Mindfulness for Addiction Treatment Explained
Mindfulness therapy is a highly effective tool that helps people deal with emotions they’ve been trying to suppress. Numerous psychologists and experts in the addiction therapy field support this approach.
Basically, the idea is that a lot of our emotional pain comes from trying to hide our true feelings. We all tend to avoid anything that makes us uncomfortable, but trying to ignore emotions usually ends up making us feel worse. Problems like addiction can often start from not dealing with past hurts or feelings we’ve pushed down.
The concept of mindfulness comes from old Buddhist practices. It refers to mental awareness, where you commit completely to the present moment, allowing empathy, acceptance, and kindness to guide you.
As a part of addiction therapy, mindfulness teaches you how to be okay with what you’re feeling, be kind to yourself, and understand what’s going on inside. When people practice mindfulness, they better recognise and deal with those tucked-away thoughts, feelings and emotions. This doesn’t just help people feel lighter and more at peace, but it also improves how they see themselves and get along with others. Being calm and centred, which comes with mindfulness, can even keep people from turning to things like drugs or alcohol as a way to cope.
How is Mindfulness Therapy Applied in Addiction Recovery?
Beating an addiction means having to face all our feelings, no matter how tough they might be. We know that addiction comes with many hard and upsetting emotions, but trying to avoid them only makes the dependence cycle spin faster.
What mindfulness does is give you the tools to deal with those tough emotions, to really acknowledge and accept them. When you manage to do that, you can begin to let go of the negative feelings and thoughts that have been getting in the way of your recovery.
What Mindfulness Therapies We Provide
Psychologists and researchers have recognised that mindfulness is a powerful healing tool, and they’ve integrated it into modern therapy techniques. At AddictionRehab, we welcome this idea, too. We use various holistic methods to make sure mindfulness is a big part of our recovery programs.
Mindfulness Psychotherapies
Mindfulness is core part of many psychotherapies and below are just some of the ways this is used to benefit people in their recovery journey.
Cognitive behavioural therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT for short, explores how our thoughts, feelings, and actions are all connected. In the case of substance addiction, it’s clear that negative thinking can lead to bad feelings and then to doing things that aren’t good for us, keeping us stuck in the addiction loop.
Imagine if someone at work who usually says hi passes you by one day without greeting you. You might start thinking they’re mad at you, making you feel anxious, ashamed, or even angry. In those moments, you might feel tempted to look for comfort in drugs or other addictive behaviours.
This is where mindfulness therapy comes into play. It gives you techniques to halt for a moment and check if those negative thoughts are actually true. Maybe the person who didn’t say hi is just really tired or dealing with their own issues. In many cases, you will find that other people’s behaviour has nothing to do with you.
Mindfulness helps you pause the mind. It gives you a chance to see how your thoughts influence your actions. And that allows you to steer them in a better direction.
Dialectical behavioural therapy
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, or DBT for short, has shown great results in people dealing with addiction. It was started by Dr. Marsha Linehan back in the 1980s. This type of therapy builds on CBT because it includes mindfulness in the recovery path. The goal is to help people control their emotions better, deal with triggers without panicking, and get through conflicts without making things worse.
Imagine your friend says something that really gets under your skin. Your first instinct might be to snap back, and that could lead to a big fight, maybe even tempting you to fall back into old, harmful habits.
But DBT teaches you how to hit the pause button when you’re feeling upset, angry, ashamed, or embarrassed and understand all those emotions. This little break gives you a chance to take a deep breath and choose to respond in a calm and helpful way instead of just reacting on impulse.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are
tiny matters compared to what lies within us
Mindfulness movement: yoga
Yoga is based on the idea that your mind and body are connected on a deeper level, leaning on ancient wisdom that shows how this connection actually works. Simply put, what’s good for the mind is good for the body, too, and vice versa—especially when you’re trying to beat addiction.
At our clinics, we offer yoga classes that anyone can take part in, no matter your level of experience, all led by trained instructors. They usually start patients off with Pranayama or breathing exercises. This helps you focus on your breathing, quiet down your thoughts, and get more in tune with yourself. They encourage keeping this mindful breathing through the whole class.
At the end of each class, you will be instructed to either lie down or sit and meditate on ideas like finding peace inside yourself, learning to forgive yourself, and letting go of emotional burdens from your past. These meditation moments are very powerful, leaving you feeling calm and filled with good energy.
Doing mindfulness yoga regularly really helps you understand yourself better, which is a huge help in overcoming addiction.
The benefits of mindfulness in addiction recovery
Mindfulness is beneficial for everyone, but it’s especially good for those undergoing addiction therapy. It can help the recovery process in many ways.
- This practice teaches you how to handle the outside world (like your relationships, job, and home life) and your inner world (your thoughts and feelings) in a constructive way. This means reacting to issues without harsh judgments or knee-jerk reactions that might make you relapse.
- Mindfulness is also about being kind to yourself. It helps you forgive yourself for the mistakes you made in the past.
- It improves your empathy, and you become more patient and forgiving. And that is very important for fixing relationships that were damaged because of addiction.
- It makes you really appreciate the little things in life—your health, your loved ones, a safe place to live, and the very journey of getting better.
- Mindfulness also brings this inner peace that helps you accept and love yourself, even the parts you’re not so proud of.
- It lets you look at your thoughts from a distance, seeing them as just thoughts that come and go, without labeling them as good or bad.
Mindfulness is the Portal to Peace
Battling addiction is tough. It affects you not just physically but mentally and emotionally, too. That’s why we include mindfulness in our treatment plans, aiming to heal all parts of you touched by addiction.
Starting detox or therapy can provoke a whole new array of feelings and emotions previously not felt. Mindfulness is like a tool that helps you see those emotions clearly, deal with them, and then slowly let them go. It’s a way to lighten the emotional burden, build up your mental strength, and boost your overall happiness.
If you’re curious about how mindfulness can help you on your recovery journey, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.
Frequently asked questions
Absolutely! At AddictionRehab, we’ve upgraded our mindfulness therapy with creative options like gong baths and art therapy. These activities can go hand in hand with our yoga sessions and talking therapies. They offer a fresh way to calm both your head and body and let you dive into your feelings and thoughts without having to put everything into words.
Of course. When you’re in rehab, our experts will guide you through learning mindfulness. Think of it as any other skill – you get better at it the more you do it. Don’t worry if it feels a bit weird or tough at the start; just keep practising. In time, you’ll start to notice how much it helps with your recovery and overall health. Even just spending ten minutes a day on mindfulness can really reduce those triggers that tempt you back into old habits.
FREE Addiction Assessment
If your or a loved one are struggling with addiction, we understand the challenges you’re facing and we’re here to offer compassionate help.
Our highly trained advisers are available to speak to you right away, simply call 0808 252 3379 today.
We can discuss your concerns in complete confidence, explore the options for treatment, and help you to understand what will work best for you.
We’ll also help you to book your free addiction assessment there and then, with appointments usually available within only a few days.
We understand that taking the first step can be the most difficult, but we’re here to support – with no pressure or judgement.
Professional and compassionate help is just a phone call or click away.
