Behavioral Interventions for Active Duty Service Members and Veterans With Chronic Pain

Behavioral Interventions for Active Duty Service Members and Veterans With Chronic Pain Conditions and Opioid Related Problems

The central aim of this proposed study is to test a multimodal, mindfulness-oriented intervention designed to disrupt the risk chain leading to prescription opioid dose escalation, opioid misuse and opioid addiction, which are mounting threats to active duty service members and Veterans with chronic pain conditions, who may develop disordered opioid use as a consequence of long-term opioid pharmacotherapy.

Inclusion Criteria:

• men/women ≥18 years of age
• ability to understand and speak the English language
• current chronic pain diagnosis (including but not limited to ICD-9 diagnoses 338.0, 338.2xx, 338.
• current use of prescription opioids for >3 consecutive months.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Mindfulness training experience (participation in MBSR/MBRP)
• opioid withdrawal evidenced by score ≥13 on the Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale
• current cancer diagnosis
• having a psychiatric or medical condition that precludes the ability to provide informed consent or participation in outpatient treatment (e.g., psychosis, mania, acute intoxication