Mindfulness Improves the Well-Being of The Caregivers of Children with Developmental Disabilities

August 25, 2022 psyjdc Leave a comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“There are only four kinds of people in the world. Those who have been caregivers. Those who are currently caregivers. Those who will be caregivers, and those who will need a caregiver.” — Rosalyn Carter

Intellectual disabilities involve below average intelligence and relatively slow learning. They are quite common, affecting an estimated 10% of individuals worldwide. These disabilities present problems for the individual in learning mathematics, reading and writing. Individuals with intellectual disorders often have challenging behaviors including aggression, disruptive and socially inappropriate behaviors, self‐injury and withdrawal behaviors. The challenging behaviors not only reduce the quality of life of the individual but also puts them at higher risk of abuse, neglect, deprivation, institutionalization, and restraints. In addition, caregivers may have to deal with verbal and physical abuse. Obviously, there is a need for therapies that can reduce these behaviors. Mindfulness training may be useful. It has been shown to improve the behavior of individuals with intellectual disabilities and the well-being or their caregivers. So, there is a need to summarize what has been learned regarding the influence of mindfulness on the caregivers of children with developmental disabilities.

In today’s Research News article “The Effect of Mindfulness-Based and Acceptance Commitment Therapy-Based Interventions to Improve the Mental Well-Being Among Parents of Children with Developmental Disabilities: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8237545/ ) Chua and Shorey review, summarize, and perform a meta-analysis of the published research on the influence of mindfulness on the caregivers of children with developmental disabilities.

They identified 10 published research studies that clearly demonstrate that mindfulness improves the well-being of the caregivers including improvements in anxiety, depression, and perceived stress. Importantly, these improvements would predict that the caregivers would be less likely to burnout and would provide better care for the children.

“My caregiver mantra is to remember: the only control you have is over the changes you choose to make.” — Nancy L. Kriseman

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Twitter @MindfulResearch

Study Summary

Chua JYX, Shorey S. The Effect of Mindfulness-Based and Acceptance Commitment Therapy-Based Interventions to Improve the Mental Well-Being Among Parents of Children with Developmental Disabilities: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Autism Dev Disord. 2022 Jun;52(6):2770-2783. doi: 10.1007/s10803-021-04893-1. Epub 2021 Jun 28. PMID: 34181139; PMCID: PMC8237545.

Abstract

Parents of children with developmental disabilities are susceptible to mental health problems. Mindfulness-based and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)-based interventions can improve their mental well-being. This review examined the effectiveness of mindfulness-based and ACT-based interventions in improving mental well-being and mindfulness among parents of children with developmental disabilities. Six electronic databases were searched, resulting in the inclusion of ten studies published between 2014 and 2020. Meta-analysis was conducted using the random-effect model. The results suggest that mindfulness-based and ACT-based interventions were effective in decreasing parental stress, anxiety and depression, however, the effectiveness of these interventions in increasing parental mindfulness was inconclusive. Based on these findings, we discussed considerations for implementing interventions and identified areas which warrant further research.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8237545/

Improve Functional Fitness in Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities with Yoga

March 18, 2021 psyjdc Leave a comment

Improve Functional Fitness in Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities with Yoga

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“yoga intervention may have the potential to enhance functional fitness in people with Intellectual and developmental disabilities.” – Kaitlin Mueller

Intellectual and developmental disabilities involve below average intelligence and relatively slow learning. They are quite common, affecting an estimated 10% of individuals worldwide. These disabilities present problems for the individual in learning mathematics, reading and writing. These difficulties, in turn, affect performance in other academic disciplines. The presence of intellectual disabilities can have serious consequences for the psychological well-being of the individual, including their self-esteem and social skills. In addition, anxiety, depression, and conduct disorders often accompany learning disabilities.

Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities often show “physical decline in sensorimotor skills, coordination, muscular strength, flexibility, and balance in part due to physical inactivity.” So, it is important to increase physical activity in these adults. Yoga is a mindfulness practice and exercise that has been shown to be a safe and effective practice. So, yoga practice may be helpful for reducing the physical decline in adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

In today’s Research News article “Yoga for Functional Fitness in Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7336942/ ) Reina and colleagues recruited adults diagnosed with intellectual and developmental disabilities. They were provided a 7 week, twice a week for 1 hour, group yoga practice. They were measured before and after the program for functional fitness.

