Mindfulness Therapy May Reduce Opioid Abuse and Chronic Pain in Primary Care, New Study Shows

Results from a new clinical trial show that an eight-week mindfulness treatment — Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE) — reduced opioid use and misuse while reducing chronic pain symptoms by up to nine month

The study, published in the peer-reviewed JAMA Internal Medicine, followed 250 adults with chronic pain who were on long-term opioid therapy and who were eligible for opioid abuse standard

Study participants were randomly assigned to standard supportive psychotherapy or MORE, with both groups participating in eight hours of weekly group meetings and 15 minutes of homework each day

Nine months after the end of the treatment period, 45% of participants in the MORE group stopped misusing opioids, and 36% cut their opioid use by half or more

Eric Garland, lead author of the study and director of the Center on Mindfulness and Integrative Health Intervention Development at the University of Utah, said, "MORE shows how One of the most powerful therapeutic effects ever

"It's worth noting that the effect of 'MORE' appears to increase over time," Garland said

MORE combines the principles of meditation, cognitive behavioral therapy, and positive psychology into a structured training of concentration, taste, and reappraisal skills

Participants were taught to break down the experience of pain or opioid craving into their sensory components, to "amplify" their sensations and break them down into different sensations such as heat, tightness or tingling

Garland explained: “We teach people how to step back and look at the experience from an objective eyewitness perspective, rather than into pain or longing

Patients who experience both chronic pain and opioid abuse face significant treatment challenges, as opioid use disorder has been shown to increase pain sensitivity, further contributing to opioid abuse