Podcast Summary: "This is Why You're Not Healing"

Podcast: Change Your Brain Every Day
Hosts: Dr. Daniel Amen & Tana Amen
Date: December 15, 2025

Overview

In this episode, Dr. Daniel Amen and Tana Amen dissect why so many people struggle to heal, focusing on the intertwined roles of diet, negative thought patterns, and lifestyle choices in perpetuating pain—both emotional and physical. Drawing on their clinical experience and Dr. Amen's new book Change Your Brain, Change Your Pain, they discuss practical steps to transform brain health, dispel common dietary myths, and share proven strategies for breaking free from pain's grip.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Diet's Impact on Brain and Pain

• Dietary Choices and Alzheimer's Risk

  • Fat-based diets (salmon, avocados, healthy oils, etc.) are associated with a 42% lower risk of Alzheimer’s.
  • Protein-based diets yield a 21% lower risk.
  • Diets high in simple carbohydrates (bread, pasta, potatoes, rice, juice) show a startling 400% increased risk.

    “People who have a simple carbohydrate based diet... have a 400% increased risk.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [00:00]

• Corn: The Hidden Inflammatory Grain

  • Corn is typically GMO, high in omega-6s, and highly inflammatory. Many don't realize it’s a grain, not a vegetable, and reactions are surprisingly common.

    “It's not a vegetable, it's a grain. But it's a very inflammatory grain.” — Tana Amen [00:33] “Corn is in 70% of processed food.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [15:16]

  • Elimination diets (removing gluten, dairy, corn, soy, artificial dyes) can be revelatory for chronic pain sufferers, as shown in a case study they share.

• Processed Foods and Brain Health

  • Ultra-processed foods create direct damage to the brain and fuel inflammation, which worsens both pain and mental health.

2. The Power of Thought: ANT Species and Pain

• Neuroplasticity Can Help—Or Hurt

  • The brain changes constantly, reinforcing whatever patterns (good or bad) are repeated.

    “Neuroplasticity doesn't care if it helps you or hurts you. It simply follows your lead.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [01:14]

• Automatic Negative Thoughts (“ANTs”) and Their Types

  • Dr. Amen introduces "ANT species," particularly those that impact pain:
    • All-or-Nothing ANTs: (“I will never be pain free again.”)
    • Less Than ANTs: (“Other people recover faster than I do.”)
    • Just the Bad ANTs: (“My pain is so bad today, nothing else matters.”)
    • Guilt Beating ANTs: (“I should be able to push through the pain.”)
    • Labeling ANTs: (“I’m a failure because I had to cancel plans.”)
    • Fortune Telling ANTs: (“This pain is going to get worse and worse until I can’t function.”)
  • These thoughts increase tension, intensify pain, and suppress the brain’s ability to self-regulate.

    “These thoughts are so toxic that they increase tension and actually increase pain. Negativity drops frontal lobe function.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [08:47]

• Separating from Negative Thoughts

  • Give your mind a name, use tools like Byron Katie's inquiry (“Is it true?”), and write down/reflect on negative thoughts to challenge and reframe them.

    “Every time you have a thought, your brain releases chemicals... when you have a positive thought... your frontal lobes activate. That happens immediately.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [11:41]

3. Practical Nutrition Principles for Healing

• Love Food That Loves You Back

  • The principle is to treat food like a relationship; don’t stick with options (like sugar, processed foods) that betray your health.

    “Does frosting love you back? No. It's like crack. Crack doesn't love you back.” — Tana Amen [17:41 & 17:45]

• High Quality & Reasonable Quantity

  • Focus on nutrient-dense, whole foods. Quality calories let you eat more with less inflammatory effect.

    “Whole food versus processed food...processed foods create damage right in your brain.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [19:34]

• Protein and Healthy Fats

  • Spread small amounts of quality protein throughout the day for stable blood sugar and sustained energy.

    “Small amounts of protein that are clean protein throughout the day...balances your hormones...gives you focus and energy.” — Tana Amen [21:08]

  • Healthy fats (omega-3s from fish, nuts, seeds, olive oil, avocados) are essential for brain structure and pain reduction.

    “60% of the solid weight of your brain...if someone calls you a fathead, say thank you.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [22:04]

• Avoid Pro-Inflammatory Foods

  • Hydration, avoiding omega-6-heavy oils, and steering clear from processed/refined foods are critical.
  • Chronic pain (including fibromyalgia) often improves by removing these foods.

    “So many people would mention, fibromyalgia went away...because of the inflammation.” — Tana Amen [24:11]

• Smart Carbs & Stabilizing Blood Sugar

  • Not all carbs are evil—prioritize those that don’t spike blood sugar (i.e., avoid highly processed/refined carbs).

    “Carbs aren't the enemy. But it's the carbs that quickly turn to sugar that are the problem.” — Tana Amen [25:28]

• Use Herbs and Spices

  • Turmeric, ginger, capsaicin, saffron, and more support anti-inflammatory healing.

    “Things that are spicy are often good to decrease pain syndromes, along with garlic.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [26:15]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Neuroplasticity’s Double-Edged Sword

  “What you focus on, you become. What you repeat, you reinforce. Neuroplasticity doesn't care if it helps you or hurts you. It simply follows your lead.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [01:14]

• On Labeling and Social Division

  “Labeling...is what's killing our society...Whenever you label someone with a negative term, you lump them with all the other people like that, and you can't deal with them individually anymore.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [07:17]

• Comparing Food to Relationships

  “It's like being married to someone who hurts you. Staying in a relationship.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [17:47] “Does frosting love you back? No.” — Tana Amen [17:41]

• Analogy of Treating Yourself Like a Racehorse

  “Would you ever feed Justify [a Triple Crown-winning horse] junk food?...Would you ever get him drunk?...Would you ever get him stoned?...He would never live up to his potential.” — Dr. Daniel Amen [17:57]

Important Timestamps

• Diet’s Impact on Alzheimer’s Risk: [00:00]
• Corn as an Inflammatory Grain: [00:33], [15:13]
• ANTs, Negative Thoughts & Pain: [04:52]–[08:47]
• Byron Katie and Questioning Thoughts: [10:49]–[11:30]
• Case Study: Elimination Diet Changing Pain: [14:35]–[16:02]
• Love Food That Loves You Back Principle: [17:22]–[18:54]
• Quality Calories vs. Empty Calories: [19:24]
• Protein Recommendations: [21:08]
• Healthy Fats and Brain Structure: [22:04]
• Avoiding Pro-inflammatory Foods: [23:57]
• Role of Hydration and Smart Carbs: [25:04]–[25:28]
• Healing Herbs and Spices: [26:04]–[26:42]

Final Thoughts

Dr. Amen and Tana emphasize that healing—both physical and emotional—blends neuroscience, mindset, and practical daily nutrition. Their central message is empowering: small but strategic changes in your thoughts and what you put in your body can create radical improvement. If you struggle with pain, pay attention to what you consume—both mentally and physically—and remember that every choice is a step towards healing or harm.

Next episode: They will answer listeners’ questions about pain, building on these foundations.

Resources Mentioned:

• Change Your Brain, Change Your Pain (Dr. Daniel Amen's new book)
• The Brain Warrior’s Way Cookbook
• ChangeYourBrainChangeYourPainBook.com (for preorder bonuses)