Prescription opioid misuse among persons with chronic pain is an emerging public health threat of epidemic proportions. We conducted a randomized controlled trial of Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement, a multimodal intervention designed to simultaneously target mechanisms underpinning chronic pain and opioid misuse. In this study, a sample of 115 chronic pain patients who were taking long-term …
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Concurrent Session 5 – Different Neural Characteristics Associated with MBSR and the Relaxation Response
The two most widely used stress reduction programs are MBSR and the Relaxation Response (RR). Although both programs use meditation techniques and effectively reduce stress, proponents of each program postulate very different mechanistic models. We hypothesized that there would be both shared and unique neural mechanisms associated with each program, as well as differential psychological …
Concurrent Session 5 – Promoting Mindful Practice for Health Care Professionals: Quality of Care, Quality of Caring and Resilience
Physicians are trained with the explicit mandate of addressing suffering with compassion, yet mainstream medical training and the medical literature are largely silent about how to accomplish this. Through contemplative practice, written and oral narratives, deep listening, appreciative inquiry, and dialogue, our mindful practice programs were designed to enhance clinicians’ self-awareness, self-monitoring, and self-regulation during …
Concurrent Session 5 – LifeWorks at Stanford
Two Stanford faculty will describe a new program at Stanford that seeks to integrate contemplative studies into the undergraduate curriculum and attract faculty and students, whether or not they are initially interested in meditation or mindfulness. The program, called LifeWorks, offers its own courses, which blend traditional cognitive learning with mindfulness practices and workshops for …
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Concurrent Session 5 – Increasing Emotional and Cognitive Regulation Among Highly Vulnerable Youth: Advancing the Science of Mindfulness Training
Mindfulness training for youth is growing tremendously across the nation; however, few studies rigorously assess its effects. Studies that employ mindfulness training have shown promise in increasing emotional and cognitive regulation among youth, including those who are highly vulnerable. Rigorous controlled trials are vital for increasing our understanding of the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions for …
Concurrent Session 5 – Externally-Induced Contemplation: A Neuroscience Study of Architecture
Neuroscience research on contemplation usually considers only internally induced (self-directed) methods for attaining mindfulness (e.g., meditation, prayer). We explored other “external methods” for cultivating mindfulness, focusing on architecture that we design and inhabit. Our study evaluated if buildings designed for contemplation would elicit brain activation patterns similar to those found under contemplation. We used a …
ISCS 2014 – Master Lecture – Catherine Kerr
Contemplative Practice Starts with The Body: Understanding Somatic Awareness, Brain Dynamics, and Healing Presence in Mindfulness and Other Disciplines
Concurrent Session 4 – Improving Attentional Functions Through Mindfulness Practice
An ever-growing number of studies provide evidence for the benefits of mindfulness-based interventions within a variety of clinical and nonclinical contexts. For the field to develop and solidify, it will be essential to go beyond demonstrating clinical effectiveness and to develop an evidence-based understanding of the psychological, physiological, and neural processes that underpin the reported …
Concurrent Session 4 – Remembering What We Need to Remember: Extending the Psychotherapeutic Application of Mindfulness
Mindfulness within Tibetan Buddhism is equated with the notion of “remembrance,” and distraction as its opposite is equated with “forgetfulness.” Psychologically, it can be said that suffering arises because the tendency to “remember the things we should forget and forget the things we should remember” has become habituated. Within psychotherapy, mindfulness can be utilized from …
Concurrent Session 4 – The Growing Art and Science of Contemplative Management
Mindfulness practices have become mainstream in many leading organizations, such as Google, Aetna, and the U.S. military. In stark contrast with the substantial knowledge guiding mindfulness practices in contemplative and clinical contexts, very little is known about mindfulness’s workplace integration and impacts. To catalyze similarly rigorous scholarship and standardized practices, this discussion will consider why …
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