Hey everybody, welcome back. Welcome back to
Food for Thought. Thoughts If It Were You by
Dark Cancer Productions. I'm your host, Neo Gentrics.
It has been a while, guys. I am sorry for the
delay. There's been a lot of things going on
with me in life, especially with family. I'll
be happy to get into the bees and knees with
that. But first, I would like to bring you a
brand new episode, which I haven't brought to
you in a little over a year. And I do apologize
for that. Food for Thought, Thoughts If It Were
You, will be broadcasting again like we have
always been prior to the pandemic. And I will
be bringing you at least one new episode every
couple of days to almost every single day if
I can allow it. Now, I will be back on a schedule
that you can definitely count on. My episodes
will either come out at 3 o 'clock in the morning
as prior or 3 in the evening. It just depends.
on when i'm able to uh get to them but i'm happy
to be back here with you guys talking about what
i always love talking about educational facts
things that people don't consider stuff people
want to know with the whole premise thoughts
if it were you how would you feel if you were
the person in the other shoes that all this stuff
is happening to And a lot of the stuff I'll be
speaking from experience or I'll be using someone
else's experience or I will be bringing someone
else in to speak about their experiences. So
definitely a lot to look forward to. Today we
have a topic about the neuroscience of addiction
and it's something that I feel like I should
talk about with everything that's going on right
now, stuff that people need to consider. It's
in a way a fantastic or rather fascinating world
of a topic that people don't think too highly
of. Addiction and its profound impact on the
brain are definitely something that people should
probably consider a little bit more. So with
that being said, we'll begin with segment one
today, talking about, as such, the topic of addiction.
which is often referred to as a battle of control,
a struggle that takes place within the confines
of your own mind. To understand it better, we
will need to uncover the intricate neurological
processes at play. So let's begin, shall we?
All right, everybody, let's begin with segment
one, the science behind addiction. And like I
said before, it's not something that people stop
to consider too often, and I would love to give
it more thought. So let's go ahead and begin
with such addiction as whether it's to say a
narcotic or any other substance, it's fundamentally
rooted in the brain's reward system. To put it
simply, it's a hijacking of one. of our most
basic survival mechanisms the brain uh being
that main uh organ of survival is a it's a complex
and astonishing organ okay it relies on a delicate
balance of neurotransmitters things that just
fire off impulses like electricity in your brain
and tell it what to do and how to react chemical
messengers that transport the signals between
the nerves are what we essentially call neurotransmitters
One neurotransmitter in particular takes center
stage in the story of addiction, and everyone
should probably know what it is by this point.
It's called dopamine. It's very common, very
familiar. It's also referred to as the feel -good
neurotransmitter because it's associated with
pleasure, reward, motivation, your reason to
do something. Regardless of what it is, whether
getting up in the morning, cooking, eating, sex,
whatever. It's the drive for it. I mean, you
just have to be interested for it to fire off
in your brain. Something that makes you warm
and fuzzy. I guess the best way to put it would
be, it's released when we experience something
enjoyable. Okay? I mean, the simplest example,
despite the ones I just listed, would be a delicious
meal, a warm hug, getting to see that person
you haven't seen in a while that makes you feel
good. You know, stuff like that. Now... here's
where narcotics especially opioids like we discussed
in our last episodes come into play these substances
uh have a remarkable ability to flood the brain
with dopamine and they trigger what's called
a euphoric sensation or a high if you will and
the more intense it's usually more intense than
any natural reward that you would normally get
from stuff that you would deal with on a daily
basis so Now, imagine your brain as like a well
-oiled machine, okay? And narcotics as a wrench
thrown into it and causing all the gears to just
malfunction temporarily. This influx of dopamine
that your body gets from these narcotics and
drugs disrupts that brain -like normal function
that your body has. Rather, it stops the gears
from turning, if you will. And it makes it crave
more of the substance that's caused by the dopamine.
