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Do you feel wired and tired, that you’re addicted to sugar, caffeine, and stimulants to keep you going, and then need alcohol to relax you? Do you think your brain has literally become addicted? If that rings bells, I’m going to show you five keys to unaddict your brain.

How do you free your brain from addiction? I have a chapter on that in my book, Upgrade Your Brain. But if you want to go deeper, I co-authored a book with two real experts called How to Quit Without Feeling S**t. Professor David Miller, an associate professor of addiction studies, was hooked on alcohol, and he’s an AA counselor. He tried absolutely everything and discovered something related to nutrition and resetting the brain, which completely changed his life.

We went to a treatment center and asked for a couple of dozen people who had been there many times, with serious addictions from heroin to alcohol, cocaine, and so on. We said, don’t change anything you’re doing, just let us take a blood sample. From that, we worked out which neurotransmitters in their brain were depleted. We created a drip of intravenous nutrients, the amino acids that rebuild the missing neurotransmitters. We gave them a drip every day for five days and then a package of supplements for a month.

The deal was that after one year, we’d follow up and see what happened. At the end of the year, out of 23 people, 21 were clean or sober. So why was this approach successful? The point is that whatever you do to get off an addictive compound—whether it’s sugar, coffee, antidepressants, alcohol, heroin, or cocaine—it’s one thing to get off the substance, but that doesn’t correct your brain’s chemistry. Your brain is still addicted, and you know your brain is addicted from what we call abstinence symptoms.

These symptoms can include cravings, sugar cravings, salt cravings, feeling depressed, anxious, shaky, restless, impulsive, or unable to concentrate, having low energy, being hypersensitive to noise, pain, stress, or irritable, not being able to sleep, or having memory problems. These are what we call abstinence symptoms. Ultimately, it’s these symptoms that will lead a person back to consuming their addictive substance.

We need to get underneath that and figure out what’s driving addiction and how to restore the brain. There are five absolute keys to this.

The first key is different for each substance. In my book, I make it clear that every addictive substance mimics a naturally occurring neurotransmitter. You’ve probably heard of endorphins, which you get from exercise. These endorphins are opioids, and they make you feel good. Drugs like heroin mimic these opioids, until your brain stops producing its own feel-good chemicals, and you need the drug instead. Caffeine is another example—when you consume too much caffeine, your brain no longer produces its natural wake-up chemicals, so you wake up half-asleep and need coffee to feel alert.

Each neurotransmitter, like adrenaline, is made from specific amino acids found in the proteins you eat. For example, caffeine requires tyrosine, while serotonin, which antidepressants affect, can be supplemented with tryptophan or 5-HTP. Depending on what you’re craving, you can find the amino acid to supplement that restores the brain’s chemistry.

The next important recovery point is essential fats, particularly Omega-3. Your brain is literally made from fat—60% of its dry weight is fat, and Omega-3s control how your brain communicates. Studies show that animals with enough Omega-3 who are exposed to addictive drugs don’t become addicted. So getting your Omega-3s up is vital for restoring the brain.

The next key to recovery is methylation, which involves B vitamins. Your ability to make neurotransmitters depends on methylation, and that process is dependent on B vitamins, especially B6, folate (from leafy greens), and B12. B12 is especially important because many people, especially those who drink alcohol, don’t absorb it well. Coffee also promotes the excretion of these B vitamins, so ensuring you get enough B vitamins is crucial.

The fourth key is repairing brain damage caused by addictive compounds. Alcohol, for example, is an oxidant in the brain. Once the liver’s capacity to detoxify alcohol is exceeded, alcohol gets into the brain, and that’s when you feel drunk. Alcohol consumes antioxidants, and one of the best ways to recover from too much alcohol is by taking high doses of vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant. So, you need to increase your intake of antioxidants.

The fifth key to recovery is balancing your blood sugar. A lot of our cravings for addictive compounds come from a state of low energy, depression, or stress. When you have too much sugar or carbohydrates, your blood sugar spikes, insulin kicks in, and then your blood sugar crashes, which leads to cravings for sugar, caffeine, or even more stress. Learning how to balance your blood sugar with a low glycemic load diet is essential. Eating foods that release their sugar content slowly and combining protein with carbohydrates will give you more even blood sugar levels.

For example, oats with some protein (like nuts) and antioxidant-rich berries will provide a steady release of sugar. Even combining an apple with almonds will help. If you have toast and jam, that’s sugar on sugar, but if you have toast with almond or peanut butter, that adds protein, which balances your blood sugar.

These are the five ways to detox your brain:

1. Find out the amino acids that support the neurotransmitter you’re lacking.
2. Increase your intake of essential fats—eat more oily fish and supplement Omega-3.
3. Ensure you’re getting enough B vitamins.
4. Repair your brain with antioxidants, especially vitamin C.
5. Learn how to balance your blood sugar by cutting back on sugar and carbs, eating little and often, and combining protein and carbohydrates while choosing whole, unrefined foods.

That’s how you detox your brain.