They found that after the program the participants had significant improvements in both lower and upper body strength, agility and balance. Non-significant improvements were also detected in lower-body flexibility, upper-body flexibility, and endurance. It should be kept in mind that this was a pilot study that did not include a control condition. So, there are a number of potential alternative explanations for the results. But previous controlled studies have demonstrated that yoga practice improves physical performance. So, it is likely that the present improvements were due to the yoga practice.

Hence, yoga practice appears to improve the functional fitness of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This suggests that yoga is safe and effective practice for reducing the decline in physical ability that is common in adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It remains for future research to determine if these improvements spill over to improvements in other functional realms.

So, improve functional fitness in adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities with yoga.

“Yoga is an effective intervention to improve functional fitness in adults with and without disabilities,” – Clair Allison

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

Study Summary

Reina, A. M., Adams, E. V., Allison, C. K., Mueller, K. E., Crowe, B. M., van Puymbroeck, M., & Schmid, A. A. (2020). Yoga for Functional Fitness in Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. International journal of yoga, 13(2), 156–159. https://doi.org/10.4103/ijoy.IJOY_57_19

Abstract

Background:

Yoga is an effective intervention to improve functional fitness in adults with and without disabilities, but little research exists regarding yoga’s impact on functional fitness for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs).

Aims:

The purpose of this study was to examine the benefits of a group yoga intervention on the functional fitness of adults with IDDs.

Methods and Materials:

This yoga intervention included 12 sessions of yoga over 7 weeks (60-min sessions twice a week) at a special population recreation and leisure program. The functional fitness test was used to examine physical functioning before and after the yoga intervention.

Results and Conclusions:

Eight adults completed the baseline and posttest measures (age mean = 31; standard deviation = 6.55; 50% male). There were significant improvements in lower-body strength (9.00 ± 4.63 vs. 11.50 ± 3.16, P = 0.04, 28% improvement), upper-body strength (11.25 ± 3.54 vs. 14.25 ± 3.37, P = 0.018, 27% improvement), and agility and balance (9.29 ± 4.1 vs. 6.60 ± 1.54, P = 0.036, 29% improvement). Functional fitness often declines for people with IDD at a faster rate than the general population; thus, these significant changes indicate that a yoga intervention may enhance functional fitness for people with IDD. Clinicians or other healthcare providers might consider yoga as a means to improve functional fitness in adults with IDDs.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7336942/

Reduce Challenging Behaviors of Adults with Intellectual Disabilities with Mindfulness

December 7, 2020 psyjdc Leave a comment

Reduce Challenging Behaviors of Adults with Intellectual Disabilities with Mindfulness

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“mindfulness may represent an effective psychoeducational approach for some. . .People with an intellectual disability.” – Tammy-Lee Currie

Individuals with intellectual disorders often have challenging behaviors including aggression, disruptive and socially inappropriate behaviors, self‐injury and withdrawal behaviors. The challenging behaviors not only reduce the quality of life of the individual but also puts them at higher risk of abuse, neglect, deprivation, institutionalization, and restraints. In addition, caregivers may have to deal with verbal and physical abuse. Obviously, there is a need for therapies that can reduce these behaviors. Mindfulness training may be useful. It has been shown to improve the behavior of individuals with intellectual disabilities. But there is a need to summarize what has been learned about various intervention that do not use drugs.

In today’s Research News article “Non-pharmacological interventions for challenging behaviours of adults with intellectual disabilities: A meta-analysis.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7384078/ ) Bruinsma and colleagues review, summarize, and perform a meta-analysis of the effectiveness of non-pharmacological treatments in reducing challenging behaviors in adults with intellectual disabilities. They identified 22 published research studies.

They report that the published research found that there was an overall significant reduction in challenging behaviors produced by non-pharmacological treatments with moderate effect sizes. These effects were found to be lasting, producing improvements 3 to 18 months after the interventions. They also found that interventions that employed behavioral interventions, cognitive behavioral therapy, environment mediated interventions, and randomized controlled trials did not produce superior results compared to all other interventions. But when the intervention contained mindfulness there was a significantly greater reduction in challenging behaviors compared to all other interventions.

