MIR Institute
Mindfulness in Recovery® (MIR) Programs
Training for Treatment Providers and Mental Health Professionals
Welcome to the Mindfulness in Recovery® (MIR) Institute. We appreciate your time and want to thank you for the good work you do helping others find their recovery. We know how challenging and rewarding it is and hope we can help you continue to help others in sustainable and meaningful ways.
MIR is an integrated approach that focuses on developing the mindfulness skills that increase your client’s ability to put into practice the therapeutic tools you offer them, empowering them to more effectively live a healthy, self-directed life in alignment with their deepest values and flourish in their recovery.
We train, counselors, therapists, and substance use disorder treatment professionals to practice and implement MIR practices and skills into their own lives as well as with their clients. It is clear that professionals with direct experience of these mindfulness practices are significantly more effective in helping their clients integrate them into their recovery program.
We offer comprehensive programs for treatment centers, mental health providers, and individual professionals. We have online and in-person trainings, including a certification program, and ongoing support and resources.
About Mindfulness In Recovery®
Mindfulness In Recovery® (MIR) is a client-centered, strength-based, practical, and comprehensive mindfulness program designed specifically for recovery. It incorporates the most used evidence-based therapeutic modalities – MI, CBT, DBT, ACT, and 12-Step Approach with mindfulness skills.
MIR supports all recovery pathways using an individualized, mindfulness curriculum that empowers the client to integrate it with their personal values, cultural background, and spiritual beliefs. Using the language of recovery in the curriculum to build connections to recovery communities and literature, the MIR principles and practices can be integrated seamlessly with your current treatment modalities providing clients with the skills to put the therapeutic tools you are offering them into practice.
Many mindfulness programs focus on learning mindfulness techniques and exercises that can offer clients tools to become more present, reduce stress and reactivity, and increase their ability to make healthier life choices. However, all too often, even with the best programs and trained professionals, these tools are not integrated into an ongoing lifestyle that will support the ongoing practice required to develop long-term traits that support their recovery. They become a set of tools that fall by the wayside, only to be picked up in times of duress, if at all.
MIR focuses on developing mindfulness skills that can be incorporated into daily life that are practical, universal, and based on the recovery lifestyle. In this way, clients develop a way of living mindfully, with skills that support their recovery, based on their personal values and belief system.
“Mindfulness is much more than present moment awareness; mindfulness includes and facilitates the cultivation of concentration, wisdom, and the ability to make healthy choices that foster genuine happiness and a meaningful life.”
John Bruna, co-founder of Mindfulness In Recovery®
Mindfulness in Recovery® in a Residential SUD Treatment Facility Pilot Study Results
Kettering, V.L., Insalaco, W. J. (In press). Mindfulness in Recovery® (MIR): Initial Efficacy of a Novel Mindfulness-Based Intervention for Substance Use Disorder Treatment.
Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly.
Why This Study Matters
Substance use impacts millions worldwide. Even among those who seek treatment, long-term recovery outcomes leave significant room for improvement. Many individuals achieve initial abstinence yet continue to struggle with:
- Persistent craving
- Rumination and emotional distress
- Low sense of purpose
- Limited self-efficacy
- Difficulty re-engaging with community and family
Mindfulness in Recovery® was developed to address this gap – integrating mindfulness, values-based living, and self-awareness skills into existing evidence-based recovery models.
The Pilot Study at a Glance
Setting: Residential treatment facility (30/60/90-day stays)
Participants: 29 clients (majority male; primarily under age 34)
Treatment: Treatment-as-usual (12-step + counseling) plus Mindfulness in Recovery®
MIR Implementation Included:
- Daily mindfulness check-ins
- Morning and evening meditation (10–24 minutes)
- Weekly 1-hour MIR group
- MIR workbook integration
- Staff training (8-week course)
- Ongoing consultation and implementation support
This was a real-world implementation — not a laboratory condition.
What We Measured
Participants completed surveys at admission and discharge assessing:
- Mindfulness in Recovery® skills
- Daily mindful responding
- Thriving (meaning, purpose, engagement)
- Craving
The Results
All four key areas showed statistically significant improvement from intake to discharge.
1️⃣ Increased Mindfulness in Recovery® Skills
Clients showed significant growth in:
- Values alignment
- Self-efficacy
- Ability to apply MIR skills
Large effect size
2️⃣ Increased Mindful Responding
Participants reported:
- Greater awareness of thoughts and impulses
- Improved ability to respond rather than react
Large effect size
3️⃣ Increased Thriving (Largest Change Observed)
Clients reported substantial increases in:
- Meaning in life
- Sense of community
- Emotional well-being
- Confidence about the future
This suggests MIR supports not just sobriety/abstinence — but a life worth staying sober for.
Very large effect size
4️⃣ Decreased Craving
Significant reductions in:
- Frequency of craving thoughts
- Urge intensity
- Difficulty refusing substances
Very Large effect size
What This Means for Treatment Programs
This pilot demonstrates that Mindfulness in Recovery®:
- Can be implemented in a residential setting
- Integrates seamlessly with 12-step and other evidence-based modalities
- Is teachable to staff
- Produces meaningful, measurable short-term improvements
- Addresses emotional and cognitive relapse risk factors
Most importantly:
Clients left treatment reporting increased confidence, purpose, and reduced craving.
Why Programs Are Adopting MIR
Treatment centers are increasingly seeking:
- Evidence-informed complementary modalities
- Approaches that address mental suffering beyond abstinence
- Skills clients can use immediately and long-term
- Curriculum that aligns with CBT, MI, DBT, ACT, IFS, and 12-step models
Mindfulness in Recovery® meets those needs.