Research News

Improve the Respiratory Symptoms of Lung Cancer Patients with Qigong Practice

psyjdc Leave a comment

Improve the Respiratory Symptoms of Lung Cancer Patients with Qigong Practice

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Studies show that qigong practice can have many positive effects, particularly among patients with cancer, chronic illnesses, and breathing problems, as well as older adults. Benefits include improved lung function, mood, sleep, and quality of life, as well as reduced stress, pain, anxiety, and fatigue.” – Sloan Kettering Institute

 

Receiving a diagnosis of cancer has a huge impact on most people. Feelings of depression, anxiety, and fear are very common and are normal responses to this life-changing and potentially life-ending experience. But cancer diagnosis is not necessarily a death sentence. Over half of the people diagnosed with cancer are still alive 10 years later and this number is rapidly increasing. But, surviving cancer carries with it a number of problems. Anxiety, depression, fatigue and insomnia are common symptoms in the aftermath of surviving cancer. These symptoms markedly reduce the quality of life of the patients.

 

Mindfulness training has been shown to help with cancer recovery and help to alleviate many of the residual physical and psychological symptoms, including stress,  sleep disturbance, and anxiety and depression. Tai Chi or Qigong practice has been shown to improve quality of life, reduce fatigue, and lower blood pressure and cortisol levels. They are very gentle and safe practices. The research on the effectiveness of Qigong training for lung cancer patients is sparse. So, it makes sense to Investigate the ability of Qigong training to improve the symptoms of lung cancer.

 

In today’s Research News article “The Effectiveness of Qigong in Managing a Cluster of Symptoms (Breathlessness-Fatigue-Anxiety) in Patients with Lung Cancer: A Randomized Controlled Trial.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8047940/ )  Molassiotis and colleagues recruited patients who had complete treatment for lung cancer and randomly assigned them to either a wait-list control group or to engage in Qigong practice. They were trained in Qigong in 2 weekly 90-minute practices for 2 weeks and then practiced Qigong at home for 30 minutes per day, 5 days per week, for 4 weeks. They were measured before and after training and at 12 weeks for disease status, fatigue, dyspnea (difficulty with breathing), anxiety, depression, cough frequency intensity and bothersomeness, and quality of life.

 

They found that in comparison to baseline the group that practiced Qigong had significant reductions in fatigue, dyspnea (difficulty with breathing), anxiety, and cough score that were maintained at the 12-week follow-up. These effects were significantly greater in men than in women. Hence, Qigong practice appeared to improve the symptoms in lung cancer patients.

 

It should be noted that 2 weeks of Qigong training followed by 4 weeks of home practice is a rather low amount of practice relative to what is usually prescribed in other controlled research, as much as 6 months of practice. In addition, only 62% of the Qigong group completed the practice with a 62% adherence rate. So, the effective dose of Qigong was low. This suggests that if practice was extended over longer periods of time greater effectiveness would have been observed. Nevertheless, Qigong practice, even in low dose, had positive benefits for lung cancer patients.

 

So, improve the respiratory symptoms of lung cancer patients with Qigong practice.

 

“Qigong improved physical and mental well-being as well as quality-of-life in patients with lung cancer.” – Patient Power

 

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

 

Molassiotis, A., Vu, D. V., & Ching, S. (2021). The Effectiveness of Qigong in Managing a Cluster of Symptoms (Breathlessness-Fatigue-Anxiety) in Patients with Lung Cancer: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Integrative cancer therapies, 20, 15347354211008253. https://doi.org/10.1177/15347354211008253

 

Abstract

Background and Purpose:

Qigong is used by cancer patients, but its effect is not adequately evaluated to date. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Qigong for the management of a symptom cluster comprising fatigue, dyspnea, and anxiety in patients with lung cancer.

Methodology:

A total of 156 lung cancer patients participated in this trial, and they were randomized to a Qigong group (6 weeks of intervention) or a waitlist control group receiving usual care. The symptom cluster was assessed at baseline, at the end of treatment (primary outcome), and at 12 weeks, alongside measures of cough and quality of life (QOL).

Results:

There was no significant interaction effect between group and time for the symptom cluster overall and for fatigue and anxiety. However, a significant trend towards improvement was observed on fatigue (P = .004), dyspnea (P = .002), and anxiety (P = .049) in the Qigong group from baseline assessment to the end of intervention at the 6th week (within-group changes). Improvements in dyspnea and in the secondary outcomes of cough, global health status, functional well-being and QOL symptom scales were statistically significant between the 2 groups (P = .001, .014, .021, .001, and .002, respectively).

Conclusion:

Qigong did not alleviate the symptom cluster experience. Nevertheless, this intervention was effective in reducing dyspnea and cough, and improving QOL. More than 6 weeks were needed, however, for detecting the effect of Qigong on improving dyspnea. Furthermore, men benefited more than women. It may not be beneficial to use Qigong to manage the symptom cluster consisting of fatigue, dyspnea, and anxiety, but it may be effective in managing respiratory symptoms (secondary outcomes needing further verification in future research). Future studies targeting symptom clusters should ensure the appropriateness of the combination of symptoms.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8047940/

 

Mindfulness is a Cost-Effective Treatment to Prevent Depression Relapse

psyjdc Leave a comment

Mindfulness is a Cost-Effective Treatment to Prevent Depression Relapse

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“MBCT significantly reduces the rates of depressive relapse or recurrence compared with usual care or placebo, corresponding to a relative risk reduction of 34%.” – Willem Kuyken

 

Clinically diagnosed depression is the most common mental illness, affecting over 6% of the population. Major depression can be quite debilitating, impairing the ability of the patients to effectively conduct their lives. Depression can be difficult to treat and is usually treated with anti-depressive medication. But, of patients treated initially with drugs only about a third attained remission of the depression. After repeated and varied treatments including drugs, therapy, exercise etc. only about two thirds of patients attained remission. But drugs often have troubling side effects and can lose effectiveness over time. In addition, many patients who achieve remission have relapses and recurrences of the depression. Even after remission some symptoms of depression may still be present (residual symptoms).