These results are interesting and suggest that a variety of different non-pharmacological treatments reduce challenging behaviors in adults with intellectual disabilities. But interventions that teach mindfulness produce superior results. The authors did not speculate as to how mindfulness training amplifies the effectiveness of the interventions. But mindfulness training has been shown to produce relaxation, calmness, improvements in emotion regulation, and reductions in responsiveness to stress and these effects may well underlie the ability of mindfulness training to reduce the challenging behaviors.

The ability of mindfulness training to produce greater reductions in challenging behaviors is very important for the well-being of these adults with intellectual disabilities as these challenging behaviors are problematic. They have damaging, disruptive, and negative effects on the individuals themselves and those around them. The more that these behaviors can be reduced the better for all concerned. Since interventions that contain mindfulness training produce the greatest reductions. They should be the treatments of choice.

So, reduce challenging behaviors of adults with intellectual disabilities with mindfulness.

“mindfulness meditation helps people with intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorder reduce their mental and physical problems. . . mindfulness meditation was effective for reducing aggression, both physical and verbal.” – Yoon-Suk Hwang

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

Study Summary

Bruinsma, E., van den Hoofdakker, B. J., Groenman, A. P., Hoekstra, P. J., de Kuijper, G. M., Klaver, M., & de Bildt, A. A. (2020). Non-pharmacological interventions for challenging behaviours of adults with intellectual disabilities: A meta-analysis. Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 64(8), 561–578. https://doi.org/10.1111/jir.12736

Abstract

Background

Non‐pharmacological interventions are recommended for the treatment of challenging behaviours in individuals with intellectual disabilities by clinical guidelines. However, evidence for their effectiveness is ambiguous. The aim of the current meta‐analysis is to update the existing evidence, to investigate long‐term outcome, and to examine whether intervention type, delivery mode, and study design were associated with differences in effectiveness.

Method

An electronic search was conducted using the databases Medline, Eric, PsychINFO and Cinahl. Studies with experimental or quasi‐experimental designs were included. We performed an overall random‐effect meta‐analysis and subgroup analyses.

Results

We found a significant moderate overall effect of non‐pharmacological interventions on challenging behaviours (d = 0.573, 95% CI [0.352–0.795]), and this effect appears to be longlasting. Interventions combining mindfulness and behavioural techniques showed to be more effective than other interventions. However, this result should be interpreted with care due to possible overestimation of the subgroup analysis. No differences in effectiveness were found across assessment times, delivery modes or study designs.

Conclusions

Non‐pharmacological interventions appear to be moderately effective on the short and long term in reducing challenging behaviours in adults with intellectual disabilities.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7384078/

Improve Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, their Caregivers, and the Agency with Mindfulness

October 1, 2020 psyjdc Leave a comment

Improve Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, their Caregivers, and the Agency with Mindfulness

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“mindfulness practices could be helpful for these caregivers because they encourage a nonjudgmental interpretation of their child’s situation, and increased acceptance of their reality.” – Emily Nauman

There is a tremendous demand for caregiving in the US. It is estimated that over 65 million (29% of the adult population) provides care to someone who is ill, disabled or aged, averaging 20 hours per week spent caring for their loved ones. This caregiving comes at a cost exacting a tremendous toll on caregivers’ health and well-being. Caregiving has been associated with increased levels of depression and anxiety as well as higher use of psychoactive medications, poorer self-reported physical health, compromised immune function, and increased mortality.

Caring for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities can be particularly difficult. Developmental disabilities are a group of conditions due to an impairment in physical, learning, language, or behavior areas. These conditions begin during the developmental period, may impact day-to-day functioning, and usually last throughout a person’s lifetime. Recent estimates in the United States show that about one in six, or about 15%, of children aged 3 through 17 years have a one or more developmental disabilities.

