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Unlearn Negative Thoughts & Behaviors Patterns | Dr. Alok Kanojia

Overview

Shownote

Highlights

Transcript

Chapters

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Unlearn Negative Thoughts & Behaviors Patterns | Dr. Alok Kanojia

Huberman Lab

Mar 02
Huberman Lab

Huberman Lab

Mar 02
OverviewShownoteHighlightsTranscriptChaptersPins

Shownote

Dr. Alok Kanojia, MD, MPH [https://www.healthygamer.gg/] ("Dr. K"), is a Harvard-trained psychiatrist and expert in both Eastern and Western medicine to improve mental health. He explains tools for unlearning maladaptive thoughts and behavior patterns and for making behaviors that better mental and physical well-being more reflexive in work, relationships and daily life. We also discuss ways to resolve trauma, build stress tolerance, increase intrinsic motivation and even change temperament. We also discuss how social media, gaming and online dating shape our identity and perceptions and how to navigate them healthily. Thank you to our sponsors AG1: https://drinkag1.com/huberman [https://drinkag1.com/huberman] Lingo: https://hellolingo.com/huberman [https://hellolingo.com/huberman] Joovv: https://joovv.com/huberman [https://joovv.com/huberman] Function: https://functionhealth.com/huberman [https://functionhealth.com/huberman] Eight Sleep: https://eightsleep.com/huberman [https://eightsleep.com/huberman] Timestamps (00:00:00) Alok Kanojia (Dr. K) (00:03:09) Internet, Computer Games; Academic Pressure (00:07:11) Millennials & Self-Awareness, Hijacking Mental Health Language (00:13:24) Sponsors: Lingo & Joovv (00:16:06) Personality & Individual Road Maps, Misdiagnosis (00:22:02) Ambiguity, Flirting, Social Skills Decline, Uncertainty Tolerance (00:26:06) Dating in the Internet Age, Cognitive Bias (00:30:39) Healthy Distress Tolerance, Tool: How to Feel Your Feelings (00:39:58) Sponsor: AG1 (00:40:49) Expectations vs Internal Desire Roadmap, Western vs Eastern Theory of Mind, Ego (00:50:35) Sense Organs, Comparison & Proving Oneself, Internal Drive (00:59:22) Internet, Ego, "Teflon Buddha", Tool: Dealing with Criticism (01:10:36) Observing One's Mind, Meditation, Psychedelics (01:11:59) Sponsor: Function (01:13:46) Tool: Shunya "Void" Meditation & Resilience (01:24:02) External Reminders, Environment; Men & Emotional Regulation (01:30:04) Samskara, Yoga Nidra, Trauma & Learning, Shunya & Personal Compass (01:39:15) Yoga Nidra, Channeling Divinity, Genius (01:42:30) Sponsor: Eight Sleep (01:43:48) Breathwork Practices; Meditation Science, Self-Esteem & Belief Change (01:53:40) Liminal States, Meditation Types & Benefits; Western & Eastern Balance (02:01:50) Understanding Ego & Perception; AI & Narcissism, Psychosis (02:14:07) Tool: Healthy Social Media Use, When To Not Use, Normal Standards (02:18:38) Social Media & Looks Obsession, Purpose, Charisma (02:24:18) Young Men Falling Behind?, Male Support, Suicide; Men in Relationships (02:30:36) "Stuck" Young Men, Failure to Launch, Tool: Motivation & Understanding Oneself (02:39:03) Pornography, Erectile Dysfunction, Emotions, Addiction; Relationships (02:44:21) Men & Love, Looksmaxxing, Rejection, Partner Characteristics, Tool: Walk Before Dates (02:55:12) Exploring Practices, Meditation, Breathwork (03:01:39) Spirituality, Personal Exploration; Acknowledgements (03:06:12) Zero-Cost Support, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Follow, Reviews & Feedback, Sponsors, Protocols Book [https://books.apple.com/us/book/protocols/id6503704496?itscg=30200&itsct=books_box_link&mttnsubad=6503704496&at=1000l3bop], Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter Disclaimer & Disclosures [https://www.hubermanlab.com/disclaimer] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Highlights