 

Being depressed and not responding to treatment or relapsing is a terribly difficult situation. The patients are suffering and nothing appears to work to relieve their intense depression. Suicide becomes a real possibility. So, it is imperative that other treatments be identified that can relieve the suffering. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) was specifically developed to treat depression. MBCT involves mindfulness training, containing sitting, walking and body scan meditations, and cognitive therapy that is designed to alter how the patient relates to the thought processes that often underlie and exacerbate psychological symptoms. MBCT has been shown to be effective for the treatment of major depression. But there is little understanding of the cost-effectiveness of MBCT relative to drug treatment. So, it is important to take a serious look at the costs of implementing MBCT and its effectiveness in comparison to the costs and effectiveness of antidepressant pharmacotherapy.

 

In today’s Research News article “Cost-Utility Analysis of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Versus Antidepressant Pharmacotherapy for Prevention of Depressive Relapse in a Canadian Context. Canadian journal of psychiatry” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7492890/ )  Pahlevan and colleagues reviewed published research studies comparing the cost-effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) versus antidepressant pharmacotherapy for the prevention of relapse in patients with Major Depressive Disorder who had had at least 2 past episodes of major depression.

 

They report that the published research found that over a 2-year period Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) costs $2,224.67 less than antidepressant pharmacotherapy and produces greater gains in quality of life. This greater cost effectiveness of MBCT disappeared when adherence rates were considered. Hence, the greater cost effectiveness of MBCT was due to its ability to motivate greater compliance with the treatment.

 

These results are important as when multiple effective treatments are available, the cost of treatment becomes important. The analysis suggests that Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) not only costs less to deliver but also produces greater benefits. It is interesting that this advantage over antidepressant pharmacotherapy was due to improved compliance and not the superiority of the treatment. But a treatment is only as good as the patient’s adherence to its requirements and MBCT  produces greater adherence.

 

So, mindfulness is a cost-effective treatment to prevent depression relapse.

 

“The rationale behind the MBCT program is based on an empirically supported, theoretical framework suggesting that patients with recurrent depression become more vulnerable to developing depression as cognitive reactivity increases.” – Marloes J Huijbers

 

 

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

 

Pahlevan, T., Ung, C., & Segal, Z. (2020). Cost-Utility Analysis of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Versus Antidepressant Pharmacotherapy for Prevention of Depressive Relapse in a Canadian Context: Analyse coût-utilité de la thérapie cognitive basée sur la pleine conscience contre la pharmacothérapie antidépressive pour prévenir la rechute de la dépression en contexte canadien. Canadian journal of psychiatry. Revue canadienne de psychiatrie, 65(8), 568–576. https://doi.org/10.1177/0706743720904613

 

Abstract

Objective:

Patients suffering from major depressive disorder (MDD) experience impaired functioning and reduced quality of life, including an elevated risk of episode return. MDD is associated with high societal burden due to increased healthcare utilization, productivity losses, and suicide-related costs, making the long-term management of this illness a priority. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), a first-line preventative psychological treatment, compared to maintenance antidepressant medication (ADM), the current standard of care.

Method:

A cost–utility analysis was conducted over a 24-month time horizon to model differences between MBCT and ADM in cost and quality-adjusted life years (QALY). The analysis was conducted using a decision tree analytic model. Intervention efficacy, utility, and costing data estimates were derived from published sources and expert consultation.

Results:

MBCT was found to be cost-effective compared to maintenance ADM over a 24-month time horizon. Antidepressant pharmacotherapy resulted in 1.10 QALY and $17,255.37 per patient on average, whereas MBCT resulted in 1.18 QALY and $15,030.70 per patient on average. This resulted in a cost difference of $2,224.67 and a QALY difference of 0.08, in favor of MBCT. Multiple sensitivity analyses supported these findings.

Conclusions:

From both a societal and health system perspective, utilizing MBCT as a first-line relapse prevention treatment is potentially cost-effective in a Canadian setting. Future economic evaluations should consider combined treatment (e.g., ADM and psychotherapy) as a comparator and longer time horizons as the literature advances.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7492890/

 

Meditation Reduces the Complexity of Brain Activity

psyjdc 1 Comment

Meditation Reduces the Complexity of Brain Activity

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“What happens in your brain when you meditate. . . The overall difference is that our brains stop processing information as actively as they normally would.” – Belle Beth Cooper

 

Meditation training has been shown to improve health and well-being. It has also been found to be effective for a large array of medical and psychiatric conditions, either stand-alone or in combination with more traditional therapies. There are a number of ways that meditation practices produce these benefits, including changes to the brain and physiology. One way to observe the effects of meditation on neural activity is to measure changes in the electroencephalogram (EEG), the rhythmic electrical activity that can be recorded from the scalp.

 

In today’s Research News article “Contrasting Electroencephalography-Derived Entropy and Neural Oscillations With Highly Skilled Meditators.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8119624/ ) Young and colleagues recruited experienced meditators who engaged in six different meditation styles (shamatha, vipassana, zazen, dzogchen, tonglen, and visualization). They had on average 21,935 hours of meditation experience. The researchers then recorded the Electroencephalogram (EEG) while the meditators were thinking about their day and also during meditation practice. The EEG recordings were analyzed for entropy and their power spectra.

 

They found that tonglen and zazen meditators had the highest alpha rhythm power during meditation compared to other styles of meditation. But different styles had markedly different patterns. On the other hand, overall, with all meditation types there was a significant reduction in entropy of the brain activity during meditation.

