The effectiveness of breathing interventions for people who use drugs with Ari Roxburgh

In this episode, Dr Tsen Vei Lim talks to Dr Ariel (Ari) Roxburgh. Ari is a Clinical Psychologist and addiction researcher at Monash University and Turning Point, Australia. The interview covers Ari’s review on controlled breathing and heart rate variability biofeedback for drug use-related outcomes.

Please note that ‘HRVB’ used in the recording stands for heart rate variability biofeedback.

• Why Ari and his team explored controlled breathing [01:18]
• How breathing helps with drug use-related outcomes [02:20]
• Other breathing techniques examined in Ari’s review [05:03]
• The key findings from the meta-analysis [05:36]
• The difference between the examined breathing techniques [07:39]
• Whether the included studies accounted for the placebo effect [09:52]
• Whether Ari's findings apply to different drug use disorders [11:45]
• How soon controlled breathing can be included in clinical guidelines [13:40]
• How people can incorporate controlled breathing in their daily lives [15:40]
• The next steps for Ari and his team [17:06]

About Tsen Vei Lim: Tsen Vei is an academic fellow supported by the Society for the Study of Addiction, currently based at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge. His research integrates computational modelling, experimental psychology, and neuroimaging to understand the neuropsychological basis of addictive behaviours. He holds a PhD in Psychiatry from the University of Cambridge (UK) and a BSc in Psychology from the University of Bath (UK).

About Ari Roxburgh: Ari is a Clinical Psychologist and addiction researcher at Monash University and Turning Point. His work focuses on novel substance use interventions, peer-led support frameworks, cognition and psychophysiology. Ari teaches in Monash’s graduate addictive behaviours program, served as convenor for the Australian Psychological Society’s Substance Use Special Interest Group, and regularly consults with government stakeholders on addiction policy.

Tsen Vei and Ari have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Original article: Controlled breathing and heart rate variability biofeedback for substance use-related outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis https://doi.org/10.1111/add.70542

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Music provided by Jack Shakespeare.

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