Promoting self-compassion meditation with intranasal oxytocin in borderline personality disorder: a pilot study.
María Arqueros, Joaquim Soler, David Almenta, Anna Soria-Madrid, Carlos Schmidt, Juan C Pascual
Psychiatry Research June 1, 2026 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2026.117294 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pilot study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 18 |
| Population | Individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) |
| Interventions | Intranasal oxytocin Compassion-based meditation practice |
| Dose | 24 IU |
| Duration | Five weekly sessions |
| Measures | Compassion practice quality (imagination, somatic, total scores) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key points | Compared with placebo, oxytocin was associated with higher endpoint scores on the imagination dimension of compassion practice quality, but no significant differences were found for total or somatic scores. No adverse effects were reported. |
Abstract
Background: Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is characterized by emotion dysregulation, interpersonal difficulties, and high levels of self-criticism, which may hinder engagement with compassion-based therapeutic practices. Oxytocin has been proposed as a modulator of social-affective processes and may facilitate specific mechanisms involved in psychotherapy.
Methods: In this pilot study, 18 individuals with BPD received intranasal oxytocin (24 IU) or placebo prior to a guided compassion-based meditation practice over five weekly sessions. Compassion practice quality was assessed at baseline (T1) and endpoint (T5). Endpoint differences were examined using ANCOVA models controlling for baseline values.
Results: Compared with placebo, oxytocin was associated with higher endpoint scores on the imagination dimension of compassion practice quality. No significant differences were observed for the total score or the somatic dimension, and no adverse effects related to oxytocin administration were reported.
Conclusions: Oxytocin may facilitate specific aspects of the subjective experience during compassion-based practices in individuals with BPD, particularly those related to imagery processes. Further controlled studies with larger samples are needed to clarify the mechanisms of action and to determine whether these effects translate into clinically meaningful outcomes when oxytocin is used as an adjunct to psychotherapy.
Comparable studies
Other non-randomized and open-label trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Relation to Quality of Life, Mood, Symptoms of Stress, and Immune Parameters in Breast and Prostate Cancer Outpatients Early-stage breast and prostate cancer patients | 2003 | Pre-post intervention study | n = 59 |
| Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Community sample | 2010 | Pre-post intervention study | |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Lowers Psychological Distress In Medical Students Second-year medical students | 2003 | Prospective nonrandomized cohort-controlled study | n = 302 |
| Intensive meditation training, immune cell telomerase activity, and psychological mediators. Retreat participants and matched controls | 2011 | Controlled trial with wait-list control group | n = 60 |
| The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Children aged 8-12 with ADHD and their parents | 2011 | Within-group waitlist controlled trial | n = 22 |