Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention for Substance Use Disorders: Effects on Cardiac Vagal Control and Craving Under Stress

The Effectiveness of Mindfulness in the Treatment of Methamphetamine Addiction Symptoms: Does Neuroplasticity Play a Role?

INTRODUCTION

Methamphetamine is a highly stimulating psychoactive drug that causes life-threatening addictions and affects millions of people around the world. Its effects on the brain are complex and include disturbances in the neurotransmitter systems and neurotoxicity. There are several known treatment methods, but their effectiveness is moderate. It must be emphasised that no drugs have been approved for treatment. For this reason, there is an urgent need to develop new, effective, and safe treatments for methamphetamine. One of the potential treatments is mindfulness meditation. In recent years, this technique has been researched extensively in the context of many neurological and psychiatric disorders.

METHODS

This review explores the use of mindfulness in the treatment of methamphetamine addiction. Searches were conducted in the PubMed/Medline, Research Gate, and Cochrane databases.

RESULTS

Ten studies were identified that used mindfulness-based interventions in the treatment of methamphetamine addiction. The results show that mindfulness is an effective form of reducing hunger, risk of relapses, stress indicators, depression, and aggression, alone or in combination with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Mindfulness also improved the cognitive function in addicts. The included studies used only behavioural measures. The potential mechanisms of mindfulness in addiction were explained, and it was proposed that it can induce neuroplasticity, alleviating the symptoms of addiction.

CONCLUSIONS

Evidence from the studies suggest that mindfulness may be an effective treatment option for methamphetamine addiction, used alone or in combination with tDCS. However, further high-quality research is required to establish the role of this treatment option in this field. The use of neuroimaging and neurophysiological measures is fundamental to understand the mechanisms of mindfulness.

Ultra-Brief Breath Counting (Mindfulness) Training Abolishes Negative Affect-Induced Alcohol Motivation in Hazardous Community Drinkers

Objectives

Mindfulness therapy improves drinking outcomes arguably by attenuating negative mood-induced drinking, but this mechanism has not been demonstrated in hazardous community drinkers. To address this, three studies tested whether a key ingredient of mindfulness, breath counting, would attenuate the increase in motivation for alcohol produced by experimentally induced negative mood, in hazardous community drinkers.

Method

In three studies, hazardous community drinkers were randomized to receive either a 6-min breath counting training or listen to a recited extract from a popular science book, before all participants received a negative mood induction. Motivation for alcohol was measured before and after listening to either the breath counting training or the control audio files, with a craving questionnaire in two online studies (n = 122 and n = 111), or an alcohol versus food picture choice task in a pub context in one in-person study (n = 62).

Results

In Study 1, breath counting reduced alcohol craving. However, since the mood induction protocol did not increase craving, the effect of breath counting in reversing such increase could not be demonstrated. Online breath counting eliminated the increase in alcohol craving induced by negative mood (Study 2) and eliminated the stress-induced increase in alcohol picture choice in the pub environment (Study 3).

Conclusions

Briefly trained breath counting attenuated negative mood-induced alcohol motivation in hazardous community drinkers. These results suggest that breath counting is a reliable and practical method for reducing the impact of negative emotional triggers on alcohol motivation.

Preregistration

These studies are not preregistered.

Be more mindful: Targeting addictive responses by integrating mindfulness with cognitive bias modification or cue exposure interventions

This review provides an overview of the most prominent neurocognitive effects of cognitive bias modification (CBM), cue-exposure therapy and mindfulness interventions for targeting addictive responses. It highlights the key insights that have stemmed from cognitive neuroscience and brain imaging research and combines these with insights from behavioural science in building a conceptual model integrating mindfulness with response-focused CBM or cue-exposure interventions. This furthers our understanding of whether and how mindfulness strategies may i) facilitate or add to the induced response-focused effects decreasing cue-induced craving, and ii) further weaken the link between craving and addictive responses. Specifically, awareness/monitoring may facilitate, and decentering may add to, response-focused effects. Combined awareness acceptance strategies may also diminish the craving-addiction link. The conceptual model presented in this review provides a specific theoretical framework to deepen our understanding of how mindfulness strategies and CBM or cue-exposure interventions can be combined to greatest effect. This is important in both suggesting a roadmap for future research, and for the further development of clinical interventions.

Brief Online Negative Affect Focused Functional Imagery Training Improves 2-Week Drinking Outcomes in Hazardous Student Drinkers: a Pilot Randomised Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

Negative affect plays an important role in motivating problematic alcohol use. Consequently, training imagery-based adaptive responses to negative affect could reduce problematic alcohol use. The current study tested whether personalised online functional imagery training (FIT) to utilise positive mental imagery in response to negative affect would improve drinking outcomes in hazardous negative affect drinking students.

