Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Psychiatry

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) aim to cultivate mindfulness by helping patients adopt a nonreactive, curious, and compassionate attitude toward thoughts and feelings and to attend to present-moment sensory experience. This chapter reviews the evidence base for their biological mechanisms and clinical efficacy in a range of conditions, including anxiety and mood disorders, substance use disorders, and chronic pain. There is evidence supporting the application of MBIs for many of these disorders. The likely mechanisms include modulation of immune, autonomic, and neuroendocrine pathways resulting in neuroplastic changes in brain regions related to affect and cognition. Mindfulness-based interventions are a valuable addition to the toolbox in the treatment of psychiatric disorders.