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Mindfulness and Recovery: Six Helpful Books to Enjoy

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Practicing mindfulness is an important tool in addiction recovery. It helps you learn to relax and focus on the moment. Mindfulness is the awareness that comes from purposefully paying attention to the present in a nonjudgmental way without considering the past or the future. When you turn your attention toward the present moment, you turn it away from outside stressors.

Discover Books About Mindfulness & Recovery

There are many excellent books about mindfulness and its benefits for those in recovery. Here are six useful, informative, and interesting choices for you to enjoy.

The Healing Power of Mindfulness: A New Way of Being by Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD

Originally this book was part of a book published in 2005 titled Coming to Our Senses, The Healing Power of Mindfulness. This new edition features timely updates based on new research. Kabat-Zinn explains how mindfulness can help a person heal, both emotionally and physically. He provides many examples of how practicing mindfulness can change your relationship with your own mind and body. The book discusses:

  • The effects of meditation on our mind, body, and health
  • What science has learned regarding neuroplasticity and the brain
  • The things mindfulness can teach you when you face life challenges
  • Making the most of the moments we have in life

Practicing Mindfulness: Finding Calm and Focus in Your Everyday Life by Jerry Braza and Thich Nhat Hanh

Presented in plain language, this book is easy to understand, short, and fun to read. Braza keeps the reader engaged using reflections, questions, and tests throughout the book. Readers are asked to consider a stressful problem and think about the ways practicing mindfulness would reduce the stress and negative consequences of the problem. This mindfulness guide will help you learn practices, reflections, and actions that will help you calm and quiet your mind, transform negative habits and feelings, and reduce stress and anxiety.

The Mindfulness Workbook for Addiction: A Guide to Coping with the Grief, Stress, and Anger that Trigger Addictive Behaviors by Rebecca E. Williams and Julie S. Kraft

With the understanding that some form of loss is the cause of many addictions, Williams and Kraft have put together a workbook addressing this problem using mindfulness exercises as a healing tool. By learning the techniques of mindfulness, readers learn to process their grief and replace their addiction with healthy behaviors. It is recommended that the workbook be used while working with a therapist.

The Essential Guidebook to Mindfulness in Recovery by John Bruna

A former Buddhist monk, Bruna explains how people in recovery can see their own value and worthiness by living mindfully. Once empowered in that way, they are able to live life in ways that are meaningful and productive to them. Throughout the book, Bruna includes places to write answers to questions and exercises. He also provides an outline of the seven skills needed to live mindfully in recovery:

  • Values
  • Attention
  • Wisdom
  • Equanimity
  • Compassion
  • Loving-kindness
  • Action

Ordinary Recovery: Mindfulness, Addiction, and the Path of Lifelong Sobriety by William Alexander

This book presents Alexander’s struggle with addiction and his journey to sobriety. Addictions are often used as an escape from living in the present, so learning how to live in the present moment is the key to overcoming the disease. Alexander uses his personal story to teach mindfulness and meditation, helping others heal from their addiction and find joy and miracles in the little things. The book is a revised edition of Cool Water by William Alexander published in 1997.

Mindfulness and the 12 Steps: Living Recovery in the Present Moment by Thérèse Jacobs-Stewart

Jacobs-Stewart takes her readers through her personal journey of addiction and recovery and provides insight on the effectiveness of mindfulness in her recovery. She tells of her interactions with monks and the integration of the Buddhist practice of mindfulness into her recovery. The author looks at each of the 12 Steps and explores how they interplay with the practice of mindfulness. A combination of a self-help book and meditation guide, the book contains meaningful practices, questions, reflections, and stories.

Do You Need Help?

If you or a loved one struggles with an addiction to drugs or alcohol, now is the time to get the help you need. You are not alone. At Canyon Vista Recovery Center, located in Mesa, Arizona, our professional staff will help you regain your sobriety using a combination of medical, clinical, psychiatric, and holistic approaches. Call us today and learn how to take the first step toward living a sober life.

Looking for a Scottsdale alcohol rehab? Learn more about programs offered at Canyon Vista Recovery Center.
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