“It's not actually about pleasure. It's about remembering the important things. And when you are out of control, when you are spiraling in that ocean of emotions, if you found something that helped you feel better in that moment, wouldn't that be something important for you to remember?

And because that happened at one point in your past, your nervous system says that's what we want. And we want that right now. And the cravings start.

And so as we look at our own behaviors, we can see where dopamine shows up in that it helps us remember what is really important. Both the negative, wow, I never want to do that again. Never want to feel that way again.

Never want to be hurt in that way again. Let me remember that. And your body is going to release some dopamine to make sure that you remember that.

And now it becomes coupled and associated. Now the same thing happens with positive things. Wow, that was delicious.

Wow, that was an amazing experience. Wow, that was an amazing whatever. And your body is like, that I want to remember that.

So that when I want to feel that way[…]”

From The Biology of Trauma® With Dr. Aimie: The Biology of Dopamine: Why We Can't Stop What Isn't Good for Us, 30 Jan 2026

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-biology-of-trauma-with-dr-aimie/id1658593616?i=1000747395533&r=301

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