The challenges of caring for a child with intellectual and developmental disabilities require that the caregiver be able to deal with stress, to regulate their own emotions, and to be sensitive and attentive to the child. These skills are exactly those that are developed in mindfulness training. It improves the psychological and physiological responses to stress. It improves emotion regulation, it improves the ability to maintain attention and focus in the face of high levels of distraction, and can reduce burnout.

In today’s Research News article “Comparative Effectiveness of Caregiver Training in Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) and Positive Behavior Support (PBS) in a Randomized Controlled Trial.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7223775/) Singh and colleagues recruited caregivers from a home for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. They were randomly assigned to receive either Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) of Positive Behavior Support (PBS). The interventions were for 10 weeks and consisted of “an 8-h day on the first day of week 1 of training, followed by daily practice for 4 weeks. . . a second part included five 8-h days (i.e., 40 h) during week 5, followed by daily practice for 4 weeks. . . and third part was again an 8-h day on the first day of week 10, followed by daily practice for the rest of the week.” During the next 30 weeks data were collected. The caregivers were measured before and after training for compassion satisfaction, compassion fatigue, perceived stress, professional quality of life, and meditation practice. The children’s behavior was rated for aggressive events, staff injury, and peer injury. The agency was evaluated for the use of physical restraints, emergency medication, staffing, and cost effectiveness.

They found that both interventions produced significantly increased compassion satisfaction, and decreased perceived and traumatic stress, and burnout for the caregivers. The Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) group, however, had significantly greater improvements than the Positive Behavior Support (PBS) group. Similar results were found for the children’s behavior with both treatments producing significant decreases with aggression, staff injuries, and peer injuries. Once again, the mindfulness group had significantly superior results. For the agency outcomes Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) produced significantly reduced use of physical restraints, emergency medication, and one-on-one staffing. In addition, the mindfulness treatment had significantly greater cost effectiveness.

These are very encouraging results that demonstrate that Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) is highly effective in improving the situation for staff, children, and the agency in an institution for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It increased

caregivers’ well-being and the children’s behavior, and decreased the strains on the agency. Amazingly, the mindfulness-based treatment was even more cost-effective.

So, improve children with intellectual and developmental disabilities, their caregivers, and the agency with mindfulness.

“the greater effects associated with mindfulness techniques may be due to “the immediacy of physiologic relaxation responses incurred in mindfulness practice, including strengthened attention to bodily sensations, and less reliance on rumination or other automatic emotions.” – Summer Allen

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

Study Summary

Singh, N. N., Lancioni, G. E., Medvedev, O. N., Myers, R. E., Chan, J., McPherson, C. L., Jackman, M. M., & Kim, E. (2020). Comparative Effectiveness of Caregiver Training in Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) and Positive Behavior Support (PBS) in a Randomized Controlled Trial. Mindfulness, 11(1), 99–111. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-018-0895-2

Abstract

Caregivers of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities are often stressed due to the demands of the job, including the nature and severity of challenging behaviors of the clients, work conditions, degree of management support for the staff, and the demands of implementing some interventions under adverse conditions. Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) and PBS alone have been shown to be effective in assisting caregivers to better manage the challenging behaviors of clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The aim of the present study was to undertake a head-to-head assessment of the effectiveness of MBPBS and PBS alone in a 40-week randomized controlled trial. Of the 123 caregivers who met inclusion criteria, 60 were randomly assigned to MBPBS and 63 to PBS alone, with 59 completing the trial in the MBPBS condition and 57 in the PBS alone condition. Results showed both interventions to be effective, but the caregiver, client, and agency outcomes for MBPBS were uniformly superior to those of PBS alone condition. In addition, the MBPBS training was substantially more cost-effective than the PBS alone training. The present results add to the evidence base for the effectiveness of MBPBS and, if independently replicated, could provide an integrative health care approach in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7223775/

Improve the Physical Fitness of Children and Adolescents with Intellectual Disorders with Tai Chi

November 12, 2019August 24, 2022 psyjdc Leave a comment

Improve the Physical Fitness of Children and Adolescents with Intellectual Disorders with Tai Chi

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“giving a child beginner skills can be life changing. Qi Gong has the power to bring one physical ease, mental clarity, emotional stability and spiritual awareness. That is worthwhile at any age.” – Donna Henderson

Mindfulness training has been shown to improve attention, memory, and learning and increase success in school. Exercise has been shown to improve psychomotor performance in children with intellectual disabilities. Tai Chi practice is both an exercise and a mindfulness practice. It has been found to be effective for an array of physical and psychological issues. So, it makes sense to examine Tai Chi practice for children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities.

