A 6-week mindful self-compassion training for 22 medical trainees (17 students, 5 residents) led to significant improvements in mindfulness, interconnectedness, perceived stress, life enjoyment, and compassion. However, no significant changes in burnout, self-compassion, or emotional intelligence occurred at any follow-up point. The findings suggest that accessible interventions can enhance mindfulness and stress management among medical trainees, but further research with larger samples is needed.
A randomized clinical trial will compare Cognitively-Based Compassion Training for Chronic Pain with Psychological Comorbidity (CBCT-CP+) to a health education control (H.E.L.P.) among 142 Veterans who have chronic pain along with PTSD and/or depression. Both groups will attend 10 weekly 90-minute virtual sessions. The primary aims are to reduce pain interference and the severity of comorbid psychopathology. The authors hypothesize that CBCT-CP+ will lead to larger reductions in these co-primary outcomes and greater improvements in life satisfaction and quality of life. If effective, the intervention could improve treatment outcomes for this population.
A protocol describes the Acting with Mindfulness for Pain (AMP) intervention, which integrates formal mindfulness meditation into acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) for chronic pain. The authors argue that formal meditation practice is a necessary component that directly targets key ACT processes and may produce larger improvements in function than standard ACT or cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The ongoing pilot randomized controlled trial compares AMP to CBT among 86 Veterans with chronic pain. The trial aims to evaluate feasibility, examine preliminary treatment effects on outcomes such as pain interference, pain acceptance, and quality of life, and determine whether a full-scale trial is warranted.
Among US military veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who participated in the Mantram Repetition Program—a portable meditative practice involving mindful repetition of a sacred phrase—higher frequency of daily mantram repetition was linked to greater improvements in PTSD symptom severity, trait anger, state anger, mental health well-being, and spiritual well-being, though not physical health well-being. The associations showed small effect sizes. The findings suggest that encouraging regular practice may enhance the benefits of meditation-based interventions for veterans with PTSD.