On this episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, we meet Dr. Gabor Maté, author of The Myth of Normal, Metabolizing Anger, Processing Trauma, and Finding the Still Voice Within.
About Gabor: A renowned speaker and bestselling author, Gabor is highly sought after for his expertise on a range of topics that include addiction, stress, and childhood development. He has written several bestselling books, including the award-winning In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction, When the Body Says No: Understanding the Stress-Disease Connection, and Scattered: How Attention Deficit Disorder Originates and What You Can Do About It. He has also coauthored Hold On to Your Kids: Why Parents Need to Matter More Than Peers. His works have been published internationally in nearly thirty languages.
In this interview you’ll learn: - 01:26 How COVID affected Gabor.
- 02:37 Exploring plant medicine with Indigenous First Nations.
- 10:13 How Gabor got fired from his ayahuasca retreat.
- 13:31 Can Indigenous medicine ever be understood through a Western lens?
- 19:19 How does Gabor clear himself of the trauma he takes from others?
- 20:41 Was writing The Myth of Normal more labor-intensive than Gabor’s other works?
- 24:03 A personal story about how past trauma can appear in everyday life.
- 27:38 Coping with rage and anger.
- 37:40 Attachment versus authenticity.
- 43:27 Where does depression originate?
- 46:55 Raising a child to learn self-regulation.
- 51:13 What Gabor hopes The Myth of Normal readers don’t miss.
- 56:39 Finding the right balance of self-care when caring for a family.
- 01:00:56 The harm of focusing on correcting a child’s behavior rather than their underlying emotional dynamics.
- 01:05:42 Rehabilitation versus punishment of incarcerated, traumatized adults.
- 01:15:35 If he couldn’t write, what would be the focus of Gabor’s clinical practice?
- 01:18:54 Finding and listening to one’s inner voice or calling.
- 01:28:11 Are you bargaining with your authenticity?
- 01:33:15 Parting thoughts.
About Tim Ferriss: Named one of Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Business People,” Tim was an early-stage tech investor/advisor in Uber, Facebook, Twitter, Shopify, Duolingo, Alibaba, and 50+ other companies. He is also the author of five #1 New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers: The 4-Hour Workweek, The 4-Hour Body, The 4-Hour Chef, Tools of Titans, and Tribe of Mentors. The Observer and other media have named him “the Oprah of audio” due to the influence of his podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show, which has exceeded 700 million downloads and been selected for “Best of Apple Podcasts” three years running. Click here to check out the show.