 

The differences in the power spectrum observed with different meditation types probably reflects the different mental activity encouraged by the individual practices, On the other hand there were consistent findings with the entropy measures suggesting a common element of neural activity occurring with meditation regardless of its form.

 

Entropy of the pattern of Electroencephalogram (EEG) activity is a measure of the complexity of the activity. The reduction in entropy observed during meditation suggests that meditation is associated with a simplification of brain activity. This makes sense as during meditation attention is focused, reducing the variety of mental activity. Hence, the simplified mental experiences during meditation are reflected in a simplified neural activity.

 

So, meditation reduces the complexity of brain activity.

 

“It seems the longer you do meditation, the better your brain will be at self-regulation. You don’t have to consume as much energy at rest and you can more easily get yourself into a more relaxed state.” – Bin He

 

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

 

Jacob H. Young, Martha E. Arterberry, Joshua P. Martin. Contrasting Electroencephalography-Derived Entropy and Neural Oscillations With Highly Skilled Meditators. Front Hum Neurosci. 2021; 15: 628417. Published online 2021 Apr 30. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.628417

 

Abstract

Meditation is an umbrella term for a number of mental training practices designed to improve the monitoring and regulation of attention and emotion. Some forms of meditation are now being used for clinical intervention. To accompany the increased clinical interest in meditation, research investigating the neural basis of these practices is needed. A central hypothesis of contemplative neuroscience is that meditative states, which are unique on a phenomenological level, differ on a neurophysiological level. To identify the electrophysiological correlates of meditation practice, the electrical brain activity of highly skilled meditators engaging in one of six meditation styles (shamatha, vipassana, zazen, dzogchen, tonglen, and visualization) was recorded. A mind-wandering task served as a control. Lempel–Ziv complexity showed differences in nonlinear brain dynamics (entropy) during meditation compared with mind wandering, suggesting that meditation, regardless of practice, affects neural complexity. In contrast, there were no differences in power spectra at six different frequency bands, likely due to the fact that participants engaged in different meditation practices. Finally, exploratory analyses suggest neurological differences among meditation practices. These findings highlight the importance of studying the electroencephalography (EEG) correlates of different meditative practices.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8119624/

 

Improve Hypertension with Yoga

psyjdc Leave a comment

Improve Hypertension with Yoga

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Yoga can reduce stress-induced hypertension, while addressing its underlying causes. It pacifies the sympathetic nervous system and slows down the heart, while teaching the muscles and mind to relax deeply.” – Marla Apt

 

High Blood Pressure (Hypertension) is an insidious disease because there are no overt symptoms. The individual feels fine. But it can be deadly as more than 360,000 American deaths, roughly 1,000 deaths each day, had high blood pressure as a primary or contributing cause. In addition, hypertension markedly increases the risk heart attack, stroke, heart failure, and kidney disease.  It is also a very common disorder with about 70 million American adults (29%) having high blood pressure and only about half (52%) of people with high blood pressure have their condition under control. Treatment frequently includes antihypertensive drugs. But these medications often have adverse side effects. So, patients feel lousy when taking the drugs, but fine when they’re not. So, compliance is a major issue with many patients not taking the drugs regularly or stopping entirely.

 

Obviously, there is a need for alternative to drug treatments for hypertension. Mindfulness practices have been shown to aid in controlling hypertension. Exercise is also known to help. So, yoga practice, which combines mindfulness practice with exercise would seem to be a good candidate practice for the treatment of hypertension. Indeed, yoga practice appears to lower blood pressure in hypertension.

 

In today’s Research News article “Effects of a health worker-led 3-month yoga intervention on blood pressure of hypertensive patients: a randomised controlled multicentre trial in the primary care setting.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7981931/ ) Dhungana and colleagues recruited adults with hypertension who didn’t practice yoga and randomly assigned them to a wait-list control condition or to receive 5 2-hour yoga training sessions and 1 health education session followed by 90 days of home practice for 30 minutes per day for 5 days per week. They were measured before and after training for systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and body size.

 

They found that in comparison to baseline and the wait-list control group, the patients with hypertension who practiced yoga had significant reductions in both systolic (8%) and diastolic (7%) blood pressure. These results are similar to those found in other studies that yoga practice lowers blood pressure in patients with hypertension. The contribution of the present study is to demonstrate that after training, yoga practice at home is a safe and effective treatment for hypertension.

 

So, Improve Hypertension with Yoga.

 

“Adults who practice yoga with breathing and relaxation exercises at least three times a week may have lower blood pressure than people who don’t.” – Lisa Rapaport

 

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

 

Dhungana, R. R., Pedisic, Z., Joshi, S., Khanal, M. K., Kalauni, O. P., Shakya, A., Bhurtel, V., Panthi, S., Ramesh Kumar, K. C., Ghimire, B., Pandey, A. R., Bista, B., Khatiwoda, S. R., McLachlan, C. S., Neupane, D., & de Courten, M. (2021). Effects of a health worker-led 3-month yoga intervention on blood pressure of hypertensive patients: a randomised controlled multicentre trial in the primary care setting. BMC public health, 21(1), 550. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10528-y

 

Abstract

Background

Hypertension control remains a major challenge globally. A recent systematic review suggested that yoga has beneficial effects on reducing blood pressure. However, the role of yoga in hypertension management in primary health care has received little attention, and no studies have evaluated the impact of a yoga program fully delivered by health care staff on hypertension. This study, therefore, assessed the effects of a health worker-led yoga intervention on blood pressure reduction among hypertensives patients in the primary care setting.

