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Dr. Nora Volkow recently spoke to the SMART Recovery community about how the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is taking a holistic approach to helping those with substance use issues through prevention, treatment, and after care. As a follow up to that conversation, we talked with Dr. Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of NIDA and Dr. Will Aklin, Director of the Behavior Therapy Development Program, about research in the advancement of substance use treatments.

In this podcast, they talk about:

• How their college professors got them excited and passionate about careers in scientific research
• Medications that help with various addictions, including a new focus on stimulant use disorders
• Bridging the gap between treatment and recovery
• Individualized, personal treatments
• Examples of harm reduction measures
• Creating a net positive to society
• The four pillars of overdose strategy: primary prevention, harm reduction, evidence-based treatment, and recovery support
• Explaining value of CBT and MAT
• How research helps us understand the impact of mutual support and recovery
• The research behind using Contingency Management to shape positive behavior
• Making treatment less intimidating and more welcoming
• Working across boundaries and departments, within the government, to address the drug abuse problems and find solutions