In today’s Research News article “Tai Chi as an Alternative Exercise to Improve Physical Fitness for Children and Adolescents with Intellectual Disability.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6479776/), Kong and colleagues recruited children and adolescents (aged 10-18 years) who had an intellectual disability (IQ < 70). They were randomly assigned to either no treatment, or to 12 weeks of twice a week 1 hour of either aerobic dance exercise, or Tai Chi training. They were measured before and after training for body size, body fat, flexibility, balance, coordination in upper and lower extremities, muscular strength (grip strength), leg power, muscular endurance, and cardiorespiratory fitness.

They found that the aerobic dance was more strenuous (heart rate mean of 105 beats per minute) than Tai Chi practice (heart rate mean of 97 beats per minute). Compared to baseline the aerobic dance group had significant increases in body mass index, sit-ups, and 6-min walk test. The Tai Chi group had significant increases in vertical jump, lower-limb coordination, and upper-limb coordination, and balance.

These results demonstrate that exercise is beneficial for children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities helping them overcome some of their motor problems. Aerobic dance and Tai Chi practice are both beneficial, but have different physical benefits. Aerobic dance appears to increase body size and fitness while Tai Chi practice appears to improve leg strength and limb coordination as well as balance. It would probably make sense in the future to combine the two exercises into a single program to produce maximum benefits. These programs may be very helpful for the children and adolescents in correcting motor problems. It was not tested but this could improve their self-esteem.

So, improve the physical fitness of children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities with Tai Chi.

“Kids with special needs benefit from Tai Chi. Because Tai Chi works on the inside of the body it helps to relieve the sense of inner turmoil and confusion that gets us off balance. It can alleviate stomachaches, nervousness, fear, anger and frustration. It helps improve focus, concentration and self-control.” – Cari Shurman

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

Study Summary

Kong, Z., Sze, T. M., Yu, J. J., Loprinzi, P. D., Xiao, T., Yeung, A. S., … Zou, L. (2019). Tai Chi as an Alternative Exercise to Improve Physical Fitness for Children and Adolescents with Intellectual Disability. International journal of environmental research and public health, 16(7), 1152. doi:10.3390/ijerph16071152

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Tai Chi (TC) on anthropometric parameters and physical fitness among children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities (ID). Methods: Sixty-six Chinese individuals engaged in sport-related extracurricular activities (TC and aerobic exercise (AE)) as exercise interventions or arts/crafts activities as a control condition (CON). The experimental protocol consisted of a baseline assessment, a 12-week intervention period, and a post-intervention assessment. Results: Significant interaction effect was only observed in the performance of a 6-min walk test. After 12 weeks of intervention, the AE group had significant changes in body mass index (p = 0.006, d = 0.11), sit-ups (p = 0.030 and d = 0.57), and 6-min walk test (p = 0.005, d = 0.89). Significant increases in vertical jump (p = 0.048, d = 0.41), lower-limb coordination (p = 0.008, d = 0.53), and upper-limb coordination (p = 0.048, d = 0.36) were observed in the TC group. Furthermore, the TC group demonstrated significantly greater improvements on balance compared to the control group (p = 0.011). Conclusions: TC may improve leg power and coordination of both lower and upper limbs, while AE may be beneficial for body mass index, sit-ups and cardiorespiratory fitness.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6479776/

Reduce Stress and Improve Behavior in Mothers and Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder or Intellectual Disabilities with Mindfulness

May 3, 2019August 24, 2022 psyjdc Leave a comment

Reduce Stress and Improve Behavior in Mothers and Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder or Intellectual Disabilities with Mindfulness

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“mindfulness meditation helps people with intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorder reduce their mental and physical problems.” – Yoon-Suk Hwang

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that tends to appear during early childhood and affect the individual throughout their lifetime. It affects a person’s ability to communicate, and interact with others, delays learning of language, makes eye contact or holding a conversation difficult, impairs reasoning and planning, narrows and intensifies interests, produces poor motor skills and sensory sensitivities, and is frequently associated with sleep and gastrointestinal problems. ASD is a serious disorder that impairs the individual’s ability to lead independent lives including complete an education, enter into relationships or find and hold employment. Mindfulness training has been shown to be helpful in treating ASD.

