Beyond the Primal Addiction Food, Sex, Gambling, Internet, Shopping, and Work

Written by experienced practitioners in the fields of addiction and psychoanalysis, and illustrated by a range of moving vignettes, this groundbreaking book examines the psychological foundations of addiction in the areas of food, sex, gambling, internet usage, shopping, and work.

This book not only explores the roots of addictive behavior, explaining why popular treatment options such as the 12-Step Program often fail, it also provides insights for emotional resolution and strategies for behavioral change.

Beyond the Primal Addiction seeks to understand rather than pathologize addictive behaviours, now so pervasive in contemporary societies. It will be essential reading for psychoanalysts, psychotherapists, and other mental health professionals, as well as their clients.

Acknowledgments; About the editors and contributors; Introduction; Prologue; Chapter 1 A general psychoanalytic theory of addiction, Lance Dodes;Six syndromes; Chapter 2 Food addiction, Nina Savelle-Rocklin;Chapter 3 Sex addiction, Lawrence Jacobson;Chapter 4 Gambling addiction, Richard Rosenthal;Chapter 5 Internet addiction, Charles Wisnieswki, Stanley Kletkewicz, and April Fallon;Chapter 6 Shopping addiction, Ricardo Rieppi and Jean Petrucelli;Chapter 7 Work addiction, Salman Akhtar;Epilogue; Chapter 8 Addictions without drugs, Salman Akhtar and Nina Savelle-Rocklin;References; Index

Nina Savelle-Rocklin, PsyD, is a psychoanalyst specializing in eating disorders. She hosts a radio program on LA Talk Radio and is regularly featured in magazines, summits, and podcasts, including Psychology Today, Real Simple, The Dr. Drew Podcast, and more. She is the author of Food For Thought: Perspectives On Eating Disorders.

Salman Akhtar, MD, is Professor of Psychiatry, Jefferson Medical College, and a training and supervising analyst at the Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia. He was the recipient of the 2012 Sigourney Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychoanalysis.