Getting help for addiction recovery is an admirable choice and if you are on this path, give yourself credit. Knowing you need help is a tremendous first step and seeking out quality resources is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Coupled with traditional approaches, meditative therapy programs can make a world of difference in the journey toward sobriety and well-being.
If you’re looking for resources in Washington state, contact Northpoint Seattle today. Our dual diagnosis treatment center can help you or your loved one work with both mental illness and addiction simultaneously. We offer a host of great supporting programs, including meditative therapy during recovery. Call 888.483.6031 to get answers to your questions or begin enrollment.
How Meditative Therapy Can Help in Recovery
Recovering from drug or alcohol abuse is a multifaceted journey that touches all parts of the body, mind, and spirit. Thus, it makes sense that a treatment approach supporting all these areas has the best chance of producing meaningful results. Meditative therapy can provide just such support within a qualified addiction rehab setting. While it comes in many forms, most share two features, mindfulness and the capacity to calm and center.
Mindfulness, directing attention back to the present when it strays into rumination or projection, can be a game-changer in recovery. It’s a great way to mitigate anxiety’s unhealthy future focus and depression’s over-alignment with difficult past events. Moreover, people in recovery benefit from calming and centering their minds because it helps them focus better on other therapeutic offerings. These may include everything from forming effective relapse prevention plans to engaging in peer support groups.
A few of the other major benefits of meditative therapy in addiction treatment include:
- Better-quality sleep and less insomnia
- An increased internal sense of well-being
- Improved concentration and ability to communicate with others peacefully and productively
- The opportunity to connect with like-minded communities of meditators and gain healthy social connections
- Decreased stress due to brain changes that occur among consistent meditators, such as lower levels of the stress hormone, cortisol
- Healthier heart rate and lower blood pressure on average
- Improved ability to resist drug or alcohol cravings and other difficult withdrawal symptoms
- Decreased relapse rates thanks to enhanced coping skills
In addition to meditation therapy, addiction recovery offerings like individual and group therapy are extremely impactful. Depending on the type of substance use, medication may be helpful too.
What Are Some Major Forms of Meditative Therapy for Addiction?
Meditative therapy can take several forms, one of the most direct being mindfulness meditation. Whether it is practiced seated, standing, lying down, or even walking, this form of meditation centers on breath, a repeating mantra, or a soothing image, which can help patients clear their minds. This form is especially commendable for its accessibility. It typically involves few props and thus tends to be completely free once a person has acquired the skill.
Movement meditation is also highly effective for people in recovery. It can help with trauma processing and also increase physical health, which may have been compromised by drug or alcohol use. Yoga, tai chi, dance, and chi gong are all great options for movement meditation. Powerful, expressive forms like these can help addiction recovery patients gain additional avenues for processing and self-regulation.
Finally, guided meditation is also a great option. This form may be appealing to newer meditators and those coping with trauma or anxiety for its significant external support. Guided meditation can help with everything from sleep, focus, relaxation, and working through cravings. Meditators typically follow along with an instructor in real time or use pre-made recordings at their convenience.
Reap the Benefits of Meditative Therapy at Northpoint Recovery Today
The journey of addiction recovery may feel overwhelming, but remember, quality interventions can help with all aspects of the process. A nuanced approach is often necessary for lasting change, and fortunately, wrap-around care is becoming the norm in rehab settings.
The meditative programming at Northpoint Seattle hinges on dialectical behavior therapy (DBT). This evidence-based strategy marries mindfulness with cognitive-behavioral principles such as revising self-limiting beliefs. The caring team at Northpoint Recovery is available at 888.483.6031 or by using our online contact form and would be happy to connect you with resources and programming that can help.