The Mindfulness Cure for Craving

Mmmmmm... donuts

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Craving is a natural phenomenon. In fact, even the most fortunate among us find ourselves stumbling into craving now and then. This can be craving for more of what we already have and enjoy, such as money, food, attention, praise. It may also be craving for what we don’t have, like a bigger paycheck, newer car, or the excitement of a new partner.

Craving comes and goes in waves. Sometimes we manage it just fine. We experience a pang of desire, we eat the cupcake, and we move on. But other times, and for some of us a lot of the time, it's not so simple. If we don't eat the treat or buy the shoes, we fixate on them. Or, we allow ourselves a treat and find that our indulgence only begets more cravings. Over time, we begin to have compulsive, intrusive thoughts and engage in unskillful behaviors. This can be distracting and costly. For example, we might overspend, gain weight, or break commitments to ourselves and others. This only creates more stress, which — you guessed it — leads to more craving and compulsive behaviors. Over time, as the consequences for our thoughts and behaviors mount, what began as a simple craving begins to look more and more like addiction.

Luckily, there is a simple, proven strategy for working with cravings and addiction. And that method is mindfulness. Dr. Jud Brewer, psychiatrist, neuroscientist, and author, has engaged in years of research on individuals seeking to change habits such as smoking, binge eating, and other impulse-control disorders. His research has consistently found that mindful awareness is the key to behavior change for our craving minds.

Mindfulness, a core Buddhist teaching and one of the eight practices of the eightfold path, has become part of nearly every therapeutic approach and recovery program. Mindfulness teaches us to slow down and pay attention to the present moment, rather than letting our thoughts pull us back to the past or forward to the future. Over time, a mindfulness practice helps us to slow down the cycle of craving and addiction, creating space for us to intervene at various points to prevent the continuation of the addictive cycle.

Mindfulness isn’t hard to practice. Most of the time, we simply need reminders to return to the present moment when our minds have traveled away. Yes, you can absolutely adopt a meditation practice and that will help you access that mindful state with greater ease. But you don’t need a formal meditation practice to be mindful. You just need to pay attention to what’s happening within and around you. You don't need any mindfulness or meditation experience to get started right away. Here are 3 simple steps to engage mindfulness to specifically work with cravings:

• Mindful attention to cravings. If we want to change our behaviors, it helps to become aware of the situations, people, emotions, thoughts, and other triggers that tend to initiate a sense of craving. This could be the feeling of envy that arises while scrolling social media that leads to unwise shopping. It could be the act of cooking dinner that triggers craving for a glass of wine. If we pay attention and identify our triggers, we can choose to avoid them, modify them, or mindfully sit with them, rather than letting triggers mindlessly lead to habitual routines.
• Mindful attention to predictable thought patterns that draw us into problematic behavior patterns. Our minds will seduce us into doing what we are used to doing. It actually isn’t the cake itself, or the inappropriate sexual partner, that calls to us. It’s an inner dialogue telling us that something will make us feel good, will taste good, or will solve X, Y, or Z problem in our lives. When we pay attention and notice how these thoughts arise in a predictable manner, we learn to expect them and accept them. We have no obligation to listen to them or act on them. Thoughts are just thoughts doing what thoughts do, and we can allow these thoughts to arise, observe them, and watch as they quiet down. As we detach from our thoughts, we come to see that they aren’t us, they offer no innate wisdom, they don’t reflect internal weaknesses or personality pathology; they are just thoughts. Over time, this insight offers incredible freedom and choice in our behaviors.
• Mindful attention to physical sensations of craving. As with thoughts, physical cravings and bodily sensations that generally draw us into unskillful, compulsive, or addictive behaviors can learn to be tolerated, noticed, and allowed to die away naturally. We find that these sensations arise predictably and that we can tolerate these storms without having to indulge our cravings. We call this practice “urge surfing” and it’s a skill widely used for addressing impulsive behaviors.

In addition to these specific mindfulness practices, daily mindfulness habits also help us to manage stress, decrease our anxiety, and improve our mood. Over time, this creates a more emotionally stable baseline of functioning, fewer urges for escape or immediate gratification, and greater capacity for managing life’s challenges. You can find great mindfulness resources here at PT and at Mindful.org, or take a free 8-week mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) course. As always, reach out for help from a qualified therapist if you need it. Good luck on your mindful journey!

To find a therapist, visit the Psychology Today Therapy Directory.