Developmental disabilities are a group of conditions due to an impairment in physical, learning, language, or behavior areas. These conditions begin during the developmental period, may impact day-to-day functioning, and usually last throughout a person’s lifetime. Recent estimates in the United States show that about one in six, or about 15%, of children aged 3 through 17 years have one or more developmental disabilities. Many individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities are highly aggressive and at time combative. Caring for children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities can be difficult.

Providing care for a child with autism or a developmental disability can be particularly challenging. These children’s behavior is characterized, in varying degrees, by difficulties in social interaction, verbal and nonverbal communication and repetitive behaviors. These make it difficult to relate to the child and receive the kind of positive feelings that often help to support caregiving. The challenges of caring for a child with autism or a developmental disability require that the parent be able to deal with stress, to regulate their own emotions, and to be sensitive and attentive to their child. These skills are exactly those that are developed in mindfulness training. It improves the psychological and physiological responses to stress. It improves emotion regulation. And it improves the ability to maintain attention and focus in the face of high levels of distraction.

In today’s Research News article “Effects of Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) Training Are Equally Beneficial for Mothers and Their Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder or With Intellectual Disabilities.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00385/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_934868_69_Psycho_20190314_arts_A ), Singh and colleagues recruited mothers of adolescents, aged 13 to 17 years, who had autism or a developmental disability. They were observed and their behavior measured over a 10-week baseline period and then provided a 3-day Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) program consisting of training in meditation and intervening to produce positive behaviors. Daily home practice was encouraged. They were then measured over the subsequent 30 weeks. Measurements were taken of meditation practice and perceived stress and the child’s aggressive and disruptive behaviors, and compliance with the mother’s requests.

They found that during the 10-week baseline that stress levels and the children’s behaviors were stable and unchanging. But during the 30-week follow-up period the mothers had large and significant reductions in perceived stress. They also found that the children displayed large significant increases with compliance with the mother’s requests and large significant decreases in aggressive and disruptive behaviors. Hence the Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) produced marked benefits for the mothers and also the children with autism or a developmental disability.

These are exciting results but the lack of a control condition limits the generalizability of the results. Nevertheless they suggest that a brief, 3-day, program can produce large positive benefits for both the mothers and the children. The improvements in the mothers’ stress levels were probably due to the improvements in the children’s behavior. This all suggests that this or similar programs should be implemented to greatly improve caregiving for children with autism or developmental disabilities.

So, reduce stress and improve behavior in mothers and children with autism spectrum disorder or intellectual disabilities with mindfulness.

“interventions that target stress reduction in parents of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities may be an effective way to improve caregiver well-being and have collateral effects on child behavior and parent-child interactions.” – Laura Lee McIntyre

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

Study Summary

Singh NN, Lancioni GE, Karazsia BT, Myers RE, Hwang Y-S and Anālayo B (2019) Effects of Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) Training Are Equally Beneficial for Mothers and Their Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder or With Intellectual Disabilities. Front. Psychol. 10:385. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00385

Parenting a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or intellectual disabilities (IDs) can be stressful for many parents. Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) is a customized mindfulness program that enables parents and other caregivers to reduce their perceived psychological stress to normative levels through mindfulness procedures and to support children with ASD or ID to self-manage their challenging behaviors through positive behavior support (PBS). In this study, we evaluated whether MBPBS would have differential effects on the stress levels of mothers of adolescents with ASD (n = 47) or with ID (n = 45) and the effects of the program on the aggressive, disruptive, and compliance behaviors of their children. Both groups of mothers participated in the 40-week study (10 weeks control and 30 weeks MBPBS program), rated their own stress levels, and collected daily observational data on the adolescents’ behavior. Results showed significant reductions in the level of stress in both groups of mothers, but no differential effects on mothers of children with ASD or with ID. In addition, significant reductions in aggression and disruptive behavior and increases in compliance behaviors were observed in the adolescents in both groups. The results suggest that MBPBS is equally beneficial for mothers of adolescents with ASD or ID. In the present study, although the mothers of children with ID had slightly higher levels of stress at baseline and mothers of children with ASD had lower levels of stress following the MBPBS program, the program can be considered equally effective in reducing the stress levels of both groups of mothers. This suggests that the program may be effective regardless of baseline levels of mothers’ stress.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00385/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_934868_69_Psycho_20190314_arts_A

