Jul 17, 2020
Dr. Anna Lembke is an associate professor in the department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine. She is Medical Director of Stanford Addiction Medicine, Program Director for the Stanford Addiction Medicine Fellowship, and chief of the Stanford Addiction Medicine Dual Diagnosis Clinic. Dr. Lembke was one of the first in the medical community to sound the alarm regarding opioid overprescribing and the opioid epidemic. In 2016, she published her best-selling book on the prescription drug epidemic, Drug Dealer, MD – How Doctors Were Duped, Patients Got Hooked, and Why It’s So Hard to Stop. Her book was highlighted in the New York Times as one of the top five books to read to understand the opioid epidemic.
Substance Use Disorder is a syndrome where a person compulsively uses substances despite many negative experiences and harmful consequences. Individuals who experience severe substance use disorder symptoms have an intense desire to use certain substances like alcohol or drugs, regardless of the problems that come about by consuming them. Gambling Disorder is new to the DSM-5 and is characterized by repeated gambling despite extremely negative consequences affecting the whole family.
Disclaimer: The information shared in this podcast is not a substitute for getting help from a mental health professional.