How Childhood Trauma Leads To Addiction
Dr. Gabor Maté, a renowned addiction expert, defines addiction as any behaviour that gives a person temporary relief and pleasure, but also has negative consequences, and to which the individual will return time and again. At the heart of Maté’s philosophy is the belief that there’s no such thing as an “addictive personality”. And nor is addiction a “disease”. Instead, it originates in a person’s need to solve a problem: a deep-seated problem, often from our earliest years that was to do with trauma or loss.
Dr. Maté believes that only when we become self-aware, we are able to address the traumatic childhood issues that leave us vulnerable to addiction. But because the process inevitably involves pain, we don’t address the issues until we absolutely have to – until something happens that forces us to face up to the fact that our lives aren’t working as they should.
The Power of Addiction
This TED talk by Dr. Maté is about how we fill our emptiness with addiction. Almost anything can be used as an addiction. Addiction is an attachment to something to escape our pain or suffering from the past or present. Finding your inner resources will help to heal our childhood trauma from the past or cope with our sufferings from the present.Dr Maté’s generic prescription for addiction is “Find your nature and be nice to yourself.”
How To Find And Reconnect with Our True Nature
Dr Gabor Mate talks about how our culture makes us feel lost in four different categories of self-alienation, and how we can discover and stay in touch with our true nature through mindful awareness to bring into consciousness those hidden, past-based perspectives so that they no longer frame our worldview. Choice begins the moment you disidentify from the mind and its conditioned patterns, the moment you become present.
Understand PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder)
Trauma and Stress can impact the brain to create chronic conditions, such as chronic pain, depression, anxiety and post traumatic stress. Understanding how the brain and body connection works under trauma will help us heal and recover from chronic health problems.
Effects of Infidelity Trauma
This interview with MJ Denis, an expert on trauma, will help the involved partner and the hurt partner understand the effects of infidelity trauma and learn what are the helpful responses to heal and gain ground for both partners and the relationship.
Trust Revival Method
Can couples recover from an affair? In this brief video clip, Julie Gottman describes each phase of the Gottman Trust Revival Method, for guiding couples recovering from an affair: Atone, Attune & Attach.
Finding Meaning in Suffering
Viktor Frankl, author of Man’s Search for Meaning, a survivor of the concentration camp during WWII. He found that people who survived through the extremely harsh situation like the concentration camp were those who could find meaning in their suffering. When people could find meaning and purpose of their life, they could turn personal tragedy into triumph. The ultimate freedom we have in life is the freedom to choose our response or attitude towards unchangeable condition.
The Power of Vulnerability
Brené Brown studies human connection — our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk at TEDxHouston, she shares a deep insight from her research, one that sent her on a personal quest to know herself as well as to understand humanity.
Listening to Shame
Shame is an unspoken epidemic, the secret behind many forms of broken behavior. Brené Brown explores what can happen when people confront their shame head-on. Her own humor, humanity and vulnerability shine through every word.
Empathy
What is the best way to ease someone’s pain and suffering? In this beautifully animated RSA Short, Dr Brené Brown reminds us that we can only create a genuine empathic connection if we are brave enough to really get in touch with our own fragilities.