The Selfish Brain

by DuPont, Robert L.

• ISBN13: 9781568383637
• ISBN10: 1568383630
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-05-01
• Publisher: Hazelden

Summary

Why is the brain so vulnerable to the effects of alcohol and other drugs? How does addiction echo through families, cultures, and history? What is it that families and communities do to promote or prevent addiction? These are some of the questions that this thorough, thoughtful, and well-reasoned book answers--in clear, comprehensible terms. From the basics of brain chemistry to the workings of particular drugs such as alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, cocaine, and heroin, The Selfish Brain explains how individuals and communities become trapped in destructive habits--and how various treatments and approaches lead to recovery and whole, healthy lives. A practicing psychiatrist, Robert L. Dupont, M.D., is a clinical professor of psychiatry at Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C. He was the first director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse and a director of the White House Drug Abuse Prevention Office.

Table of Contents

Foreword	xiii
Betty Ford
Acknowledgments	xv
Preface	xix
About the Author	xxxi
SECTION I: THINKING ABOUT ADDICTION
Addiction to Alcohol and Other Drugs	3	(26)
A World History of Drug Abuse	29	(20)
The Contemporary Scene for Alcohol and Other Drugs	49	(38)
SECTION II: THE BRAIN AND ADDICTION
The Brain: Target Organ of Addiction	87	(38)
Gateway Drugs: Alcohol, Marijuana, and Cocaine	125	(50)
Heroin and Other Drugs of Abuse	175	(44)
SECTION III: OVERCOMING ADDICTION
The Addict's Life	219	(38)
Codependence: The Mirror of Addiction	257	(14)
Preventing Addiction	271	(34)
Intervention and Treatment	305	(38)
Twelve Step Programs: A Modern Miracle	343	(54)
Tough Policy Choices to Prevent Addiction	397	(44)
The Future of Addiction	441	(22)
A Personal Footnote	463	(2)
Drug Facts	465	(12)
Bibliotherapy	477	(6)
Appendix 1: Twelve Step Fellowship and Other Mutual-Aid Group Descriptions	483	(6)
Appendix 2: Resources	489	(4)
Index	493