Why Willpower Fails: The Brain Science of Saying No with Guest Dr. Thomas Elston

Why does willpower collapse right in the middle of a craving? Dr. Thomas Elston, assistant professor of neuroscience at the University of Texas at Austin, shares his lab's new study in the journal Neuron that captured something never seen before: the brain catching itself mid-impulse, as one brain region interrupts another's autopilot to deploy self-control. Damon and Dr. Elston break down the tug-of-war between impulse and self-control, what it means for addiction and OCD, and why struggling to say no is a brain circuit issue — not a character flaw.