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Adi Jaffe, Ph.D.        

Mental Health & Addiction Specialist

Adi Jaffe, Ph.D., is a #1 best-selling author (The Abstinence Myth - His upcoming book, Unhooked, is being published by Hachette) and a nationally recognized expert on transformation and communication, especially in times of deep crisis.

Dr. Jaffe’s work spans work/career, mental health, addiction, and relationship crises. He was a lecturer in the UCLA Psychology department for the better part of a decade and the Executive-Director and Co-Founder of one of the most progressive mental health treatment facilities in the country - until he started IGNTD.

Through IGNTD, Dr. Jaffe is changing the way people think about and deal with mental health issues. His passion lies in helping his clients move through shame, discover their deepest sense of purpose and joy, and forge a new path in life that brings them, and those around them, fulfillment and happiness.

Dr. Jaffe attended UCLA, graduating with a B.A. in psychology. It was during his undergraduate career that Dr. Jaffe began struggling with drug issues himself, eventually leading to a 4-year hiatus from studies and into the Los Angeles drug-dealing world, where he became quite successful. During that period of his life, Dr. Jaffe's days looked more like a re-enactment of a Beatnik novel or a Quentin Tarantino film than the life of an upper-middle-class suburban kid. Following a SWAT team arrest in his apartment, an extended court case, and a year-long jail sentence, Dr. Jaffe began rebuilding his life. This eventually led to his attainment of a Ph.D. from UCLA's top-rated doctoral program in psychology, where he graduated with honors. Even before he graduated, Dr. Jaffe’s name had become known through his online and academic writing. His views on addiction and his research on the topic have been published in dozens of journals and online publications and he has appeared on numerous television shows and documentaries discussing current topics in addiction and the problem of addiction as a whole.

Dr. Jaffe now writes a blog on Psychology Today and several other online and print sources. His goal is to bring the latest knowledge about addiction to the people who could benefit from it most – those who are suffering because of it. His writing combines personal experience with a decade’s worth of fine-detail research regarding the mechanisms involved in the addictive process. Dr. Jaffe has been featured in CNN, The Huffington Post, Bustle, Los Angeles Times, and KTLA.

Speech Topics


Mental Health, Addiction, Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Relationships, Human Resources

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