This episode features a deep, integrative conversation with psychiatrist Dr. Alok Kanojia on the psychological and neurobiological underpinnings of modern mental health challenges—especially among young men—and the practical, evidence-informed tools to foster resilience, self-awareness, and authentic motivation.
00:00
Changing behavior requires altering underlying tendencies, not just actions
05:58
He never learned how to study, went from A's to F's, got addicted to video games, and failed out.
10:37
Declining distress tolerance is a key driver of rising mental illness
13:24
Lingo's Continuous Glucose Monitor helps track glucose in real-time
18:57
Not everyone exposed to the same traumas like genocidal conflicts develops PTSD, with different reactions per person
24:34
Intolerance of uncertainty is a key factor, and those who can tolerate it have better mental health
29:02
The brain bases behavior on worst-case scenarios, not probabilities
35:41
Emotions are information and motivation from an evolutionary perspective
40:04
AGZ is a great-tasting drink that improves sleep
49:30
What gets people stuck is trying to live up to external expectations
58:42
On social media, increased judgment leads to more narcissism as a defense mechanism
1:09:39
What hurts us most reveals our deepest ego insecurities
1:10:37
Meditation can shut off the default-mode network related to self-sense
1:12:02
The speaker detected elevated mercury levels and followed Function Health's advice to reduce them
1:16:38
Shunya meditation helps find peace in the void between breaths
1:24:17
Men are often trained to regulate their emotions through the external environment
1:38:14
Dormant awakeness in yoga nidra allows therapeutic 'edit mode' for the unconscious mind
1:39:15
This state is where 'rewriting' occurs, related to samskara
1:42:46
Eight Sleep's Pod 5 uses AI autopilot to adjust bed temperature across sleep stages and elevate the head if snoring
1:52:04
The liminal states between sleep and awake are considered a valuable opportunity for rewiring self-beliefs and engaging neuroplasticity
1:59:40
True healing lies in going inward, unlearning self- and other-unkind behaviors
2:01:58
A patient's psychosis recurred after resuming AI use, suggesting a causal link in AI-induced psychosis
2:16:50
Spending more time on social media makes people forget what 'normal' looks like
2:18:47
Looksmaxxing is hazardous for young men as it promotes an obsession with looks and cosmetic perfection
2:29:42
Men experience higher inflammation and have an elevated acute risk of heart attack
2:33:19
Tiredness is a signal from the brain, and changing one's understanding of tasks can help overcome procrastination
2:41:42
Addiction shifts from pleasure to pain-relief
2:50:07
Shared emotional experiences—not profile matching—build authentic romantic bonds
3:00:11
Serious scientists and clinicians are exploring spirituality before full scientific validation
3:01:42
The experience of Shunya and exploration of the mind's unconscious parts like samskara are subjective and non-transmissible

Chapters

Alok Kanojia (Dr. K)
00:00
Internet, Computer Games; Academic Pressure
03:09
Millennials & Self-Awareness, Hijacking Mental Health Language
07:11
Sponsors: Lingo & Joovv
13:24
Personality & Individual Road Maps, Misdiagnosis
16:06
Ambiguity, Flirting, Social Skills Decline, Uncertainty Tolerance
22:02
Dating in the Internet Age, Cognitive Bias
26:06
Healthy Distress Tolerance, Tool: How to Feel Your Feelings
30:39
Sponsor: AG1
39:58
Expectations vs Internal Desire Roadmap, Western vs Eastern Theory of Mind, Ego
40:49
Sense Organs, Comparison & Proving Oneself, Internal Drive
50:35
Internet, Ego, "Teflon Buddha", Tool: Dealing with Criticism
59:22
Observing One's Mind, Meditation, Psychedelics
1:10:36
Sponsor: Function
1:11:59
Tool: Shunya "Void" Meditation & Resilience
1:13:46
External Reminders, Environment; Men & Emotional Regulation
1:24:02
Samskara, Yoga Nidra, Trauma & Learning, Shunya & Personal Compass
1:30:04
Yoga Nidra, Channeling Divinity, Genius
1:39:15
Sponsor: Eight Sleep
1:42:30
Breathwork Practices; Meditation Science, Self-Esteem & Belief Change
1:43:48
Liminal States, Meditation Types & Benefits; Western & Eastern Balance
1:53:40
Understanding Ego & Perception; AI & Narcissism, Psychosis
2:01:50
Tool: Healthy Social Media Use, When To Not Use, Normal Standards
2:14:07
Social Media & Looks Obsession, Purpose, Charisma
2:18:38
Young Men Falling Behind?, Male Support, Suicide; Men in Relationships
2:24:18
"Stuck" Young Men, Failure to Launch, Tool: Motivation & Understanding Oneself
2:30:36
Pornography, Erectile Dysfunction, Emotions, Addiction; Relationships
2:39:03
Men & Love, Looksmaxxing, Rejection, Partner Characteristics, Tool: Walk Before Dates
2:44:21
Exploring Practices, Meditation, Breathwork
2:55:12
Spirituality, Personal Exploration; Acknowledgements
3:01:39
Zero-Cost Support, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Follow, Reviews & Feedback, Sponsors, Protocols Book, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter
3:06:12

Transcript

Alok Kanojia: Everyone's focused on changing behavior. Everyone's focused on increasing willpower to overcome this tendency. And it's like, why not just change the tendency? That sounds so simple, but that's literally what we do in psychotherapy every day ...