphors, Lembke illustrates how finding contentment and connectedness means keeping dopamine in check. The lived experiences of her patients are the gripping fabric of her narrative. Their riveting stories of suffering and redemption give us all hope for managing our consumption and transforming our lives. In essence, Dopamine Nation shows that the secret to finding balance is combining the science of desire with the wisdom of recovery.

©2021 Dr. Anna Lembke (P)2021 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Anna Lembke deeply understands an experience I hear about often in the therapy room at the nexus between our modern addictions and our primal brains. Her stories of guiding people to find a healthy balance between pleasure and pain have the power to transform your life.” (Lori Gottlieb, “Dear Therapist” columnist at The Atlantic, New York Times best-selling author of Maybe You Should Talk to Someone)

“Just when you thought you knew all you needed to know about the addiction crisis, along comes Dr. Anna Lembke with her second brilliant book on the topic—this one not about a drug but about the most powerful chemical of all: the dopamine that rules the pain and pleasure centers of our minds. In an era of overconsumption and instant gratification, Dopamine Nation explains the personal and societal price of being ruled by the next fix—and how to manage it. No matter what you might find yourself over-indulging in—from the internet to food to work to sex—you’ll find this book riveting, scary, cogent, and cleverly argued. Lembke weaves patient stories with research, in a voice that’s as empathetic as it is clear-eyed.” (Beth Macy, author of Washington Post Best Book of the Year, New York Times Notable Book of 2018, and best seller Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company That Addicted America)

“We all desire a break from our routines and those parts of life that upset us. What if, instead of trying to escape these things, we learn to turn toward them, to reach a peaceful harmony with our selves and the people we share our lives with? Lembke has written a book that radically changes the way we think about mental illness, pleasure, pain, reward, and stress. Turn toward it. You’ll be happy you did.” (Daniel Levitin, New York Times best-selling author of The Organized Mind and Successful Aging)

"Explore[s] the dichotomy between seeking a readily accessible hit of dopamine—from our phones, gambling, or a bag of Fritos—and maintaining healthy, productive, stable lives.” (The New York Times, Inside the Best-Seller List)

Great Look Into the World of Pacifying

Sex, reading, exercise, drugs, and alcohol everything we enjoy has the potential of engaging us in disordered living. But the alternative is a life much more full than we could imagine while living under the influence. Anna Lemke lays the groundwork for us to address our own discomfort and face our own addictions no matter how small or large. With a keen eye on her own disordered use and compassion for her clients and readers, this book is another model of how we can incorporate the conversation of harm reduction into the larger historic conversations around addiction.

Everyone in US should read this

This book is very prescient for the times we live in. Everyone will relate to this and pull important info to make your life scientifically better

Very Relatable But Not Too Heady

Understanding how our brain works is always a good thing. Dr. Lembke makes this understanding accessible to the layperson by alternately sharing patient stories and scientific information, that is thoroughly explained.

Having raised my children into young adults I have found the information very helpful and plan to pass it along. I know one of my adult children is really going to benefit from this book!!

Loved it

Part social commentary, part memoir, part patient stories of overcoming addictions. A great read for how to live an authentic life. I don’t normally like books read by the author but she was great at it. It goes quick. I recommend!

book for anyone intrigued by addiction to anything

I first heard Dr. Lembke on Rich Roll and had to get her book. I am in recovery but this one is for anyone addicted to anything...phone, food, Netflix, whatever...

A must read for everyone!

Anna Lembke opens our eyes to the world we live in and the constant chase of dopamine. As a physical therapist I found so many correlations to the patients I see everyday (and my own addictive behaviors). As Dr. Lembke points out we are all at risk for addiction. I particularly like the simple steps laid out with the mnemonic D.O.P.A.M.I.N.E that she provides. I also enjoyed the life lessons including truth telling, pro-social shame, mindfulness and more. If we all stop to recognize our chase of the dopamine high, implement some of the simple steps outlined, there is a great opportunity to live a more healthy and happy life. I highly recommend this book for anyone.

Amazing insight into addiction

Everyone who suspects they are addicted (to sugar, sport, binge watching, binge eating, as well as drugs and alchohol, (could be anything)) should read this book.

Great information, very interesting

it was morel thlan what I expected. good contend, engaging stories, compelling data. worth to read.

Good, but not Great

The information in this book was very interesting and knowledgeable. The author takes a pragmatic perspective towards the second half trying to help those with addictions. The insights however are not new, as AA principles are recapitulated. The different types of dopamine addiction aren't really elaborated upon, but merely mentioned in passing multiple times. Rather the author has many anecdotes that buttress her points and therapeutic method. It is advised that from the offset that there are very adult topics regarding sexual addiction from the first chapter. On a minor point, the audio quality, though well-read, is not consistent. It is apparent that recordings were done at different times and edited together later, but with different settings. Overall, there is much to glean from this book, but as cliche as it is, the book is good, but not great.

Game Changer

This book was both interesting and inspiring. The in-depth information about the nature of addiction was incredibly useful and inspiring. The author is very compassionate and her approach is helpful. This is an interesting read even for those who have never struggled with addiction, but for those who have struggled with addiction, the information in this book could save their life.