At the same time, scientific breakthroughs in medical interventions and new cultural habits, like the decrease in alcohol consumption, hold some promise. My own experience reflects those recent changes. Addiction runs in my family. In 2020, my sister, who struggled with alcoholism for years, died of liver failure — something I shared with Lembke before our interview began. Her “death of despair” made me change my own behavior. After a lifetime of obesity, I started taking Ozempic, which curtailed my obsessive relationship with food. And two years ago, I stopped drinking alcohol. But while I feel physically great, losing weight and getting sober hasn’t stopped some other destructive behaviors, like online shopping, from creeping in. This is a dynamic Lembke is familiar with — both in her work and in her personal life. How to find balance in a world feeding us temptation, she says, is a struggle for us all.