Webinars

Chronic pain and opioid misuse remain among the most pressing public health challenges of our time, requiring innovative, evidence-based interventions grounded in translational neuroscience. This ISCR webinar brings together two leading researchers whose work examines the neural and physiological mechanisms underlying contemplative and psychedelic-based approaches to pain modulation and addiction treatment. Dr. Eric Garland will present findings from multiple randomized clinical trials examining Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE)—alone and in combination with ketamine—to address chronic pain, opioid misuse, and opioid use disorder (OUD). Dr. Garland will describe how MORE engages neurophysiological mechanisms to regulate and restructure reward processing and the sense of self, offering novel treatment targets for addiction recovery rooted in contemplative science. Dr. Fadel Zeidan will share new findings identifying endogenous and neural mechanisms supporting the direct modulation of evoked chronic low back pain by mindfulness meditation as compared to a sham-mindfulness meditation intervention. Dr. Zeidan will also present new findings from the first randomized pilot clinical trial assessing the effects and neural mechanisms by psilocybin as compared to placebo in patients living with treatment resistant phantom limb pain.

This webinar will be of particular interest to clinicians, neuroscientists, mental health professionals, and contemplative researchers focused on non-pharmacological and neurophenomenological approaches to pain and addiction. Join us in discussion to explore emerging, mechanism-driven interventions—rooted in mindfulness and psychedelic science—that are reshaping how we understand and treat pain and addiction through self-regulatory and neuroplastic processes.

Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement: Clinical Outcomes and Neurophysiological Mechanisms of an Evidence-Based Treatment for Chronic Pain and Addiction 

Dr. Eric Garland will discuss the outcomes and neurophysiological mechanisms of Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE), an evidence-based intervention for chronic pain, opioid misuse, and opioid use disorder (OUD). MORE’s efficacy has been demonstrated in 15 randomized clinical trials to date, and neuroscientific studies indicate that MORE alleviates opioid misuse and OUD among people with chronic pain by restructuring brain reward responses and evoking neurophysiological signatures of self-regulation and self-transcendence. These mechanisms represent novel treatment targets for the future of contemplative science.

Neural and Physiological Mechanisms supporting Mindfulness- and Psilocybin-Based Analgesia

Dr. Fadel Zeidan will be presenting new research demonstrating the endogenous and neural mechanisms supporting the modulation of evoked chronic low back pain by mindfulness meditation, after brief mental training, as compared to a slow-paced breathing meditation characterized as sham-mindfulness meditation.  Fadel will also present new pilot data from his laboratory illustrating the effects and mechanisms supporting the modulation of phantom limb pain by psilocybin, a classical psychedelic. Fadel will demonstrate that mindfulness meditation and psilocybin target neural processes supporting self-referential processing and the potential converging role between these two approaches on pain and health will be discussed.  

Previous Webinars

Contemplative practices have inspired profound scientific inquiry into the mechanisms of the mind, but understanding them fully requires more than just translation or analysis of Buddhist texts.

This webinar brings together critical humanistic insights into the use of Buddhist texts and cultural contexts in contemplative science. The webinar will explore the pitfalls of relying too heavily on traditional texts, uncover the hidden assumptions within Buddhist terminology, and discuss the limitations of purely neurobiological models of meditation.

By integrating perspectives on textual caution and cultural context, this session aims to provide researchers and scholars interested in contemplative research with tools to navigate the complexity of contemplative traditions while preserving their depth and transformative potential.

The webinar recording is password protected, only ISCR members and webinar attendees are able to watch. 

The first ISCR webinar, “Mindfulness-Based Interventions and Clinical Applications: Methods and Mechanisms,” moderated by Dr. David Vago, incoming President of ISCR, took place on November 19th.

This dynamic 90-minute session featured leading experts—Dr. Zindel Segal (University of Toronto), Dr. Anthony King (Ohio State University), and Dr. Elizabeth Hoge (Georgetown University)—who shared groundbreaking research and practical applications of mindfulness in treating depression, anxiety, PTSD, and more.

Thank you to all who participated in this engaging and insightful event!

The webinar recording is password protected, only ISCR members and webinar attendees are able to watch.