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Significant reductions in posttraumatic stress symptoms in Congolese refugees within 10 days of Transcendental Meditation practice.

Brian Rees, Fred Travis, David Shapiro, Ruth Chant

Journal of Traumatic Stress February 1, 2014 DOI: 10.1002/jts.21883 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Pilot study Peer reviewed
Sample size 11
Population Congolese refugees
Intervention Transcendental Meditation
Duration 10-day and 30-day follow-up after instruction
Topics Meditation PTSD
Key points Transcendental Meditation practice was associated with a 29.9-point drop in average PCL-C scores within 10 days and a further 12.7-point drop by 30 days.

Abstract

This follow-up pilot study tested whether Transcendental Meditation® (TM) practice would significantly reduce symptoms of posttraumatic stress in Congolese refugees within 10 days after instruction. The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-Civilian (PCL-C) was administered to nonmatched waitlist controls from a previous study 3 times over a 90-day period. Within 8 days of the third baseline measure, 11 refugees were taught TM, then retested 10 days and 30 days after instruction. Average PCL-C scores dropped 29.9 points from 77.9 to 48.0 in 10 days, then dropped another 12.7 points to 35.3 at 30 days. Effect size at 10 days was high (d = 4.05). There were no adverse events. All participants completed the study and were able to practice TM.

Comparable studies

Other non-randomized and open-label trials on PTSD, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Durability of improvement in post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms and absence of harmful effects or drug dependency after 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted psychotherapy: a prospective long-term follow-up study. Adults with chronic, treatment-resistant PTSD 2013 Long-term follow-up of a completed trial n = 19
Loving‐Kindness Meditation for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Pilot Study Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) 2013 Open pilot trial
Effects of Transcendental Meditation in Veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Pilot Study Veterans from Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom with combat-related... 2011 Uncontrolled pilot study n = 5
MDMA-facilitated cognitive-behavioural conjoint therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder: an uncontrolled trial. Couples in which one partner was diagnosed with PTSD 2020 Pilot study n = 6
Culturally informed research design issues in a study for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for posttraumatic stress disorder People of color with posttraumatic stress disorder 2019 Phase 2 open-label multisite study

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