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Dr. Amen's Blog

Case of the Week: Ian – Drug Abuse

March 18, 2010 – 4:00 am

Ian's drug-addicted brain

Ian took a drag on his first cigarette when he was in the fifth grade. Within a few years, he was drinking alcohol, smoking pot, popping prescription pills like Valium, Xanax, Vicodin, and Percocet, taking mushrooms, dropping acid, and shooting heroin.

Some of his friends used drugs when things got really tough at home or at school — if their parents were yelling at them a lot or if their girlfriend broke up with them. Ian didn’t need a reason to use. It had become habit for him, and he used all the time.

He felt like the drugs were a way for him to escape. “Middle school is hard, high school is hard, growing up is hard,” he told me.

One night, he was so high that when he tried to take the two and half minute walk home from his friend’s house, he ended up stumbling around with no sense of direction for about two hours. He couldn’t find his house, and he couldn’t figure out where he was.

This was one of the events that made the teen start questioning his use of drugs and alcohol. Ian was slowly coming to the realization that escaping from your problems with drugs and alcohol doesn’t mean you aren’t creating new problems for yourself.

When Ian came to see me for a SPECT brain scan, he was very nervous to discover just how badly his drug and alcohol abuse had hurt his brain. As expected, his brain scan showed a lot of damage. “Is my brain stuck like that?” he asked.

Fortunately, I was able to inform Ian that his brain could change, that if he stopped poisoning his brain with drugs and alcohol and adopted healthy brain habits, he could recover a lot of brain function. Since that time, Ian has worked very hard to stop abusing drugs and alcohol, and his brain is doing much better. His life is much better, too.

Ian is one of the young people featured in a DVD we produced called Which Brain Do You Want? This DVD is an ideal tool to help educate young people about brain health and how drugs and alcohol affect the brain

By Dr. Amen | Posted in SPECT Scans Case Study, Substance Abuse and Addictions | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (1)

Notes from my book tour

March 15, 2010 – 4:00 am

My book tour for Change Your Brain, Change Your Body has been no less than amazing. I was recently in Philadelphia, and we had another big night. Change Your Brain, Change Your Body has been on the New York Times Bestseller list for three weeks now and is one of the number-one fund raising shows for public television.

I was on a plane the other day from Chicago to New York City where I met a man who recognized me. He told me he had just watched my show in his hotel room. He said that I was right, weight issues occur between your ears. Eight months earlier, he had had his stomach stapled but now he realized more than ever that his problem was not a stomach issue, but rather a brain issue.

By Dr. Amen | Posted in Weight Loss | Tagged , , , | Comments (1)

Case of the Week: Amazon reader

March 11, 2010 – 4:00 am

I’m so excited that my new book Change Your Brain, Change Your Body has been climbing up the rankings at Amazon.com. And the reader reviews are really amazing. Here’s one review from a reader that I would like to share with you.

I don’t know who “SmartSysta” is, but I’m so pleased the program in the book is working for her. I know it can work for you, too.

This really works!, March 3, 2010

By

SmartSysta “The Researcher” (Mesquite, NV)

I have been struggling with weight-loss for the past 8 years. I have tried everything from diet pills to hypnosis. I am a veteran so you would think I already had the background to exercise properly and eat right, but this simply is not true. After I had my children, something in me changed. I no longer wanted to deal with life, and it was almost as if I was stuck in a depression state without any exits. I purchased the audio-book version of Magnificent Mind at Any Age: Natural Ways to Unleash Your Brain’s Maximum Potential by Dr. Amen, and was impressed from the start. My husband and children noticed the difference in me after I started taking the St. Wort and L-Tyrosine supplements. I was on GABA already for a different reason, but the combination of these three items helped regulate my mood.

Then this wonderful book came out. I was eager to read it since I already had success with a previous book by Dr. Amen. I immediately put a lot of ideas into action. For instance, I maintained my intake of the supplements, plus I found a way to get back into exercising. I love to do research on my computer, so my husband brought me a special stand for it. This way I can exercise on my stationary bike while working on my computer at the same time. This motivated me to continue on with other positive things for my body, like eating more fruits and vegetables too. This book will go into detail about how to improve your attitude (brain) in order to affect a positive change in your life. Just to let you know, I went from 251 @ 5′8″ to 228 in eight weeks. I achieved this by riding my bike slowly while reading this book, and/or working on my computer. Order your copy today, because I have read this book four times already and I learn something new every time.

By Dr. Amen | Posted in Exercise and Physical Fitness, Nutrition | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (1)

Shocking facts learned in traffic school

March 8, 2010 – 4:00 am

A friend of mine went to traffic school recently. Like most people, she didn’t expect to learn anything new. But she was stunned by a few brain-related facts they shared during the class.
Fact #1

Hitting your head at 15 miles per hour has the same force as being hit with a sledgehammer. Ouch!

Fact #2

Hitting your head at 30 miles per hour has the same force as being shot out of a cannon, and your head weighs as much as a cannon ball. Double ouch!

Having a minor traffic accident can hurt your brain and change your life.

Protect your brain. Wear your seatbelt.

By Dr. Amen | Posted in Brain Injuries | Tagged | Comments (4)

Case of the Week: Eileen—weight loss

March 4, 2010 – 4:00 am

Eileen - SPECT scan

Eileen - before

Eileen - after

Eileen, who appeared with me on The Rachael Ray Show, is one of the Amen Clinics weight-loss study participants. When Eileen joined the group, she weighed 187 pounds. By the end of the program, she had lost more than 15 pounds.

When she took the Change Your Brain, Change Your Body Questionnaire, she discovered that she was a Type 5 Anxious Overeater. Knowing this helped her focus on reducing her anxiety so she could finally lose some weight.

For Eileen, the most valuable part of the program was the Change Your Brain, Change Your Body Daily Journal. She found that it helped keep her honest about her food intake and served as a daily reminder to follow brain healthy habits.

Here’s what she had to say about some of the changes she has made that helped her drop the weight: “I exercise more, almost every day. I kill ANTs [automatic negative thoughts]. I have a gratitude journal and clear goals and methods.”

If you would like to see Eileen (and me, of course) on The Racheal Ray Show, click on the links below:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fplm0mbOeXU
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeG_7gi1oZI

By Dr. Amen | Posted in SPECT Scans Case Study | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (3)
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