That's a form of pleasure. Like when you get
something that you really like. For example,
sugar. When you eat it, you feel good. You like
it. If it tastes good, at least I hope it tastes
good. and you want more of it well your brain
acts the same way when dopamine is injected into
it as a rush from whatever drug or such that
gives it that feeling so but you know why is
this important in the context of learning and
empathy in the first place well addictions as
we'll further explore can impair an individual's
ability to learn and make rational decisions
it's not a just about seeking pleasure it's also
about pain and withdrawal and as you know from
what we've been discussing over the last couple
of episodes the learning types the way people
learn uh the different types of narcotics and
the drugs that they have like i'm building up
to something okay i'm sorry um it basically prevents
them from making the decisions that they need
okay and like i said it's not always about seeking
pleasure In some people's cases, those extra
drugs are about avoiding pain or withdrawal.
They don't want to deal with the repercussions
of not getting what they want. To illustrate
this better, let's look at real -life stories
and case studies of individuals whose lives have
been deeply impacted by addictions. These stories
serve as a stark reminder that addiction is not
just a a moral failing in a person's thought
pattern or such is a complex interplay of biology,
psychology, and circumstance, depending on what
happened to that person. In the next couple of
minutes, after we take our break here, we'll
hear from those who've basically walked this
path, emerged on the other side, and we'll explore
how understanding the science behind addiction
can basically lead to greater empathy and more
effective support, okay? i will well i'll read
them off to you these uh instances because i
have a few of them here listed and we'll go through
them if you will so stick around and we'll dive
further into this maze of addiction and the fascinating
science that basically underlies it all right
everybody welcome back we're here for section
two in this segment we'll be uh delving into
a compelling story that allows us to step into
the shoes of someone who has faced a daunting
challenge of addiction it's a story that will
uh in a way help us grasp the emotional cognitive
complexities that uh addiction entails okay and
today's story is going to be about a girl named
sarah okay Sarah was, how do I put this, an ambitious
young woman with dreams as vast as the sky. She
had a loving family, a promising career, a bright
future ahead of her. But beneath the surface,
you know, because there's always something beneath
the surface, a silent struggle was taking place.
And one that would essentially change the course
of her life for the rest of her life. And let's
put it this way. it started off innocently enough
okay she was prescribed pain medication after
a dental procedure and you know the relief it
brought was instantaneous as with most medications
and as you know i like i said before i had issues
with migraines when i was younger so i understand
this to getting prescribed pain medications help
deal with the pain and it felt good for a while
the thing with that though Her, unlike me, everything
for me ended. I took the medication, pain's gone,
boom, I'm good. And I did everything I could
to avoid it. However, little did she know that
her run -in with these relief pills, or opioids,
as they're literally what they are, because,
you know, like we said, we discussed this before,
would basically be the beginning of a very long
An arduous journey of regret in a lot of ways,
and more pain than it's worth for her. As time
passed, the medications she once needed for physical
pain began to numb her emotional pain. The pills
became a fleeting escape from the stressors of
life, and with each use, the grip of addiction
basically tightened on her. All the different
issues in her life... family her friends school
work things like that started getting to her
and the same pills that she was taking before
for the pain that she had originally felt from
the dental procedures just wasn't enough and
the pills ironically enough was making her feel
better and you know the pills the more she took
them provided a fleeting escape from the stresses
of life and with each use the grip of addiction
basically tightened her story is not exactly
unique in this regard i'm pretty sure everyone
who's listening to this has known someone else
who's in a similar boat or has something similar
what their story told him but you know the narrative
is shared by countless individuals who for various
reasons find themselves ensnared by addictions
a cunning grasp if you will it's a story of struggle
battles fought silently within the recesses of
your own mind For each person, it's a battle.
It's a different battle for each person for whatever
reason or another that causes them to do what
they do. Now, let's take a pause here from Sarah's
story for a second. Addiction isn't solely about
cravings and seeking pleasure. Most often than
not for most people, it's about escaping suffering,
emotional turmoil. It's about coping with the
pain. real or perceived whether fake or reality
doesn't matter for each person it's a little
bit different and it affects them in a different
way or a different mindset it's a little more
psychological than it is anything else okay no
these people do not belong in a mental facility
or mental institution but they do need help and
in some cases psychologists psychiatrists and
therapists are great for this but for some people
they need a little bit more okay and as we consider
though simple as it was, Sarah's story, it becomes
evident that understanding addiction requires
more than just knowledge of the science behind
it, okay? It demands empathy, an ability to recognize
the person behind the addiction and the struggles
that they face. If you don't understand what
empathy is or you have a hard time with that,
feel free to go back and listen to my episode
on empathy back in season one. As, you know,
As Sarah's story continued out and played out,
it's just one facet of a multifaceted issue that
her and a lot of others face. And it essentially
reminds us that addiction can affect anyone at
any given time. And it's a reminder that judgment
and stigma often stand as barriers to healing
and recovery for each person. You know. A person
could be working today, making the best out of
their lives, has the best job in the world, making
a crap ton of money, and tomorrow get fired,
go home, only to find out that they forgot to
pay their rent, they're behind, landlord kicks
them out, now they don't have a job, a home.