METHOD

Participants were 52 hazardous student drinkers who drink to cope with negative affect. Participants in the active group (n = 24) were trained online over 2 weeks to respond to personalised negative drinking triggers by retrieving a personalised adaptive strategy they might use to mitigate negative affect, whereas participants in the control group (n = 28) received standard risk information about binge drinking at university. Measures of daily drinking quantity, drinking motives, self-efficacy and use of protective behavioural strategies were obtained at baseline and 2 weeks follow-up.

RESULTS

There were three significant interactions between group and time in a per-protocol analysis: the active intervention group showed increased self-efficacy of control over negative affect drinking and control over alcohol consumption and decreased social drinking motives from baseline to 2-week follow-up, relative to the control intervention group. There were no effects on drinking frequency.

CONCLUSION

These findings provide initial evidence that online training to respond to negative affect drinking triggers by retrieving mental imagery of adaptive strategies can improve drinking-related outcomes in hazardous, student, negative affect drinkers. The findings support the utility of FIT interventions for substance use.

Persian Validation of the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) in Iranian Substance Abusers: Validity and Reliability

Background: The Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS) is widely used as an evaluation tool for mindfulness. Objectives: The present study aimed to validate the Persian version of the MAAS in Iranian substance abusers. Methods: This descriptive-analytical, cross-sectional study was conducted in Tehran during April 2017-December 2018 on 753 male Iranian substance abusers. Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire, the Persian version of the MAAS, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21), the General Self-efficacy Scale, the Aggression Scale, and the Quality of Mindfulness Scale. The study had two stages of exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 22, and a single-factor structure was employed to analyze the internal consistency of the MAAS in LISREL version 8.8. Results: The CFA results indicated that the single-factor model had a good fit to the data. In addition, negative correlations were observed between the MAAS, DASS-21, and aggression, while a positive correlation was denoted with self-efficacy (P < 0.01). Conclusions: According to the results, the Persian version of the MAAS is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing the mindfulness of Iranian substance abusers. Our findings shed light on a new direction for future focus and exploration in this regard.

Mindfulness-based interventions for substance use disorders

BACKGROUND

Substance use disorders (SUDs) are highly prevalent and associated with a substantial public health burden. Although evidence-based interventions exist for treating SUDs, many individuals remain symptomatic despite treatment, and relapse is common.Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been examined for the treatment of SUDs, but available evidence is mixed.

OBJECTIVES

To determine the effects of MBIs for SUDs in terms of substance use outcomes, craving and adverse events compared to standard care, further psychotherapeutic, psychosocial or pharmacological interventions, or instructions, waiting list and no treatment.

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the following databases up to April 2021: Cochrane Drugs and Alcohol Specialised Register, CENTRAL, PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, CINAHL and PsycINFO. We searched two trial registries and checked the reference lists of included studies for relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

SELECTION CRITERIA

RCTs testing a MBI versus no treatment or another treatment in individuals with SUDs. SUDs included alcohol and/or drug use disorders but excluded tobacco use disorders. MBIs were defined as interventions including training in mindfulness meditation with repeated meditation practice. Studies in which SUDs were formally diagnosed as well as those merely demonstrating elevated SUD risk were eligible.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

We used standard methodological procedures expected by Cochrane.

