So I was told freedom is doing whatever you want, whenever you want. But what if that’s the biggest lie we’ve bought into?

In this episode, I break down how indulging in every craving doesn’t liberate us, it enslaves us. We’ll talk dopamine, addiction, and the “hedonic treadmill” that keeps our brains hooked. We’ll look at how capitalism profits from keeping us dissatisfied, why discipline is actually the key to agency, and how tying identity to desire leaves us emptier than ever.

I’ll weave in philosophy, modern neuroscience, and real-world stats from America’s trillion-dollar credit card debt to studies linking heavy social media use with anxiety and depression. And I’ll leave you with one question: if you can’t say no, are you really free?

Because indulgence feels like liberation in the moment, but long-term? It’s just a prettier set of chains.

Sources:

• Epictetus. Discourses. (c. 108 CE). — Stoic philosophy on freedom and self-mastery.

• Mischel, W., Shoda, Y., & Rodriguez, M. (1972). “Cognitive and attentional mechanisms in delay of gratification.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. — The original Stanford marshmallow experiment.

• Mischel, W., Shoda, Y., & Peake, P. (1988). “The nature of adolescent competencies predicted by preschool delay of gratification.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. — Long-term outcomes of delayed gratification.

• Schultz, W. (2018). “Reward prediction error.” Nature Neuroscience, 21(2). — Research on dopamine, tolerance, and addiction cycles.

• Twenge, J. M., & Campbell, W. K. (2009). The Narcissism Epidemic: Living in the Age of Entitlement. Free Press. — On indulgence, consumption, and mental health decline.

• Baudrillard, J. (1998). The Consumer Society: Myths and Structures. Sage. — On consumption and identity.

• Twenge, J. M., Haidt, J., & Campbell, W. K. (2023). “Trends in adolescent mental health and social media use.” JAMA Psychiatry. — Correlation between indulgence in social media and rising anxiety/depression.

• Federal Reserve Bank of New York. (2025). Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit. — U.S. credit card debt surpassing $1.13 trillion.