Improve Psychomotor Perform of Intellectually Disabled Children with Yoga

March 1, 2019April 28, 2020 psyjdc Leave a comment

Improve Psychomotor Perform of Intellectually Disabled Children with Yoga

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“Special needs experts agree that yoga activities make a positive impact on individuals with special needs. These activities improve mobility, strength, and digestion for individuals with disabilities.” – Cara Batema

Mindfulness training has been shown to improve attention, memory, and learning and increase success in school. Exercise has been shown to improve psychomotor performance in children with intellectual disabilities. Yoga is both a mindfulness practice and an exercise that also tends to improve motor ability. So, it would make sense to explore the application of yoga training for the treatment of children with intellectual disabilities.

In today’s Research News article “Effect of yoga practices on psycho-motor abilities among intellectually disabled children.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6165980/ ), Pise and colleagues recruited children aged 10 to 15 years from a school for the intellectually disabled. They were randomly assigned to a no-treatment control group or to receive yoga training for 1 hour per day, 5 days per week, for 12 weeks. The practice consisted of relaxation, postures, breathing exercises, and meditation. They were measured before and after training for balance, eye-hand coordination, agility, and reaction time.

They found that in comparison to baseline after the yoga training there were significant increases balance, eye-hand coordination, and agility, and decreases in reaction time. In comparison to the no treatment control group, the yoga group after training had significantly greater balance and faster reaction times. Hence, yoga practice appears to improve motor performance in children with intellectual disabilities.

These results were obtained with a no-treatment control condition. They need to be repeated with an active control condition such as a different exercise to determine if it was yoga practice itself or the exercise provided by yoga practice that was responsible for the improvements. But, nonetheless, the results suggest that yoga practice may be beneficial for children with intellectual disabilities. Improved motor ability might affect their performance in activities and sports and thereby improve their self-esteem.

So, improve psychomotor perform of intellectually disabled children with yoga.

“Yoga for special needs classes provide a sense of belonging and community. These adaptive yoga classes focus on building strength, developing regulation skills through breathing, improving mobility and maintaining/improving overall health and emotional well-being.” – Project Yoga

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

Study Summary

Pise, V., Pradhan, B., & Gharote, M. (2018). Effect of yoga practices on psycho-motor abilities among intellectually disabled children. Journal of exercise rehabilitation, 14(4), 581-585. doi:10.12965/jer.1836290.145

Abstract

The children with intellectual disabilities show disorders at motor development and coordination. Hence, the objective of this study was to see the effect of yoga practices on psycho-motor abilities of intellectually disabled children. Seventy intellectually disabled children were divided into experimental group and control group. Both experimental and control group were assessed on the first day and after 12 weeks of the yoga intervention for static balance, eye hand coordination, agility and reaction time. The subjects of experimental group then underwent a training of yoga practices, for 1 hr for a total period of 12 weeks. The result of within group comparison revealed significant improvement in static balance, eye hand coordination, agility, and reaction time (P< 0.001) in subjects of yoga group however no change was observed in control group. The present study demonstrated that 12 weeks of yoga is effective in improving psycho-motor abilities of intellectually disabled children.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6165980/

Improve Caregiving for Developmental Disabilities with Mindfulness

April 4, 2016 psyjdc 1 Comment

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

“mindfulness practices could be helpful for . . . caregivers because they encourage a nonjudgmental interpretation of their child’s situation, and increased acceptance of their reality. Mindfulness practices also help people observe their thoughts and behaviors with less reactivity and judgment, which could enable caregivers to better respond to the emotional and physical difficulties they encounter.” – Emily Nauman