Or they defaulted on their, a few months later,
trying to survive and find another job. They
defaulted on their payment for their car. They
lose that too. So they barely have anything.
All they have is the clothes on their back. They're
trying to do what they can to survive. Like I
said, these stories aren't like anything in particular,
so to speak. But as generic as they sound, as
many times as we've heard them, they all play
a significant role in what addiction is, how
it happens, and how it comes to effect. each
and every one of us people can be addicted to
anything it doesn't have to be drugs okay they
can be addicted to other things there are some
people out there addicted to stuff that is ridiculous
in just the thought and pattern of whatever it
is okay so i mean with that you know in our next
segment we'll take another short break here and
i know that was a lot of information uh we're
gonna delve a little bit deeper into the various
psychology psychological and emotional aspects
of addition. And then we'll explore the role
of empathy and supporting those on the path to
recovery. Just a little bit more because, you
know, everybody needs a little bit of help. So,
you know, stay with us as we explore addiction
a little bit further and the journey that takes
us beyond just the simple science of it and into
the realm of compassion and understanding. For
the people who have to deal with this or suffer
through it. All right, everybody. Welcome back.
Welcome back. Welcome back. I know that break
was fairly short. And like I said, a lot of the
information I covered before was... Mainly just
to get the point across that while the stories
are simple that everyone hears and they all sound
the same and run together the same, the process
and the thought of how it happens is still the
same. And while each situation is different,
and I can understand everybody being mad or upset
about whatever happens, especially if it's someone
who's close to you, you have to remember that
at the end of the day, these people need help.
Okay? They're not just some other poor soul on
the side of the road. They're not just a simple,
regular homeless person. That's not the case
here. Okay. So in this segment, we're going to
talk about the road to recovery. We're going
to embark on a crucial part of our journey of
hope and healing. And we'll explore the various
paths individuals can take on the road to recovery
from addiction. Okay. And, you know, again, addiction.
like we've learned, can cast a long shadow over
a person's life, affecting not only their physical
health, but their relationships, their careers,
well -being, like I mentioned before. But here's
the inspiring truth. Recovery is possible for
these people, and it's something that a lot of
people need to consider, okay? I'm not saying
that every time you see a person who's addicted
to something... go and help them or send them
to a support group. No. Some people can be helped.
Some people can't be helped. Some people need
more than just a simple support group. They need
even more help than that. There are numerous
routes or roads to recovery. It's essential to
find the one that best suits an individual's
unique needs and circumstances. Actually, you
know what? Let's go ahead and explore some of
these paths real quick. First off is what's called
the medical assisted treatment method or MAT.
Medication assisted treatment involves the use
of medications such as methadone. What's the
other one? Buprenorphine. I do believe it's how
it's pronounced to help manage cravings with
withdrawal symptoms. More often than not, doctors
are not going to give you these. They're going
to try to find other methods before they ever
go with this method, though it is one of the
more effective ones. Its evidence is based on
the approach that has shown remarkable success
in opiate addictions for those treatments. But
then for some people, it's beyond that. It's
not just the drugs or whatever it is. Some people,
like I said before, need therapy and counseling.