Methods

This was a multicentric, two-arm, randomised trial conducted among hypertensive patients in seven Ayurveda Health Centres in Nepal between March 2017 and June 2018. One hundred and twenty-one participants who were on or without medications were randomised to intervention (n = 61) and wait-list control (n = 60) groups using stratified block randomisation. Participants in the intervention arm received an intervention consisting of an initial five-day structured yoga training at the centres and then a further home-based practice of yoga for five days a week for the following 90 days. Both intervention and control groups also participated in a 2-h health education session. The primary outcome of this trial was systolic blood pressure at 90-day follow-up. Data were analysed on an intention-to-treat basis using linear mixed-effects regression models.

Results

We included all 121 study participants (intervention/control = 61/60) in the primary analysis (52.1% males; mean ± SD age = 47.8 ± 10.8 years). The difference in systolic blood pressure between the intervention group and the control group was − 7.66 mmHg (95% CI: − 10.4, − 4.93). For diastolic blood pressure, the difference was − 3.86 mmHg (95% CI: − 6.65, − 1.06). No adverse events were reported by the participants.

Conclusions

A yoga program for hypertensive patients consisting of a five-day training in health centres and 90 days of practice at home is effective for reducing blood pressure. Significant benefits for hypertensive patients could be expected if such programmes would become a part of the standard treatment practice.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7981931/

 

Spirituality Improves Well-Being During the Covid-19 Pandemic

psyjdc Leave a comment

Spirituality Improves Well-Being During the Covid-19 Pandemic

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“It is now clear that meeting spiritual needs and supporting religious and spiritual coping can be a major contributor, not only to patient experience, but also to medical outcomes and cost savings,” – The Beryl Institute

 

Mindfulness training has been shown to improve health and well-being in healthy individuals. It has also been found to be effective for a large array of medical and psychiatric conditions, either stand-alone or in combination with more traditional therapies. The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged the mental and physical health of the population. It has created intense stress for frontline workers but also for people simply isolating at home.

 

Religion and spirituality have been promulgated as solutions to the challenges of life. There have been a number of studies of the influence of religiosity and spirituality on the physical and psychological well-being of practitioners mostly showing positive benefits, with spirituality encouraging personal growth and mental health. Perhaps, then, spirituality can be helpful in relieving stress and improve coping with the mental and physical challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

In today’s Research News article “Meaning-Based Coping and Spirituality During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mediating Effects on Subjective Well-Being.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.646572/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A )   Arslan and colleagues recruited college students and had them complete measures of perceived coronavirus risk, stress because of coronavirus, subjective well-being, spiritual well-being, and meaning based coping.

 

They found that the higher the levels of spiritual well-being the lower the levels of stress because of coronavirus and the higher the levels of subjective well-being and meaning based coping. They also found that the higher the levels of stress because of coronavirus the lower the levels of subjective well-being, spiritual well-being, and meaning based coping. Structural Equation modelling revealed that perceived coronavirus risk was associated with higher levels of stress because of coronavirus which was, in turn, associated with lower levels of subjective well- being, not directly, but indirectly through associations with lower levels of spiritual well-being, and meaning based coping.

 

These results are correlational so no causal conclusions can be reached. But it is clear that the students’ perceptions of their personal risk of being infected was associated with feeling stressed and this was associated with lower levels of feelings of well-being. This is all very reasonable. This stress, however, appears to affect well-be being by being associated with lower spirituality and lower coping with the stress by finding meaning in life.

 

The pandemic and the associated stress are beyond the control of the students. But engaging in spirituality and searching for meaning are not. So, these findings suggest that the students, and by extension, everyone else, may be able to deal more effectively with the pandemic by engaging in spiritual practices to help find meaning in life. More research is needed to examine this hypothesis.

 

So, spirituality improves well-being during the Covid-19 pandemic

 

‘COVID-19 has generated a crisis of spiritual distress in healthcare settings that must prioritize urgent clinical symptom and infection control. That said, many patients are suffering greatly from spiritual distress as well: existential distress, struggles with uncertainty, despair, hopelessness, isolation, feelings of abandonment by God or others, grief, and the need for reconciliation.” – George Washington University

 

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

 

Arslan G and Yıldırım M (2021) Meaning-Based Coping and Spirituality During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mediating Effects on Subjective Well-Being. Front. Psychol. 12:646572. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.646572

 

The coronavirus pandemic has significantly affected the Turkish population. During the pandemic, people with high coronavirus stress are at risk of experiencing poor subjective well-being. There is no research investigating the role of meaning-based coping and spirituality in explaining the link between coronavirus stress and subjective well-being. This study examined the mediating roles of meaning-based coping and spiritual well-being in the link between coronavirus stress and subjective well-being in young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample included 427 young adults (71% female), ranging in age between 18 and 48 years (M = 21.06; SD = 2.62). Turkish young adults completed an online survey, including measures of coronavirus stress, subjective well-being, meaning-based coping, and spiritual well-being. The results indicate that greater meaning-based coping and spiritual well-being mediated decreases in the adverse impacts of coronavirus stress on subjective well-being. These results suggest that the importance of a combination of meaning-based coping and spirituality processes mitigate the adverse effects of stress on well-being during the coronavirus pandemic. Interventions focusing on meaning-based coping and spirituality in those experiencing high coronavirus stress are urgently needed to improve the mental health and well-being of young adults.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.646572/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A

 

Yoga and Other Exercises Improve Body Image and Psychological Well-Being

psyjdc Leave a comment

Yoga and Other Exercises Improve Body Image and Psychological Well-Being

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Overall, practicing yoga can have a profound impact on improving body image, but it depends how it is approached by the individual. When you treat yoga as a tool for body appreciation, healthy movement, and inner reflection, it helps improve body image and mental health.” – Tara Caguait

 

The media is constantly presenting idealized images of what we should look like. These are unrealistic and unattainable for the vast majority of people. But it results in most everyone being unhappy with their body.  This can lead to problematic consequences. In a number of eating disorders there’s a distorted body image. This can and does drive unhealthy behaviors. As a treatment mindfulness has been shown to improve eating disorders.

