Transcript of podcast interview: David Van Nuys, Ph.D. interviews Addiction Medicine Specialist Dr. Goldstein about some of the ways mindfulness techniques are entering into many forms of psychotherapy today. The influential substance abuse psychotherapy researcher Alan Marlatt, Ph.D. is working on a mindfulness based version of relapse prevention with grant support from NIDA, and other researchers are incorporating mindfulness into cognitive behavioral psychotherapy.

An important part of recovery is being able to recognize our triggers and how cravings and urges manifest in our bodies and minds. The practice of Mindfulness gives us a unique tool to slow time down and bring awareness to the thoughts, feelings, and sensations associated with the triggering event while it is occurring.

Throughout the course of our lives we develop certain habitual styles of thinking that serve as defenses or distortions of reality, feeding into craving and urges and aiding in the cycle of relapse of addictive behavior.

"I highly recommend this CD by Drs. Elisha and Stefanie Goldstein, Mindful Solutions for Addiction and Relapse Prevention. The discussion on how to apply mindfulness as a means of coping with addiction- related cravings and urges is excellent, and the guided meditation practices are very helpful."      ~ G. Alan Marlatt, PhD, Director, Addictive Behaviors Research Center, University of Washington