addiction |

The Shelf Life of Mental Health October 20, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Lauren Sykes, Linda Vanella

Category: Anxiety & Fear, Personal Growth & Change

Old fears and bad habits you thought you conquered have a way of coming back. Armand DiMele and Linda Vanella, LCSW-R, explore why hard-won mental health gains can expire, from the AA concept of the “pink cloud” to the brain’s drive to keep aging people alert through worry, arguing that avoidance, not cure, is usually what we mistake for progress.

Dependency and Autonomy July 5, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Linda Vanella

Category: Addiction & Compulsion, Identity & The Self

What is the real opposite of dependency? Armand DiMele argues it is autonomy, not independence, then unpacks the dependent personality with Linda Vanella, LCSW-R. The episode covers how dependency forms, how it fuels serial relationships and narcissistic dynamics, and why genuine autonomy must be a conscious choice rather than a reaction to fear.

Addiction and Depression in the Elderly June 28, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Sherri Siegel

Category: Addiction & Compulsion, Aging & Mortality

Older adults are an overlooked population of addicts, and alcohol hits them harder than most realize. Armand DiMele and Dr. Sherry Siegel, M.D. examine late-onset substance use, the dangerous mix of alcohol and prescription medications, the leading cause of injury death in people over 65, and how to distinguish grief and sadness from clinical depression.

The Alter Self in Addiction and Compulsion March 1, 2011

Host: Armand DiMele

Category: Addiction & Compulsion, Identity & The Self

What if every addiction or compulsion is run by a hidden alter self, not the person you know yourself to be? Armand DiMele draws on his decades treating dissociative identity disorder to argue that alter personalities, from the false front to the persecutor, operate in all of us, driving behaviors our primary self disowns.

Feeling Good Is a Chemical State January 13, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Elemy, Lauren Sykes, Richard Christensen

Category: Emotions & Inner Life, The Mind & Neuroscience

Feeling good is not a vague mental state but a precise chemical one, and Armand DiMele breaks down how everything from exercise to eating to orgasm is really the body engineering its own neurochemistry. The episode also reframes feeling good as often just the absence of pain.

Alcohol Withdrawal and the Body with Dr. Kent Robertshaw September 8, 2010

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Kent Robertshaw

Category: Addiction & Compulsion, The Mind & Neuroscience

Alcohol dependence does something specific to the brain’s stress response, and sudden quitting can be medically dangerous. Dr. Kent Robertshaw, MD, psychiatrist, explains how cortisol and adrenaline surge during withdrawal, why tolerance builds, and how outpatient medication can safely bring someone down from heavy drinking. The conversation extends to chronic pain and fibromyalgia.

The Illusion of Power September 1, 2010

Host: Armand DiMele

Category: Depression & Mood, Emotions & Inner Life

Power is mostly illusion, Armand argues, and refusing to accept powerlessness is a fast road to depression, rigidity, and compulsion. Through caller conversations, he examines where the hunger for control really comes from, including how unmet childhood needs quietly drive adult behavior.

How Technology Rewires the Brain July 22, 2010

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Stephanie D'Ambra

Category: Family & Parenting, The Mind & Neuroscience

Every ping and notification triggers a dopamine hit, and Armand DiMele and Stephanie D’Ambra, LCSW argue this makes smartphones and computers genuinely addictive. They examine how constant multitasking fragments focus, why kids now know more about technology than their parents, and how adults can close that gap by letting children teach them.

Compassionate Capitalism with Carmen Roberts April 21, 2010

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Carmen Roberts, Sherri Siegel

Category: Meaning, Spirituality & Philosophy, Society, Culture & Current Events

Can a Buddhist mindset survive inside a financial newsroom? Former Bloomberg News anchor Carmen Roberts joins Armand DiMele and Dr. Sherry Siegel, M.D. to explore how insatiable desire drives both personal unhappiness and Wall Street excess, and how compassion and higher consciousness can redirect that drive.

Hormones and Female Addiction with Emily Anthes April 13, 2010

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Emily Anthes, Stephanie D'Ambra

Category: Addiction & Compulsion, The Mind & Neuroscience

Estrogen makes drugs feel better, and progesterone can counteract that effect. Emily Anthes, Science Journalist and Author, joins Armand to explain why female addicts are biologically distinct from male addicts, why teenage girls now use drugs as often as boys, and how hormone-based treatments might one day help women quit.