 

In the media, yoga is portrayed as practiced by lithe beautiful people. This is, of course, unrealistic and potentially harmful. But yoga is also an exercise that tends to improve the body and it has been shown to improve body image and psychological health. It is unclear whether it is the exercise provided by yoga practice that promotes psychological health and a healthy body image or to components specific to yoga practice.

 

In today’s Research News article “Yoga, Dance, Team Sports, or Individual Sports: Does the Type of Exercise Matter? An Online Study Investigating the Relationships Between Different Types of Exercise, Body Image, and Well-Being in Regular Exercise Practitioners.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.621272/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A )  Marshin and colleagues recruited adults online and had them complete measures of amount and type of exercise, body size, body image, body dissatisfaction, eating disorders, physical efficacy, physical activity, positive and negative emotions, and depression.

 

They found that the participants who engaged in regular exercise had significantly lower body dissatisfaction, perceived body weight, and depression and significantly higher positive emotions than sedentary individuals. They also found that there were no significant differences in any of the outcome variables for regular exercise practitioners of yoga, ballroom dance, team sports, or individual sports.

 

These findings are correlational, so no conclusions can be reached regarding causation. But it is clear that people who exercise have a better image of their bodies and better mental health than sedentary individuals. The fact that there were no significant differences between practitioners of different types of exercise including yoga suggests that exercise of any type is associated with greater satisfaction with the body and better mood. Yoga practice has been shown to improve body image and positive emotions and lower depression. The present findings suggest that these benefits of yoga practice are due to the exercise and not to the other components of yoga practice.

 

So, yoga and other exercises improve body image and psychological well-being.

 

“Individuals who are dissatisfied with their body image are at a higher risk for eating disorders, depression, and low self-esteem. When diversity and inclusivity are encouraged, yoga may have an important role to play in supporting healthy feelings toward body image.” – Lacey Gibson

 

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

 

Marschin V and Herbert C (2021) Yoga, Dance, Team Sports, or Individual Sports: Does the Type of Exercise Matter? An Online Study Investigating the Relationships Between Different Types of Exercise, Body Image, and Well-Being in Regular Exercise Practitioners. Front. Psychol. 12:621272. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.621272

 

Physical activity, specifically exercising, has been suggested to improve body image, mental health, and well-being. With respect to body image, previous findings highlight a general benefit of exercise. This study investigates whether the relationship between exercising and body image varies with the type of exercise that individuals preferentially and regularly engage in. In addition, physical efficacy was explored as a potential psychological mediator between type of exercise and body image. Using a cross-sectional design, healthy regular exercise practitioners of yoga, ballroom dance, team sports, or individual sports as well as healthy adults reporting no regular exercising were surveyed. Body image and its different facets were assessed by a set of standardized self-report questionnaires, covering perceptual, cognitive, and affective body image dimensions particularly related to negative body image. In addition, participants were questioned with regard to mental health. Participants were 270 healthy adults. Descriptive statistics, measures of variance (ANOVA), and multiple linear regression analysis with orthogonal contrasts were performed to investigate differences between the different exercise and non-exercise groups in the variables of interest. In line with the hypotheses and previous findings, the statistic comparisons revealed that body dissatisfaction (as one important factor of negative body image) was most pronounced in the non-exercise group compared to all exercise groups [contrast: no exercise versus exercise (all groups taken together)]. Physical efficacy, as assessed with a standardized questionnaire, mediated the difference between type of exercise (using contrasts) and body image including perceptual, cognitive, and affective body image dimensions. The findings shed light on so far less systematically investigated questions regarding the relationship between types of exercise, like yoga and ballroom dance, and body image. The results underscore the relevance of considering possible influencing factors in exercise research, such as the perception of one’s physical efficacy as a mediator of this relationship.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.621272/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A

 

Improve Attention, Memory, and Emotions with Meditation

psyjdc Leave a comment

Improve Attention, Memory, and Emotions with Meditation

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“meditating can change the structure and function of the brain through relaxation, which can: Reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, Increase focus and learning concentration, Improve memory and attention span, Build stronger immune system and greater physical/psychological resilience, Allow better sleep” – Columbia University

 

Mindfulness training has been shown to be effective in improving physical and psychological health and particularly with the physical and psychological reactions to stress. Mindfulness also decreases the individual’s tendency to use tried and true solutions to problems and thereby improves cognitive flexibility. Mindfulness has also been shown to improve attention, memory, and emotions. This has led to an increasing adoption of these mindfulness techniques for the health and well-being of both healthy and ill individuals.There are, however, a large variety of meditation techniques and it is not known which types are best for which benefit.

 

In today’s Research News article “Effects of Combining Meditation Techniques on Short-Term Memory, Attention, and Affect in Healthy College Students.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.607573/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A )  Pragya and colleagues recruited college students and randomly assigned them to one of three meditation groups or to a no-treatment control group. Meditation occurred in 3 25-minute sessions per week for 8 weeks and was either a sound meditation (Bee sound), color imagery (green) or the combination of the two. They were measured before and after training for short-term memory and positive and negative emotions. They also completed a continuous performance test to measure selective attention, sustained attention, and impulsivity.

 

They found that in comparison to baseline and the control group the combined meditation groups had significantly greater short-term memory and positive emotions and significantly lower negative emotions, inattention, and impulsivity. The two types of meditation techniques and their combination had somewhat different magnitudes of effects. Sound meditation had greater improvements of attention and reductions in negative emotions, while the color focused meditation group had greater attentiveness and short-term memory. The combined color and sound meditation group had the greatest improvements.