Four in ten adults in the U.S. are caring for an adult or child with significant health issues, up from 30% in 2010. Caring for a loved one is an activity that cuts across most demographic groups, but is especially prevalent among adults ages 30 to 64, a group traditionally still in the workforce. Caring for children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities can be particularly difficult. Developmental disabilities are a group of conditions due to an impairment in physical, learning, language, or behavior areas. These conditions begin during the developmental period, may impact day-to-day functioning, and usually last throughout a person’s lifetime. Recent estimates in the United States show that about one in six, or about 15%, of children aged 3 through 17 years have a one or more developmental disabilities.

Today, most people with intellectual and developmental disabilities live with their families. This places many stresses on the caregivers and their families and stretches their financial resources. Due to these issues, people with severe cases of intellectual and developmental disabilities are often cared for in community and group homes. The staff of these homes, like family caregivers are under high levels of stress for many reasons including that many individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities are highly aggressive and at time combative. They sometimes require physical restraint and can cause injuries to the caregiver and to other patients. In addition, the high levels of stress and injury results in many staff leaving. It should be clear that there is a need for methods to reduce the stress, and burnout of caregivers in community and group homes. Mindfulness training has been found to be helpful for caregivers in the home setting. So it would be reasonable to expect that mindfulness training may also be helpful for caregivers in community and group homes.

In today’s Research News article “Caregiver Training in Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Supports (MBPBS): Effects on Caregivers and Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities”

https://www.facebook.com/ContemplativeStudiesCenter/photos/a.628903887133541.1073741828.627681673922429/1202660149757909/?type=3&theater

or see below, or for a full text see:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4746712/

Singh and colleagues implemented a 10-week Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) training for caregivers of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in community and group homes. The training added practice with meditation to a standard Positive Behavior Support (PBS) program. The PBS program “is designed to decrease an individual’s problem behaviors by teaching new skills, modifying the environment where the problem behaviors occur, and enhancing quality of life.” It was hypothesized that the addition of mindfulness training would magnify and supplement the effectiveness of the PBS program.

Singh and colleagues found that the MBPBS training resulted in a significant decrease in the use of physical restraint and significant decreases in injuries to staff and other patients. There were also significant reductions in the staff’s perceived stress levels and turnover rate. The reduced stress and injuries resulted in a highly significant reduction in institutional costs. These results clearly demonstrate that the MBPBS training is effective for caregivers. It is not clear, however, whether the meditation training was responsible, the Positive Behavior Support training or both. It remains for future research to identify which components are necessary and sufficient for improvement of caregivers well-being.

Regardless, it is clear that the combination of meditation to Positive Behavior Support (PBS) training produces important improvements for the staff, patients, and institution in caregiving for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in community and group homes.

“caregivers and patients found that the mindfulness training actually helped improve their relationships with each other. Mindfulness places both people in the present and in positive emotion; the two sides share this experience with a bit of freedom from the baggage of their history. . . . such gentle, positive interaction helped defuse the ongoing stress of a caregiver dynamic, and it helped build a stronger relationship in the present.” – Adam Perlman

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

Study Summary

Singh, N. N., Lancioni, G. E., Karazsia, B. T., & Myers, R. E. (2016). Caregiver Training in Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Supports (MBPBS): Effects on Caregivers and Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 98. http://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00098

Abstract

Caregivers often manage the aggressive behavior of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities that reside in community group homes. Sometimes this results in adverse outcomes for both the caregivers and the care recipients. We provided a 7-day intensive Mindfulness-Based Positive Behavior Support (MBPBS) training to caregivers from community group homes and assessed the outcomes in terms of caregiver variables, individuals’ behaviors, and an administrative outcome. When compared to pre-MBPBS training, the MBPBS training resulted in the caregivers using significantly less physical restraints, and staff stress and staff turnover were considerably reduced. The frequency of injury to caregivers and peers caused by the individuals was significantly reduced. A benefit-cost analysis showed substantial financial savings due to staff participation in the MBPBS program. This study provides further proof-of-concept for the effectiveness of MBPBS training for caregivers, and strengthens the call for training staff in mindfulness meditation.