The Craving Brain: A bold new approach to breaking free from *drug addiction *overeating *alcoholism *gambling – Dr. Ruden's Revolutionary Program: Understanding, Hope, and Cure

by Ronald A. Ruden

The Craving Brain offers crucial insights into the world of addiction. This revolutionary book will bring hope to millions of people who suffer from a wide range of addictions, from gambling and alcohol to drugs and food. Where do the roots of addictive behavior lie—in our genes or in our environment, in our chemistry or in our character? In the Craving Brain , Dr. Ronald Ruden asserts that the roots of addiction most definitely do not lie in our character. Rather, they lie in a complex chain reaction that originates in an ancient survival mechanism in the brain. When this system is inappropriately activated, it drives the body to crave, sometimes with addictive behavior as the end result. In clear, straightforward language, Dr. Ruden outlines his remarkable successful treatment program which he believes can cure this problem.

Genres: Psychology

304 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2000

Reviews

[Alex Frias · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the Craving Brain. amazing read and exceptionally in depth in the world of addiction. What I loved the most was the illustration of diagrams and the explication of the function process of the brain. At first, the read was a little arduous due to the complex terminology, but luckily the book provided some definitions. My most favorite part, was learning about the importance of dopamine and serotonin and also the primal survival system. Learning these functions of the brain, configured my mind into viewing humans on a whole different perspective. This book is noteworthy, however the book was quite repetitive and did not clarify any substantial approaches to stop addiction. The book provided information on the process of the brain for example, how a pattern recognition can trigger the backfield of your mind to trigger a stimulus to transfuse subconscious cravings to the forefield of the mind, but the book literally repeated and repeated these same processes. The book just talked about the patient and how the neurochemicals seem to relate on why the person is an addict, but that's all. No new approach just repetition. This book is great for someone who wants to learn about the function of the brain, but if you want to know how to stop addiction, then this book will not help.

[Colleen Wainwright · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure about the "bold new approach to breaking free" part, but definitely some good info on the chemically-based root causes of addiction.

[Joseph McManus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super helpful for understanding the craving state and how to avoid / get out of it.

[Casey Carr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another school read but pretty good nonetheless 🤷‍♀️

[Jean Dory · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was immensely helpful to me in writing a paper on cravings for an Intro to Psych course. It is amazing to SEE images of the brain experiencing craving, to study sketches of how the neurons fire, etc., and to understand the complexity of the diseases of addiction. I would highly recommend this book to anyone, but especially to those who suffer from cravings and to those who love people who do. I do not know how helpful it would be as an approach to "breaking free", but perhaps just understanding the brain functions would help.