 

These results demonstrate as has been previously reported that mindfulness practices produce greater short-term memory and positive emotions and significantly lower negative emotions, inattention, and impulsivity. The contribution of the present study is to demonstrate that different meditation techniques produce similar effects but differ in the magnitudes of those effects. This could help to determine which techniques work best for people with different weaknesses. Regardless, meditation appear to improve cognitive and emotional well-being.

 

So, improve attention, memory, and emotions with meditation.

 

“A critical part of attention (and working memory capacity) is being able to ignore distraction. There has been growing evidence that meditation training (in particular mindfulness meditation) helps develop attentional control, and that this can start to happen very quickly.” – About memory

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

 

Pragya SU, Mehta ND, Abomoelak B, Uddin P, Veeramachaneni P, Mehta N, Moore S, Jean-Francois M, Garcia S, Pragya SC and Mehta DI (2021) Effects of Combining Meditation Techniques on Short-Term Memory, Attention, and Affect in Healthy College Students. Front. Psychol. 12:607573. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.607573

 

Meditation refers to a family of self-regulation practices that focuses on training attention and awareness to foster psycho-emotional well-being and to develop specific capacities such as calmness, clarity, and concentration. We report a prospective convenience-controlled study in which we analyzed the effect of two components of Preksha Dhyāna – buzzing bee sound meditation (Mahapran dhvani) and color meditation (leśyā dhyāna) on healthy college students. Mahapran and leśya dhyāna are two Preksha Dhyāna practices that are based on sound and green color, respectively. The study population represents a suitable target as college students experience different stress factors during the school year. This study measures the individual and combined effects of two techniques (one focusing on sound and one focusing on color), on short-term memory, attention, and affect, in novice meditators. We used a battery of cognitive, performance, and compared results with baseline and control values. We found improved cognition, especially attention, short-term memory, and affect in terms of positivity and reduced negativity. Overall, the two techniques produced variable benefits and subjects showed improved scores over baseline for short-term memory, cognitive function, and overall wellbeing. Further studies are required to understand underlying mechanisms for the observed differences between the two techniques and to elucidate mechanisms underlying the more pronounced and global benefits observed with the combined techniques. These results underscore a need to examine individual components of meditation practices in order to individualize treatment approaches for attention disorders in young adults.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.607573/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A

 

Reduce Pain and Depression in Chronic Pain Patients with Mindful Dance

psyjdc Leave a comment

Reduce Pain and Depression in Chronic Pain Patients with Mindful Dance

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Music is the mediator between the life of the senses and the life of the spirit”  – Ludwig van Beethoven

 

Headaches are the most common disorders of the nervous system. It has been estimated that 47% of the adult population have a headache at least once during the last year. Primary headaches do not result from other medical conditions and include migraine, tension, and cluster headaches. There are a wide variety of drugs that are prescribed for primary headache pain with varying success. Headaches are treated with pain relievers, ergotamine, blood pressure drugs such as propranolol, verapamil, antidepressants, antiseizure drugs, and muscle relaxants. Drugs, however, can have some problematic side effects particularly when used regularly and are ineffective for many sufferers.

 

Most practitioners consider lifestyle changes that help control stress and promote regular exercise to be an important part of headache treatment and prevention. Avoiding situations that trigger headaches is also vital. A number of research studies have reported that mindfulness training is an effective There is an accumulating volume of research findings that demonstrate that mindfulness practices, in general, are effective in treating chronic pain and particularly headache pain. But there have been very few studies of the effectiveness of mindful dance for reducing chronic pain.

 

In today’s Research News article “” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.587923/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A )  Majore-Dusele and colleagues recruited adult patients with chronic headaches and who were high in anxiety and depression. They were randomly assigned to either a wait-list control condition or to receive a twice a week for 90 minutes for 5 weeks program of Mindful-Based Dance Movement Therapy. They were measured before and after treatment and 2 month later for pain intensity, anxiety, depression, depressive symptom severity, and mindfulness.

 

They found that in comparison to baseline and the wait-list control group, the participants who received Mindful-Based Dance Movement Therapy had significant reductions in pain intensity and depression symptom severity that were maintained at the 2-month follow-up. It should be noted that there wasn’t an active control group such as another exercise. So, it isn’t clear if it was mindful dance or the exercise involved in the program that was the effective component. More tightly controlled studies with active controls are needed to clarify these issues.

 

This was a small pilot study that demonstrated feasibility, acceptability, and adherence to the Mindful-Based Dance Movement Therapy program. But it did more in suggesting that the treatment produces significant improvements in the mental health and headache pain of the patients. Mindfulness training has been previously shown to improve headache and depression. What is new here is the demonstration that Mindful-Based Dance Movement Therapy may also be effective.

 

So, reduce pain and depression in chronic pain patients with mindful dance.

 

“meditation used as a pain mediator . . allows us to see our thoughts & feelings in a non-reactive way. Sure it takes practice to get to this point, but so does everything. To be able to feel discomfort and watch your thoughts, decreases the chance of feeding the symptoms and inevitably increasing them. It allows us to practice being non-reactive to every sensation.” – Mehta Physiotherapy

 

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

 

Majore-Dusele I, Karkou V and Millere I (2021) The Development of Mindful-Based Dance Movement Therapy Intervention for Chronic Pain: A Pilot Study With Chronic Headache Patients. Front. Psychol. 12:587923. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.587923

 

Chronic pain is of significant global concern. There is growing evidence that body–mind therapies and psychological approaches can contribute toward changing chronic pain perceptions. This is the first model described in the literature that combines a mindfulness-based approach with dance movement therapy and explores the potential psychological and pain-related changes for this client population. In this paper, the results from the pilot study are presented involving patients with chronic headache recruited in an outpatient rehabilitation setting.

