Maia Szalavitz
Author, "Unbroken Brain: A Revolutionary New Way of Understanding Addiction"
Maia Szalavitz is widely viewed as one of the premier American journalists covering addiction and drugs. A neuroscience writer for TIME.com and a former cocaine and heroin addict, she understands the science and its personal dimensions in a way that few others can. is the first book-length exposé of the "tough love" business that dominates addiction treatment. Her newest book is Unbroken Brain: A Revolutionary New Way of Understanding Addiction.
The dos and don’ts of helping a drug-addicted person recover
How you talk to people with drug addiction might save their life.
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9 min
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We could cut the opioid death rate by 50% – but we’re not
As more and more people die, drug companies keep reaping in a massive profit.
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5 min
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What’s worse than drug addiction? The cruelty of drug treatments.
Drug treatment centers pose potential threats to drug addicts.
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5 min
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Understanding addiction: Why your brain gets hooked on gambling
The brain of a gambling addict mimics that of a drug addict. But no outside chemicals are involved. How does that happen?
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3 min
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A New Definition of Addiction Makes Rehab and Recovery More Effective
We have typically defined addiction as needing a substance to function normally, but this ignores crucial psychological qualities of addiction. A new and better definition has arrived, says Maia Szalavitz.
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9 min
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Are America’s Anti-Drug Laws Scientific? Or Are They Colonialist and Racist?
American anti-drug laws are inspired by colonialism and racism, not science. They are at odds with our current understanding of addiction and ignore the economic blight of this second gilded age.
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8 min
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