Mike Hardenbrook
#1 best-selling author of "No Willpower Required," neuroscience enthusiast, and habit change expert.
Appears in 240 Episodes
When Relief Is a Terrible North Star
In this 10 Minute Monday, I’m talking about something I had to admit in my own life: sometimes the drink at the end of the day isn’t really about the drink. It’s about...
Why Some Kava Works and Some Doesn’t w/ Morgan Smith
Join me for a conversation with Morgan Smith of Kalm with Kava, as he speaks from his farm in Hawaii about why people can have such different experiences with kava. Mo...
When Better Starts Feeling Boring
A few months into drinking less, something happened that caught me off guard. Things got better, then better became normal, and normal started feeling a lot flatter th...
Food Noise, Alcohol Noise, and the New Science of Medication-Assisted Behavior Change w/ Sunnyside CEO Nick Allen & Noom CEO Geoff Cook
Mike sits down with Geoff Cook, CEO of Noom and one of the biggest names in digital behavior change, and Nick Allen, CEO of Sunnyside, for a conversation about food no...
7 Things Most People Get Wrong About Harm Reduction
After talking with Dr. Andrew Tatarsky on the podcast more than once, and continuing the conversation outside those episodes, I kept coming back to the same thought: h...
Why You Feel So Split Around Drinking
In this episode, Mike puts a name to something that has come up again and again on the podcast: Internal Family Systems, or IFS. Drawing on ideas discussed by several ...
Why the Parts of You That Drink Are Not the Enemy w/ Beej Karpen
Beej Karpen is a mindfulness-based coach and IFS practitioner who helps people change their relationship with alcohol in a more compassionate way, without shame, label...
A Craving Is Not a Command
In this episode I talk about one idea from my conversation with Nir Eyal that I think is genuinely useful for anyone trying to drink less. He made a point about pain a...
Why You Stay Stuck Even When You Know Better w/ Nir Eyal
Nir Eyal is the bestselling author of Hooked and Indistractable, and he has a new book out called Beyond Belief. What I liked about this conversation is that it gets a...
7 Things Science Knows About Drinking That Most People Don't
Over the last few years I've had the chance to sit down with researchers who study drinking behavior from a lot of different angles — psychology, neuroscience, habit f...
Why Some People Are Pushing Back on Sober Curious w/ Merrilee Burke
Welcome back to Journey to the Sunnyside. Today I’m joined by Merrilee Burke, a licensed marriage and family therapist with over 20 years of experience, specializing i...
I Wanted a Drink Last Night
Last night, I found myself in a moment that felt familiar. Stress had been building, a disagreement pushed me further, and that quiet thought of a drink started turnin...
Before Mindful Drinking, There Was Moderation Management w/ Andrea Pain
Today I’m joined by Andrea Pain, Executive Director of Moderation Management, one of the longest-running organizations helping people rethink their relationship with a...
Why “I Thought I Was Past This” Is Completely Normal
You’re drinking less. You feel like you’ve turned a corner. And then one night something happens… you have more than you planned, or the old routine sneaks back in. Th...
Cravings vs Habits: Understanding How Naltrexone Really Helps w/ Jenny Williamson
Today I’m talking with Jenny Williamson, Executive Director of Options Save Lives, one of the leading organizations focused on medication-based approaches to reducing ...
What If You’re Not “Wired This Way”?
At some point, a lot of people assume their drinking is just part of their personality. In this episode, we unpack the myth of the “addictive personality,” explain how...
Not an Alcoholic. Still Not Fine w/ Jennifer Kautsch
You don’t identify as an alcoholic.You’re functioning.You’re successful.But something still feels off.In part two of my conversation with Jennifer Kautsch, founder of ...
Stuck in the Detox to Retox Loop w/ Jennifer Kautsch
You wake up with regret.You promise yourself tonight will be different.And somehow, by 5 pm, you’re negotiating again.In this episode, I sit down with Jennifer Kautsch...
Your Prefrontal Cortex Clocks Out at 6 PM (Here’s What Takes Over)
Morning-you makes promises. Evening-you breaks them. There’s a biological reason for that. When stress rises and energy drops, the salience network starts prioritizing...
What 1, 2, or 5 Drinks Really Do to Your Body
Most alcohol advice feels contradictory. One drink a day is “moderate.” Two per week is “low risk.” Zero is “optimal.” So what actually happens inside your body at 1 d...