MAIN RESULTS

Forty RCTs met our inclusion criteria, with 35 RCTs involving 2825 participants eligible for meta-analysis. All studies were at high risk of performance bias and most were at high risk of detection bias. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) versus no treatment Twenty-four RCTs included a comparison between MBI and no treatment. The evidence was uncertain about the effects of MBIs relative to no treatment on all primary outcomes: continuous abstinence rate (post: risk ratio (RR) = 0.96, 95% CI 0.44 to 2.14, 1 RCT, 112 participants; follow-up: RR = 1.04, 95% CI 0.54 to 2.01, 1 RCT, 112 participants); percentage of days with substance use (post-treatment: standardized mean difference (SMD) = 0.05, 95% CI -0.37 to 0.47, 4 RCTs, 248 participants; follow-up: SMD = 0.21, 95% CI -0.12 to 0.54, 3 RCTs, 167 participants); and consumed amount (post-treatment: SMD = 0.10, 95% CI -0.31 to 0.52, 3 RCTs, 221 participants; follow-up: SMD = 0.33, 95% CI 0.00 to 0.66, 2 RCTs, 142 participants). Evidence was uncertain for craving intensity and serious adverse events. Analysis of treatment acceptability indicated MBIs result in little to no increase in study attrition relative to no treatment (RR = 1.04, 95% CI 0.77 to 1.40, 21 RCTs, 1087 participants). Certainty of evidence for all other outcomes was very low due to imprecision, risk of bias, and/or inconsistency. Data were unavailable to evaluate adverse events. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) versus other treatments (standard of care, cognitive behavioral therapy, psychoeducation, support group, physical exercise, medication) Nineteen RCTs included a comparison between MBI and another treatment. The evidence was very uncertain about the effects of MBIs relative to other treatments on continuous abstinence rate at post-treatment (RR = 0.80, 95% CI 0.45 to 1.44, 1 RCT, 286 participants) and follow-up (RR = 0.57, 95% CI 0.28 to 1.16, 1 RCT, 286 participants), and on consumed amount at post-treatment (SMD = -0.42, 95% CI -1.23 to 0.39, 1 RCT, 25 participants) due to imprecision and risk of bias. The evidence suggests that MBIs reduce percentage of days with substance use slightly relative to other treatments at post-treatment (SMD = -0.21, 95% CI -0.45 to 0.03, 5 RCTs, 523 participants) and follow-up (SMD = -0.39, 95% CI -0.96 to 0.17, 3 RCTs, 409 participants). The evidence was very uncertain about the effects of MBIs relative to other treatments on craving intensity due to imprecision and inconsistency. Analysis of treatment acceptability indicated MBIs result in little to no increase in attrition relative to other treatments (RR = 1.06, 95% CI 0.89 to 1.26, 14 RCTs, 1531 participants). Data were unavailable to evaluate adverse events.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

In comparison with no treatment, the evidence is uncertain regarding the impact of MBIs on SUD-related outcomes. MBIs result in little to no higher attrition than no treatment. In comparison with other treatments, MBIs may slightly reduce days with substance use at post-treatment and follow-up (4 to 10 months). The evidence is uncertain regarding the impact of MBIs relative to other treatments on abstinence, consumed substance amount, or craving. MBIs result in little to no higher attrition than other treatments. Few studies reported adverse events.

Mindfulness and Behavior Change

Initiating and maintaining behavior change is key to the prevention and treatment of most preventable chronic medical and psychiatric illnesses. The cultivation of mindfulness, involving acceptance and nonjudgment of present-moment experience, often results in transformative health behavior change. Neural systems involved in motivation and learning have an important role to play. A theoretical model of mindfulness that integrates these mechanisms with the cognitive, emotional, and self-related processes commonly described, while applying an integrated model to health behavior change, is needed. This integrative review (1) defines mindfulness and describes the mindfulness-based intervention movement, (2) synthesizes the neuroscience of mindfulness and integrates motivation and learning mechanisms within a mindful self-regulation model for understanding the complex effects of mindfulness on behavior change, and (3) synthesizes current clinical research evaluating the effects of mindfulness-based interventions targeting health behaviors relevant to psychiatric care. The review provides insight into the limitations of current research and proposes potential mechanisms to be tested in future research and targeted in clinical practice to enhance the impact of mindfulness on behavior change.

The Effects of Mindfulness and Meditation on Vagally Mediated Heart Rate Variability: A Meta-Analysis

OBJECTIVE

Heart rate variability (HRV) is a marker of autonomic nervous system function associated with both physical and mental health. Many studies have suggested that mindfulness and meditation-based interventions (MBIs) are associated with improvements in HRV, but findings are mixed, and to date, no comprehensive meta-analysis has synthesized results.

METHODS

Systematic literature searches were conducted using PsycINFO, Embase, Medline, CINAHL, ERIC, and Scopus to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating the effects of predominantly seated MBIs on resting-state vagally mediated HRV. Risk of bias was judged using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool.

RESULTS

Nineteen RCTs met the criteria for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Random-effects meta-analysis found that MBIs were not efficacious in increasing vagally mediated resting-state HRV relative to control conditions (Hedges g = 0.38, 95% confidence interval [CI] = -0.014 to 0.77). When removing an outlier (g = 3.22), the effect size was reduced, CI narrowed, and findings remained nonsignificant (g = 0.19, 95% CI = -0.02 to 0.39). High heterogeneity in results (I2 = 89.12%) could not be explained by a priori-determined moderators including intervention duration, study setting, and control type.