Counseling includes an individual or group therapy,
which plays a pivotal role in addiction recovery,
and it provides a safe space for individuals
to explore the underlying causes of their addiction
and develop coping strategies and even receive
emotional support. I've learned more about this
recently as my girlfriend's currently going to
school to become a counselor. having to help
her with some of her homework and even learning
some of the stuff she's going through, despite
that not being my field of study, I've learned
that, you know, counseling and therapy does a
lot for a lot of people and it helps them come
to the realization of a lot of things. Hell,
even counselors at times. and therapists have
to go see a counselor or a therapist for themselves
because of all the stuff that they hear keep
in mind that like i said before addictions and
other issues come out of nowhere and they're
to deal with life or emotional issues that come
to face people and this also affects counselors
and therapists too consider the fact of all the
stuff that they be hearing or listening to on
a daily basis when they go to work some of this
stuff gets them at At some point, it starts affecting
their sleep cycles, their work life, their personal
life. Soon, everybody becomes a patient. And
even they need help to reconcile and get themselves
back on track at times. Then there's the support
groups, like I mentioned earlier. Organizations
like Narconics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous.
Or AA, if you will. offer invaluable support
to individuals in recovery these groups essentially
provide a sense of community accountability and
mentorship they get a mentor that helps show
them where their problems lie and helps them
to get it in together and by being part of a
group it helps them coordinate with other people
and it builds a level of accountability basically
They want to get better. They're trying to get
better. They're showed that they can get better.
And by becoming accountable and having a group
of people with them to work with them on it,
it forces them to do it by creating a better
level of achievement. Remember how I said before
that an addiction or someone's drive to get that
dopamine acts, which is like a reward for your
brain. It makes them feel good. Is there utter
drive to these addictions? Well, this is their
way out by redirecting that level of addiction
or that. desire to get that high into something
else entirely. And by focusing it there, it allows
them to forget and to move past the other issues.
Now, don't get me wrong. Drugs are still pretty
strong. And if a person's highly addicted to
it, yes, it'll take longer for them to break
free. But the point of the matter is they're
trying. Little by little, they'll get free. Because
there are people that are addicted to sugar.
It's not even a drug, more or less, anyway. That's
a whole different topic for another episode.
You know, people are addicted to that. The next
one is holistic approaches. Holistic treatments,
including yoga, meditation, and art therapy,
can complement traditional methods of addiction
treatment. They focus on healing the mind, body,
spirit as a whole. Now, while personally, and
I'm just saying this is just from a personal
note, I don't really care too much for yoga,
plus it kind of creeps me out. You know, for
some people, it helps them. Art therapy I could
probably get along with. I've seen people do
it. I've tried it. It's a calming effect. I don't
really know how meditation works, but I can dive
into that if you'd like. There's a topic for
a future episode. And then there's holistic treatments.
Now, each one of these things I'll probably dive
into a little bit more in future episodes if
people ask for them. But for the most part, they
bring up or help people focus on their healing.
as a whole, not just on the topic of whatever
it is. It's important to remember that the journey
to recovery is often marked by setbacks and challenges,
okay? Relapse is part of people's recovery stories
for a reason, because there are things that happen,
circumstances, people, events, triggers, stuff
like that. That causes people to relax. I'm sorry,
relapse, not relax. If they could relax, this
would solve a lot of problems. It's not a sign
of failure, but an opportunity for growth and
learning. And like I mentioned before in previous
episodes, failure is never the end. You don't
learn anything if you always succeed. Sometimes
you have to fail. Whether you want to or you
don't. Okay? Now, let's talk about the power
of support networks and community resources.
Family and friends often play a vital role in
an individual's recovery journey. Their understanding,
encouragement, and patience can make the world
of difference for a person, especially if they
feel alone, left out in the world. No one's willing
to help them, that everybody's against them,
that the world hates them. This helps them, you
know? Community resources such as recovery centers,
peer support programs. They offer essential assistance
to those on the path to recovery. They provide
education, advocacy, and a sense of belonging
that a lot of people don't have or they need,
you know? Recovery is, it's not a destination.
Let me put it that way, okay? It's a lifelong
journey. It requires dedication, resilience,
and an unwavering support. And as countless individuals
have shown, it's a journey worth taking for most
people, okay? Just something to keep in mind.
So with that being said, we're going to take
another short break here so that one eye can
breathe. And so, you know, everyone listening
can get a grasp on everything that I just said.
And in our next segment, we'll take a closer
look at how addiction can impact an individual's
cognitive abilities, including memory and learning.
And we'll also discuss strategies for rebuilding
cognitive skills during recovery. So stay tuned
as we continue our exploration of addiction,
recovery, and the remarkable human capacity for
healing. Hey everybody, welcome back. This is
going to be our final segment for this episode
here. And it's a bit of an eye -opening episode,
I guess, for a lot of people. Something that
not a lot of people would like to hear about,
but it's something that I felt I needed to cover.