Methods: In this pilot study, 29 patients (n = 29) with chronic headache were randomized to either the Mindful-Based Dance Movement Therapy (MBDMT) group or the waiting list control group (treatment as usual, TAU). The MBDMT group was offered 10 sessions in a clinical outpatient rehabilitation setting for 5 weeks. Data were collected pre- and post-intervention and 16 weeks after the intervention was finished. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Patient Health Questionnaire−9 (PHQ-9), Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), and Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) were used as outcome measures.

Results: The working model of MBDMT identifies nine therapeutic mechanisms (safe therapeutic environment, mindfulness skills, body awareness, relaxation/releasing, distancing and staying with discomfort, meaning making, self-regulation, acceptance and integration, creative process). Per-protocol analysis reveals statistically significant reduction of pain intensity and depression scores in favor of the MBDMT group, and these improvements were maintained in the follow-up assessment.

Conclusions: The results suggest that MBDMT is a feasible and promising therapy approach for chronic pain patients. The pilot study offered sufficient information and preliminary results in the desirable direction to enable the researchers to move to a randomized controlled trial (RCT) stage in order to establish the efficacy of the intervention.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.587923/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A

 

Mindfulness is Associated with Improved Mood and Lower Interpersonal Sensitivity

psyjdc Leave a comment

Mindfulness is Associated with Improved Mood and Lower Interpersonal Sensitivity

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Mindfulness training may help reduce interpersonal sensitivity in college students. When college students have strong effectiveness/authenticity, lower negative emotions may be a protective factor to prevent interpersonal sensitivity.” – Xiaoqian Ding

 

Humans are social animals. This is a great asset for the species as the effort of the individual is amplified by cooperation. In primitive times, this cooperation was essential for survival. But in modern times it is also essential, not for survival but rather for making a living and for the happiness of the individual. Mindfulness has been found to increase prosocial emotions such as compassion, and empathy and prosocial behaviors such as altruism. So, being mindful socially is very important.

 

The importance of social interactions, however, can increase a person’s interpersonal sensitivity. This is associated with low self-esteem and a poor self-concept. At extremes, this can result in social anxiety disorders. Mindfulness training has been shown to help with the treatment of social anxiety disorders and to improve self-esteem. So, mindfulness may be effective in reducing interpersonal sensitivity. But there is little research on mindfulness and interpersonal sensitivity.

 

In today’s Research News article “Exploring the Relationship Between Trait Mindfulness and Interpersonal Sensitivity for Chinese College Students: The Mediating Role of Negative Emotions and Moderating Role of Effectiveness/Authenticity.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.624340/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A )  Ding and colleagues recruited college students and had them complete measures of mindfulness, mood states, mental health symptoms, interpersonal sensitivity, emotional effectiveness/authenticity, emotional novelty, and emotional preparedness.

 

They found that the higher the levels of mindfulness the higher the levels of emotional effectiveness/authenticity and emotional preparedness and the lower the levels of negative emotions and interpersonal sensitivity. A mediation analysis revealed that mindfulness was negatively associated with interpersonal sensitivity directly and also indirectly by being associated with lower negative emotions which in turn was associated with lower interpersonal sensitivity. Finally, they found that the mindfulness’ association with lower negative emotions and in turn lower interpersonal sensitivity was stronger when the participants were also high in emotional effectiveness/authenticity.

 

These findings are correlational and as such causation cannot be determined. In prior research, however, mindfulness training has been shown to decrease negative emotions. So, the observed relationship is likely due to a causal relationship between mindfulness and lower negative emotions. In addition, mindfulness has been shown to improve self-esteem and the self-concept. Hence, mindfulness improves mood and lowers emotional sensitivity.

 

Interpersonal sensitivity is a problem for everyone and especially college students. It suggests that the individual doesn’t think much of themselves and looks at themselves as a problem. This can produce maladaptive behaviors on the part of the individual compounding the problem. Negative emotions feed into this negative self-concept. But this can be disrupted by mindfulness which not only improves the self-concept, reducing interpersonal sensitivity, but also improves emotions that also lower this sensitivity. This all suggests that mindfulness training may be recommended for college students to improve their psychological health.

 

So, mindfulness is associated with improved mood and lower interpersonal sensitivity.

 

“Mindfulness meditation could provide a healthy method of coping with interpersonal stress for college students and offer a valuable addition to traditional relaxation and imagery techniques.” – Lily Preer

 

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

 

Ding X, Zhao T, Li X, Yang Z and Tang Y-Y (2021) Exploring the Relationship Between Trait Mindfulness and Interpersonal Sensitivity for Chinese College Students: The Mediating Role of Negative Emotions and Moderating Role of Effectiveness/Authenticity. Front. Psychol. 12:624340. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.624340

 

Background: Interpersonal sensitivity is a prominent mental health problem facing college students today. Trait mindfulness is a potential positive factor that may influence interpersonal relationships. However, the precise relationship between trait mindfulness and interpersonal sensitivity remains elusive, which limits the optimization and further application of mindfulness-based intervention schemes targeting interpersonal sensitivity. This study aimed to explore (a) whether negative emotions mediate the relationship between trait mindfulness and interpersonal sensitivity and (b) whether the relationship among trait mindfulness, negative emotions, and interpersonal sensitivity is moderated by effectiveness/authenticity. We hypothesize that (a) negative emotions mediate the relationship between trait mindfulness and interpersonal sensitivity, and (b) effectiveness/authenticity moderates the indirect association between trait mindfulness and interpersonal sensitivity through negative emotions.