CONCLUSIONS

There is currently insufficient evidence to indicate that MBIs lead to improvements in vagally mediated HRV over control conditions. Future large, well-designed RCTs with low risk of methodological bias could help add to the current evidence to elucidate any role MBIs might play in impacting HRV.

Mindfulness in Treatment Approaches for Addiction — Underlying Mechanisms and Future Directions

Purpose of Review

While the treatment of addictive disorders proves to be challenging, new treatment approaches that evolved around the concepts of mindfulness and acceptance have been utilized and investigated in recent years. Our goal is to summarize the efficacy and possible underlying mechanisms of mindfulness-based interventions (MBI) in addictive disorders.

Recent Findings

Various meta-analyses have suggested that MBIs show clinical efficacy in the treatment of addictive disorders. Considering the factors that impact addictive disorders, MBIs have been indicated to augment responsiveness to natural rewards in contrast to addiction-related cues as well as to increase top-down cognitive control, decrease subjective and physiological stress perception, and enhance positive affect.

Summary

In summary, MBIs hold promise in treating addictive disorders while larger randomized controlled trials with longitudinal study designs are needed to confirm their utility. Newest clinical endeavors strive to enhance the clinical utility of MBIs by augmentation or personalization.

(Neuro)therapeutic Approaches in the Field of Alcohol Use Disorders

Purpose of Review

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a burdening chronic condition that is characterized by high relapse rates despite severe negative consequences. There has been a recent emergence of interest in (neuro)therapeutic intervention strategies that largely involve the detrimental change in mechanisms linked to addiction disorders. Most prominently, the latter include habitual decision-making, cue-induced behavioral tendencies, as well as the amplifying effects of stressful events on drinking behavior. This article discusses these learning mechanisms and modification thereof as possible targets of (neuro)therapeutic interventions for AUD.

Recent Findings

Psychological therapies that target dysregulated neurocognitive processes underlying addictive behavior may hold promise as effective treatments for AUD.

Summary

Despite the progression in psychological and neuroscience research in the field of AUD, many behavioral interventions fail to systematically integrate and apply such findings into treatment development. Future research should focus on the targeted modification of the aforementioned processes.

Mindfulness-based programs for substance use disorders: a systematic review of manualized treatments

BACKGROUND

Substance use disorders are prevalent and returning to substance use (i.e., relapse) following treatment is common, underscoring the need for effective treatments that will help individuals maintain long-term reductions in substance use. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been increasingly developed and evaluated for the treatment of substance use disorders. The aim of this article was to update a systematic review conducted by Li et al. in 2017 on the outcomes of randomized control trials of MBIs for substance use disorders. In addition, we provided a session-by-session examination of the most widely used MBI protocols.

METHODS

We conducted a comprehensive literature search of the PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science databases from January of 2016 through April of 2020. Studies were included based on the following criteria: 1) examined the effects of an MBI, 2) employed a randomized controlled trial design with repeated measures, including secondary data analyses of randomized controlled trials, and 3) enrolled participants seeking treatment for substance use disorders.

RESULTS

The search identified 902 publications and 30 studies were eligible for inclusion and data extraction. MBIs appear to be as effective as existing evidence-based treatments for substance use disorders at reducing the frequency and quantity of alcohol and drug use, substance-related problems, craving for substance use, and at increasing the rate of abstinence.

CONCLUSIONS

Future directions include additional large scale randomized controlled trials, investigation of the most suitable settings and protocols, examination of patient populations that may benefit most from MBIs, and dissemination and implementation research.

Virtual Nature as an Intervention for Reducing Stress and Improving Mood in People with Substance Use Disorder

Substance use disorder (SUD) afflicts a large percentage of the United States population, with negative implications that cost more than $420 billion annually. This population often experiences negative emotions throughout the recovery process, including anxiety, depression, stress, and negative affect. Currently, evidence-based treatment strategies for SUD include cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing, 12-step programs, and mindfulness-based treatment. One intervention that has not been studied at length among individuals with SUD is use of the natural environment as treatment. Among other patient populations, nature has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety by regulating autonomic nervous system function, reducing symptoms of depression, and improving mood. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether viewing nature videos could similarly reduce stress and improve mood in individuals with SUD. A crossover design was used to compare viewing a nature scene and practicing mindfulness-based activities for women with SUD at a residential treatment facility. Over four weeks, participants engaged in the two activities for the first 10 minutes of their daily program. Immediately before and after each 10 minute session, measures were taken for heart rate, in beats per minute (BPM); affect, using the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS); and overall mood, using a 10-point rating scale from "very unpleasant" to "pleasant." Thirty-six women completed the study. For viewing a nature scene and practicing the mindfulness-based activities, there were statistically significant reductions in mean negative affect scores (p=0.001) and heart rate (p ≤ 0.001). In addition, for participants in both conditions, overall mood improved significantly (p=0.030). The results from this study provide initial evidence that viewing nature has similar benefits to MBT in the treatment of stress and negative mood associated with the SUD recovery process and may be an additional, cost-effective treatment strategy for individuals with SUD.