And in this segment, like I said earlier, we'll
delve a little bit deeper into the fascinating
intersections of narcotics, memory, and learning.
So, like mentioned earlier, addiction doesn't
just affect an individual's physical and emotional
well -being. It can have a profound cognitive
consequence as well. And, well, how do I put
this? Let's begin by understanding how narcotics
impact memory and learning. First off, I know
I probably covered this in previous episodes,
talking about different levels of narcotics,
especially opioids. We covered a lot on opioids.
First off, impaired memory. Narcotics, especially
opioids, can impair both short -term and long
-term memory. They interfere with the brain's
ability to encode and retrieve information. And
it makes it a challenge for individuals to remember
even simple tasks. You know, whether they were
getting up to go use the bathroom, wash dishes,
do their homework, you'd be surprised. There
are people who are on different types of drugs
or medication, as the nice way to put it. that
the doctor gave them that while their side effects
may be things that are, well, utterly concerning,
and that's a thing for another episode, they
also affect people in a different sense. They
affect their cognitive and memory abilities for
basic everyday tasks. There have been times that
after taking a painkiller or allergy pill that
I went to go do something and completely forgot
what I was working on. It does happen. Then I
had to go back to the beginning and start over.
Mind you, it's not an addiction. I had to take
an allergy pill. I was sneezing out the wazoo.
But you'd be surprised how strong some of these
medications are. The next thing is attention
and concentration. Attention, or rather addictions,
can also disrupt attention and concentration.
Individuals may find it hard to or difficult
to focus on tasks at times, which can hinder
their ability to learn and absorb new information.
unless you're ADHD or hyperactive, which, to
be fair, will be a future episode because I feel
I should talk about that since I'm one of those
people. But for a lot of people, their attention
and concentration is completely disturbed. Let's
say you're a person who learns very quickly and
can concentrate on homework and get it done real
quick. But because of the medication that you're
taking or the narcotics that they're giving you,
It starts affecting your ability to concentrate.
You start losing interest. You start getting
bored easy. These are traits that a person who
has ADHD would have, but you're not ADHD. It's
the drugs that you're taking. It affects your
normal cycles of how you're doing things. It
slows your concentration. It makes your attention
waver. Even the simplest things like a stupid
episode, a Spongebob. could draw your attention
away from doing your homework when before you
used to be able to ignore your cousin sitting
in the living room watching TV while you're sitting
there doing your homework and reading a book.
So, there's that. Then there's the next thing.
Emotional impact. This one. The emotional toll
of addiction can further exacerbate cognitive
challenges. Such as... How do I put this? Feelings
of guilt. Shame. High levels of anxiety. They
can create a cycle of negative thoughts that,
for whatever reason, make it even more challenging
to learn or retain information. There have been
times where people on medications were afraid
to touch a book because as soon as they started
reading, it started overwhelming them. Anxiety.
You know, some people have high levels of anxiety,
which can lead to high blood pressure and a bunch
of other issues. So for those taking medication
that... causes this, I would really, really highly
advise you to go consult a doctor and find an
alternative to whatever medication you're on.
Now, let's discuss the journey to rebuilding
cognitive skills during the recovery process
for those poor people who have been part of whatever
addiction it is for so long that it has affected
their learning process. Learning As a process.
Okay. Or rather. Recovery as a learning process.
Begins. For the person in recovery. It begins
recovery from the addiction. Is in many ways.
A process of relearning. How to be them. Essentially
is what I'm trying to say. It involves. Acquiring
a new coping mechanism. Something. to replace
the drug that they used to take before. It's
rebuilding fractured relationships and essentially
reestablishing normal, healthy routines in their
life and finding ways to deal with whatever anxiety
or whatever issue that forced them towards taking
these drugs or forced them to overtake on whatever
drugs that they have, whether it be sugar, opioids,
acetaminophen, whatever it is, doesn't matter.
um because there are some people like i guess
in a way you could think of it like a person
who's an introvert they seek out running away
uh from most uh situations and such that deal
with people because they're unlike an extrovert
who can be out there an introvert like myself
well i can definitely sit here and do these podcast
episodes and talk to you about these indirectly
for me it's in a way difficult to talk to people
in person. Now, I can if I could find some level
of interest. That's perfectly fine. But for the
most part, it takes a second for me to come up
with something to say. If I have to say something,
I feel compelled that I have to do something.