Methods: One thousand four hundred nineteen Chinese college students (1,023 females, 396 males), aged from 17 to 23 (SD = 0.86, mean = 18.38), participated in this study. Their trait mindfulness, negative emotions, the effectiveness/authenticity, and interpersonal sensitivity were measured using well-validated self-report questionnaires.

Results: Correlational analyses indicated that both trait mindfulness and effectiveness/authenticity were significantly and negatively associated with interpersonal sensitivity. Mediation analyses uncovered a partial mediating role of negative emotions in the relationship between trait mindfulness and interpersonal sensitivity. Moderated mediation analyses showed that in college students with high effectiveness/authenticity, the relationship between trait mindfulness and negative emotions was stronger, whereas the relationship between negative emotions and interpersonal sensitivity was weaker.

Conclusion: Negative emotion is a mediator of the relationship between trait mindfulness and interpersonal sensitivity, which in turn is moderated by effectiveness/authenticity. These findings suggest a potential mechanism through which trait mindfulness influences interpersonal sensitivity. Mindfulness-based interventions have the potential to decrease interpersonal sensitivity and offer a basis for predicting individual differences in response to mindfulness-based interventions among individuals.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.624340/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A

 

Mindfulness Training Increases the Use of Yoga and Meditation to Cope with the Covid-19 Lockdown

psyjdc Leave a comment

Mindfulness Training Increases the Use of Yoga and Meditation to Cope with the Covid-19 Lockdown

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“mindfulness is one tool that can help promote mental wellness throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.” – Julie Dunne

 

Mindfulness training has been shown to improve health and well-being in healthy individuals. It has also been found to be effective for a large array of medical and psychiatric conditions, either stand-alone or in combination with more traditional therapies. The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged the mental and physical health of the population. It has created intense stress both for frontline workers but also for people simply isolating at home. Mindfulness is known to decrease the psychological and physical responses to stress. So, mindfulness training may be helpful in coping with the mental and physical challenges resulting from the lockdown during the the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

In today’s Research News article “Developing Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Yoga and Mindfulness for the Well-Being of Student Musicians in Spain.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: (https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.642992/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A ) Bartos and colleagues recruited Spanish college music students who enrolled in 1-hour per week mindfulness course and those who did not. The course ran from November 2019 to May 2020. In march 2020 a nationwide lockdown was initiated and the mindfulness course switched to online. The students were asked whether during Covid-19 lockdown they received psychological help, had setbacks, health changes, the nature of health changes, changes in physical, psychological, and sleep quality during the lockdown, and any practices engaged in during the lockdown and the nature of the practices.

 

They found that the students who experienced mindfulness training were significantly more likely to practice yoga and meditation to improve their health and well-being during the lockdown than the control participants. They also indicated that they received greater benefits from the practices. Almost all of the mindfulness trained participants engaged in these practices while only about a half of the control participants did.

 

It should be noted that there wasn’t random assignment of students to groups. Rather, the groups were formed by the selections of the students. This can result in different kinds of students in the two groups. It is possible that students who were likely to use yoga and meditation as coping mechanisms would be much more likely to choose to participate in a mindfulness course.

 

The Covid-19 lockdown provided a natural experiment that the researchers took advantage of to investigate the impact of mindfulness training on the students’ well-being during the lockdown. The findings support the efficacy of mindfulness training in improving the likelihood that yoga and meditation will be used as coping strategies and that these practices produce greater perceived benefits.

 

So, mindfulness training increases the use of yoga and meditation to cope with the covid-19 lockdown.

 

“Introducing a mindfulness and meditation practice during this pandemic has the potential to complement treatment and is a low-cost beneficial method of providing support with anxiety for all.” – C. Behan

 

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

 

Bartos LJ, Funes MJ, Ouellet M, Posadas MP and Krägeloh C (2021) Developing Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Yoga and Mindfulness for the Well-Being of Student Musicians in Spain. Front. Psychol. 12:642992. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.642992

 

Here, we report on a quasi-experimental study to explore the applicability and perceived benefits of the CRAFT program, which is based on mindfulness, yoga, positive psychology, and emotional intelligence, to improve higher education student musicians’ health and well-being during the lockdown. A subset of student musicians at a Higher Conservatory of Music in Spain followed the CRAFT program during the academic year 2019/2020, 1 h per week as part of their curriculum. Students enrolled in CRAFT-based elective subjects formed the CRAFT program group (n = 40), while other students represented the control group (n = 53). The onset of the national lockdown elicited by the COVID-19 pandemic occurred halfway through the program, which was subsequently delivered in an online format. We administered an online survey to explore the effect that the exposure to the CRAFT program had in terms of how participants dealt with various health and well-being concerns arising from the COVID-19 lockdown. There was a significantly higher proportion of proactive participants in the CRAFT program group, 92%, than in the control group, 58%, in terms of implementing practices to improve their health and well-being during the lockdown. Additionally, significantly more participants acknowledged perceived benefits from their practices in the CRAFT program group, 78%, than in the control group, 52%. Among proactive participants, yoga/meditation was the most implemented in the CRAFT program group, followed by exercise, and other yoga/meditation practices, whereas in the control group, exercise and Alexander technique-based practices were the most applied. In the CRAFT program group, the highest rate of perceived benefits was from yoga/meditation CRAFT-based practices, 51%, followed by exercise, 32%, and other yoga/meditation practices, 27%, whereas in the control group, benefits were reported by 29% of exercising participants and 16% for those having practiced the Alexander technique. A similar pattern was observed when excluding participants with previous yoga/meditation experience. This study revealed how participants can independently apply learned skills from the CRAFT program in response to a naturally occurring life event of unprecedented global impact, suggesting that previous exposure to mindfulness and yoga is likely to have a beneficial effect on how young adults react towards exceptionally stressful conditions.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.642992/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1616048_69_Psycho_20210504_arts_A