Meditative Therapy

If you’ve been considering meditative therapy for addiction, TruHealing Riverbend Addiction Treatment can help. We’re located right at the border of Indiana and Kentucky so we can serve clients from both states.

But is meditative or meditation therapy right for every client struggling with addiction? Thousands of people are practicing meditation worldwide, and it’s become essential for some of them. You can find meditation classes at cafes, parks, local libraries, yoga studios, and even online. For many, it’s a path to healing — and perhaps their doctor or therapist suggested trying it or even included it in a medical or therapeutic session.

Meditation is a powerful yet simple technique that offers many health benefits to those practicing it. Due to these positive impacts on practitioners’ health, meditation has become more available as a therapy, particularly in addiction treatment programs. Searching for meditative therapy for addiction near Indianapolis? Reach out to TruHealing Riverbend Addiction Treatment today by calling [Direct] or contacting our team online.

What Is Meditative Therapy?

Meditation therapy involves methods of relaxation and consciousness expansion. These methods typically have practitioners focus on an image, keyword, mantra, or sound while eliminating outside stimuli from their awareness. Similar to yoga, meditation can help reduce feelings of anxiety, depression, and emotional triggers.

There are many types of meditation, for addiction treatment and otherwise. They can be categorized into insight or calming and guided or unguided. There is a meditation approach for every client, and it’s usually one of these:

• Mindfulness meditation: It’s one of the most popular methods of meditation. Mindfulness involves increasing your focus, concentration, and awareness.
• Zen meditation: This brings about calmness and encourages non-reactivity. Zen meditation reinforces attention to the present moment and encourages practitioners to clear their past.
• Guided meditation: This method can encourage practitioners to visualize peaceful mental images as someone facilitates the act of meditating.
• Transcendental meditation: This involves a silent mantra and teaches effortlessness to reduce stress and achieve peace.

Each type of meditation has a few things in common — choosing a quiet spot, finding a comfortable posture, and focusing attention. The duration of a meditation session can be as short as one minute or as long as several hours. There is no “right” or “only” way to practice. Meditation — especially when used as therapy — is as diverse as its practitioners.

How Does Meditation for Addiction Work?

Meditative therapy for addiction is a component of comprehensive substance use disorder (SUD) treatment programs. It can’t be the only form of therapeutic care that a client struggling with addiction undergoes as they walk their path to recovery.

A mental health professional providing meditative therapy guidance to clients may use various techniques based on their training and the clients’ needs. These techniques may include the  following:

• Diaphragmatic breathing: Clients are instructed to sit or lie comfortably, then breathe through their nose with their mouth closed. Then, they should exhale slowly through the mouth with their lips pursed. When doing diaphragmatic breathing, clients should try to make their exhalation longer than their inhalation.
• Straw breathing: This is another great way to extend exhalation. Clients should breathe in through their noses and exhale through a plastic straw until all the air leaves their lungs. This action should be consistently repeated within a period of two to five minutes.
• Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR): Clients are instructed to sit or lie comfortably, as with diaphragmatic breathing. Then, they should take a few deep breaths and close their eyes. Beginning at the top of their body, they should slowly tense and then release the muscles in their body. 

When Should You Consider Meditative Therapy for Addiction?

At the beginning of an addiction recovery journey, meditation therapy may not help a client as much as medication-assisted treatment (MAT) or behavioral therapy. But in cases where withdrawal symptoms such as anxiety, depression, or insomnia keep a client from focusing only on recovery, meditative therapy can assist in grounding the client and calming their nervous system. A calm nervous system results in better sleep and better mood management.

Meditation therapy also allows clients to regain control over their impulses actively. Transcendental meditation, in particular, has been used to reduce addictive substance use and the risk of relapse. Meditative therapy’s other benefits include altering brainwaves, which contribute to cortisol reduction and improved psychological function. Mindfulness meditation can enhance the performance of the frontal cortex, a part of the brain that regulates planning and thinking. Meditation also impacts the amygdala, which reduces fear and increases the activation of the anterior cingulate cortex — which governs motor control and motivation.

You should consider meditative therapy for addiction, especially if it’s offered by the facility hosting your primary addiction treatment program. Did you know that studies show a 65% boost in dopamine release in the brain when people struggling with addiction meditate? This means that any motivations for addictive substance use — such as feeling anxious, filling a void, or thinking of the worst-case scenario — may improve with consistent meditation.

Ready To Learn More About TruHealing Riverbend’s Meditative Therapy for Addiction in Jeffersonville, IN?

If you’re looking for meditative therapy for addiction near Indianapolis, contact TruHealing Riverbend Addiction Treatment today. Reach out to our team online or call 855.652.0546.