And more times than not, if I could leave, I
would probably leave. Nexus Therapeutic Approaches
Therapy includes Cognitive Behavioral Therapy,
or CBT, in most cases. And it can help individuals
develop strategies to improve memory, attention,
and problem -solving skills. Think of it as essentially
therapy. Like for people who's been in a really
bad accident and they're trying to regain use
of their hands, legs, or whatever, it's the same
thing, but for your brain. It also aids in managing
the emotional toll of the addiction and helping
them to not think so heavily on it. Like I mentioned
before, those feelings of guilt, like this is
all your fault, that none of this would have
been happening if you didn't do it in the first
place. It helps resolve most of that. Then there's
healthy life choices. Adopting a healthy lifestyle,
including regular exercise, proper nutrition,
and adequate sleep, because most people have
a hard time sleeping, can significantly enhance
cognitive function during recovery, especially
for a lot of people. Then, Remember the family
and friends I mentioned earlier? Support from
loved ones. Family and friends play a crucial
role in supporting cognitive recovery. Their
understanding and encouragement of that person
can boost an individual's motivation to regain
cognitive abilities because they like seeing
their family happy. They like seeing that their
family is happy about them being happy and recovering.
They're going to want to do it, thus replacing
that reward aspect. Then there's patience and
self -compassion. Like I said before, Recovery
is a process and setbacks are expected. It's
essential for individuals to practice self -compassion
and understand that rebuilding cognitive skills
and their regular skills takes time. It's not
going to happen overnight. They will fail multiple
times before they succeed. And even if they get
one level of success, that may be the motivation
that they need to move forward. Also could be
a way that's hindering them because moving too
far forward too fast too soon could actually
hurt you more than help you. I would know. I've
done it more times than I can count. When I've
fallen and I had to start over because I basically
screwed everything up, not realizing that because
I thought I was moving at a steady pace and everything
was going good, then I just walked right off
of the edge of a cliff and had to climb back
up. Figuratively speaking, I've never walked
off the edge of a cliff. I'm not that crazy.
Continued learning and growth is the last one.
Finally, individuals in recovery should embrace
what's called a mindset of continued learning
and personal growth. Engaging in new hobbies,
pursuing education, or setting and achieving
goals that can reignite their passion for learning
or doing whatever it is that they love. In my
case, it was this podcast. And I have to find
a way to bring myself back out of all of what's
happened to me to get myself back into the habit
of doing this. I used to do this daily or every
other day. And, you know, I'm going to be honest
with you. Life got to me. It's one of those things
where I was just trying to find out some way
to make me feel better with everything that was
going on. But I couldn't do it. And coping with
it required me doing things that I did not want
to do that felt good at the time. It made me
feel better, but it didn't solve the problem.
Okay? Long story short, and I'll close this out
and we'll end the episode. Within the last two
years, with the scattered episodes, and I know
I had scattered episodes and that season two
was like super, super short, and I apologize.
Season 3 started up with the anticipation of
resetting me as a person because of all that
happened in my family. And within the last two
years, my dad, his mom, due to negligence within
the family and a lot of other stupid things that
happened, caused my grandma to get hurt. Her
condition considerably got worse over time, and
family members weren't exactly doing what they
should have been doing from the get -go. And
his older sister, who was the one in charge,
her negligence, and the fact that her and her
sister, my dad's youngest sister, so he had an
older and a younger sister, for whatever reason
couldn't seem to get along with their mom. And
their negligence caused her situation to worsen
to the point where there was basically no recovery.
She had fallen more than twice, and her memory
started to fade. And the process of all of that
just, I mean, it was angering. Both anger -inducing
for my dad, especially my dad, who knew his sisters
and them should have known better. My mom, who
was watching them and doing everything she could
to try to help out when she could. Of course,
me and my two younger brothers were pissed off.
Like it wasn't anybody's business. Not talking
about the other outside family members who knew
my grandma and hung out with her a lot. Long
story short, two years ago, she passed. And not
even a day after her, the pastor of our church,
who was my grandma's sister, one of her twin
daughters passed away as well the day after.
