Will ‘Happiness’ exercises enhance mood in persons mending substance use disorder? Survey

A substance use disorder (aka drug use disorder) is a medical condition in which the utilization of one or more substances leads to a clinically significant impairment or distress. Substance use disorders are characterized by an array of mental, physical, and behavioral symptoms that may cause problems related to loss of control, strain to one's interpersonal life, hazardous use, tolerance, and withdrawal. Alcohol, opioids, stimulants, tobacco, hallucinogens, phencyclidine, inhalants and sedatives are the common types of drug-classes that are involved in substance use disorder.

New report after detailed researches revealed by Massachusetts General Hospital Recovery Research Institute suggest that 'brief, text-based, self-administered exercises can significantly increase in-the-moment happiness for adults recovering from substance use disorders'. The study, published online in the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, is the first of its kind to test whether positive psychology exercises boost happiness in persons recovering from substance use.

"Addiction scientists are increasingly moving beyond the traditional focus on reducing or eliminating substance use by advocating treatment protocols that encompass quality of life. Yet orchestrated positive experiences are rarely incorporated into treatment for those with substance use disorders," says lead author Bettina B. Hoeppner, PhD, senior research scientist at the Recovery Research Institute.

Through a randomized, online survey, more than 500 adults who reported current or previous problematic substance use were assigned one of five short, text-based exercises that took an average of four minutes to complete. Participants reported the greatest gains in happiness after completing an exercise called "Reliving Happy Moments," in which they selected one of their own photos that captured a happy moment and entered text describing what was happening in the picture.

An exercise called 'Savoring', in which participants described two positive experiences they noticed and appreciated during the preceding day, led to the next highest gains in happiness, followed by 'Rose, Thorn, Bud', in which they listed a highlight and a challenge of the preceding day and a pleasure they anticipated the following day. Conversely, '3 Hard Things', in which participants were asked to write about challenges they had faced during the preceding day, led to a significant decrease in happiness.

The authors note that the ease of use and effectiveness of these positive psychology exercises suggest they may be promising tools for bolstering happiness during treatment, which may help support long-term recovery. "These findings underscore the importance of offsetting the challenges of recovery with positive experiences. Recovery is hard, and for the effort to be sustainable, positive experiences need to be attainable along the way," says Hoeppner, an associate professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.