Hi, we're back. Welcome to another episode of the savvy psychologist. I'm your

host Dr. Ellen Hendrickson and every week I'll help you meet life's challenges with evidence-based research,

a sympathetic ear, and zero judgment.

Today we are lucky to have with us one of the premier journalists on addiction, drugs and neuroscience, author Maya Salovets. And you've likely read her work in the New York Times, Scientific American,

Salon, The Washington Post, or more national outlets than I can even name. She's

written six books and is just out with her seventh, titled Unbroken

Brain, a revolutionary new way of understanding addiction. I read it and I learned something

new on every page.

Maya Salovitz joins us from her New York City office.

Maya, welcome to the show.

Thank you so much for having me.

I'm delighted to be here.

Sure, we're happy to talk to you. So the subtitle of Thank you so much for having me. I'm delighted to be here.

Sure, we're happy to talk to you. So the subtitle of your book is a revolutionary new way of understanding addiction.

And it really is. So the current way of thinking about addiction is the disease model.

So addiction as a progressive brain disease.

But you offer this radically different view.

You see addiction as a learning disorder.

So walk us through that if you can.

Sure, sure. So I mean if you think about it on a very fundamental level, addiction has to

involve learning because if you don't learn that the drug makes you feel better and you know does something that

helps you cope you will not be able to crave it. So in that sense it's very simple you have to learn to love the drug and for example there are people who go to the hospital and have

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