And just with dealing with that, that fall, in
September and October was already a pain. Five
weeks later, after the funeral of them, my cousin
that I hang out a lot with, can't give his name,
doesn't matter. He currently lives in West Virginia.
He doesn't live here anymore. His sister was
shot. And I was like, you got to be kidding me.
You know, we were really, really close. I was
like, so stack my grandma being gone. Because
she wasn't married, so I didn't have a grandfather.
So that was my only grandparent on this side
of my family, on my dad's side. She's gone. My
aunt's daughter, one of them, passed away. One
I was really close to. I was really close to
those two, the twins. Passed away. My cousin's
sister passed away. She was really cool for the
times I did hang out with her. Loved her company.
Then the following year, the youngest sister
of my dad, her dad, passed away. And then to
add insult to injury, you know, let's just go
ahead and push it even further. You know, why
not? That fall, just when I thought everything
was finally recovering and I could go back to
school, my aunt, the pastor, my grandma's sister,
she passed away. And then as I finally started
to recover from that this spring, my other aunt
turns out to be my dad's aunt. So my great aunt
passes away in March. Right after I moved with
my girlfriend to this new place, and why this
one hurt significantly more, probably about the
same as the others, but just as much, hurt as
bad for me, was this is the aunt that taught
not only me, but my two younger brothers how
to drive, and also taught my dad a lot about
the stuff that he knows. So when I say that this
last one hurt a lot, for me, my family, my dad,
my mom, it was terrible. And as you know, like
I said in previous podcasts, my grandfather had
passed in 2018. And that was my mom's dad. So
I've already lost a lot of people in my family.
And the grief has been utterly overwhelming.
There have been times I've wanted to just sit
down and cry, but I couldn't make myself do it.
So like I said, for each person, it's a little
bit different. And the need for something to
help cope with that. for a lot of people just
isn't there and they turn to drugs and things
of the sort. And for me, it was playing games
and focusing on stuff that I shouldn't have been
focusing on that was basically driving me away
from where I needed to be. So it's a path. It's
a journey. It's a thing that people have to go
through that they need help. And sometimes they
need someone to help point out that something's
wrong and they need help. At any rate, like I
said before, addiction may impact memory and
learning, but it doesn't have to define an individual's
future, just like it didn't have to define mine.
With the right support, dedication, determination,
people in recovery can rebuild their cognitive
skills, rediscover the joy of learning, rediscover
life in and of itself. As we wrap up this episode,
I want to encourage you. all of our listeners
here on food for thought thoughts of it were
you by dark cancer productions to reflect on
the resilience of the human spirit. Okay. Recovery
is a treatment to the incredible capacity of
individuals to overcome obstacles, learn from
their experiences and essentially build a brighter
future. Okay. Thank you guys for sticking around
for as long as I have. I know this episode's
longer than most of my normal ones and this segment
went longer than I normally would go. But like
I said, I just wanted to bring out there that
I'm trying to bring my podcast back. And I want
to thank you all, you people out there that are
still subscribed to this for sticking around
for as long as you have and who plan to stick
around longer in the future. I just want to go
ahead and say that my podcast has been moved
over to what's known as a subscription -based
service. And if you want to help me and support
my decision to keep doing these podcasts and
keep being part of this learning group for people
who need help, don't know if they need help or
want to consider help or want to learn more.
in life feel free to hit the subscribe button
or follow the link from wherever you're listening
to this podcast from and subscribe it's i know
it i know it seems a bit steep for ten dollars
a month but for people like me who essentially
has lost their job lost their drive i lost my
car over all of this stuff that's happened over
the last three years i mean all you're doing
when you subscribe is helping me rebuild everything
that i've lost and start over So for that, I
would like to thank you. We'll be moving forward
into the future with more episodes on more topics
and such. And I hope to see you guys there as
we, you know, continue moving forward. Today's
episode is the neuroscience of addiction. I'm
your host, Neogentrix. This is food for thought
thoughts if it were you by Dark Cancer Productions.
And I look to see you guys soon in the future
with more episodes and on YouTube. Real soon.
See you next time for episode 11. Treatment and
recovery from narcotic addictions.