Ultra-brief breath counting (mindfulness) training promotes recovery from stress-induced alcohol-seeking in student drinkers

The therapeutic effect of mindfulness interventions on problematic drinking is thought to be driven by increased resilience to the impact of stress on negative mood and alcohol-seeking behaviour, but this claim needs empirical support. To address this hypothesis, the current study tested whether brief training of one component of mindfulness - breath counting - would reduce drinkers' sensitivity to the effect of noise stress on subjective mood and alcohol-seeking behaviour. Baseline alcohol-seeking was measured by choice to view alcohol versus food thumbnail pictures in 192 student drinkers. Participants then received a 6-minute audio file which either trained breath counting or recited a popular science extract, in separate groups. All participants were then stressed by a loud industrial noise and alcohol-seeking was measured again simultaneously to quantify the change from baseline. Subjective mood was measured after all three stages (baseline, post intervention, post stress test). The breath counting group were instructed to deploy this technique during the stress test. Results showed that the breath counting versus control intervention improved subjective mood relative to baseline, attenuated the worsening of subjective mood produced by stress induction, and accelerated recovery from a stress induced increase in alcohol-seeking behaviour. Exploratory moderation analysis showed that this accelerated recovery from stress induced alcohol-seeking by breath counting was weaker in more alcohol dependent participants. Mindfulness therapies may improve problematic drinking by increasing resilience to stress induced negative mood and alcohol-seeking, as observed in this study. The weaker therapeutic effect of breath counting in more dependent drinkers may reveal limitations to this intervention strategy.

Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia Mediates Links Between Borderline Personality Disorder Symptoms and Both Aggressive and Violent Behavior

Although emotion dysregulation (ED) is a core symptom of borderline personality disorder (BPD), tests of associations between ED and aggression and violence-which are common to BPD-are sparse. The authors evaluated mediating effects of an autonomic vulnerability to ED on links between BPD symptoms and (a) reactive aggression, (b) proactive aggression, and (c) histories of interpersonal violence in a sample of young adults (N = 104), ages 18-22 years. Low baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) mediated the association between BPD symptoms and reactive aggression. In contrast, although BPD symptoms were correlated with proactive aggression, no mediational effect was found. In addition, low RSA mediated the association between BPD symptoms and histories of interpersonal violence. Collectively, these findings add evidence that neurobiological vulnerability to ED contributes to aggressive and violent behavior among those with BPD.

Substance use outcomes for mindfulness based relapse prevention are partially mediated by reductions in stress: Results from a randomized trial

OBJECTIVE

Mindfulness based relapse prevention (MBRP) has demonstrated efficacy in alleviating substance use, stress, and craving but how MBRP works for marginalized young adults has not been investigated. The current study used a novel rolling group format for MBRP as an additional intervention for young adults in residential treatment. We tested the hypothesis that MBRP (plus Treatment as usual (TAU)) would reduce stress, craving, and substance use among young adults in residential treatment relative to treatment-as-usual plus 12-step/self-help meetings (TAU only). Further, we examined whether reduced stress during treatment was a potential mechanism of change operating in MBRP.

METHOD

Seventy-nine young adults (M_age = 25.3,SD = 2.7;35 % female) were randomly assigned to MBRP (n = 44) or TAU (n = 35). Follow-up assessments were conducted bi-monthly for self-reported measures of stress, craving, and substance use.

RESULTS

At treatment completion young adults receiving MBRP had lower substance use (d = -0.58, [-0.91, -0.26]), craving (d = -0.58, [-1.0, -0.14]), and stress (d = -0.77 [-1.2, -0.30]) relative to TAU condition. Reduced stress during treatment partially mediated observed outcome differences between MBRP and TAU for substance use (β_indirect = -0.45 [-0.79, -0.11]).

CONCLUSIONS

Results suggest that MBRP is a useful and appropriate intervention for marginalized young adults. Further, our results suggest that the effects of MBRP on long-term substance use outcomes may be partially explained by reduced stress.