Mindfulness and the 12 Steps

In recent years, people of diverse social and religious backgrounds have embraced the Buddhist philosophy of mindfulness, or bringing one's awareness to focus on the present moment, to enrich their mental and spiritual lives. Through her experience as a counselor, a founding member of a Twelve Steps and mindfulness group, and a woman in recovery, Thérèse Jacobs-Stewart discovered a number of parallels between the practice of mindfulness and that of working the Twelve Steps, from the idea of living 'one day at a time' to the emphasis on prayer and meditation.

Mindfulness and the 12 Steps provides those in recovery with a new resource and fresh perspective for developing their own spiritual path. While revisiting each of the Twelve Steps, readers explore the interplay of ideas between mindfulness and Twelve-step traditions and learn to incorporate mindfulness into their path toward lifelong sobriety. Reflections and questions for inquiry are complemented by stories from Buddhist teachers and members of her mindfulness recovery group, as well as by the author's personal story of recovery as a practicing Buddhist.

Mindfulness and the 12 Steps will help awaken new thinking and insights into what it means to live fully--body, mind, and spirit--in the here and now.

"Part meditation guide, part self-help book, Jacobs-Stewart's effort delves into the ways in which spirituality and mindfulness can coincide with effective recoveries. 'In our addictions, we were never here in the moment. We wanted to be gone. Now we are learning to wake up to the joy of being alive.' The author, a psychologist and founder of the Mind Roads Meditation Center, takes readers through her own recovery and attempts to guide them through theirs. She shares her personal history: she comes from four generations of 'Irish alcoholics... way back to the "old country."' She talks of her pain, loneliness, drug addiction, and the decision to get professional help in her mid-20s, which proved a major step. Jacobs-Stewart (Paths are Made by Walking) also shares her encounters with Buddhism, providing details of meetings with monks, and includes instructions on how to maximize mindfulness daily, suggesting exercises that can help to clear minds and calm nerves, but her aim is often better than her execution. Though her own stories give the discussion personality and heft, her advice to readers bogs down with jargon, making her volume at times difficult to get through." Publishers Weekly (Copyright PWyxz LLC)

A fresh resource to help those in recovery from addiction find their own spiritual path through the Buddhist practice of mindfulness.

Thérèse Jacobs-Stewart has been a practicing psychotherapist, meditation teacher, and international consultant for more than twenty-five years. In 2004, she founded Mind Roads Meditation Center, a neighborhood practice center that integrates contemplative practices from both East and West and is home of the St. Paul, MN, chapter of 12-Steps and Mindfulness meetings. She is the author of Paths are Made for Walking: Practical Steps for Attaining Serenity and Mindfulness and the 12 Steps. Jacobs-Stewart lives in St. Paul, Minnesota.