The association of mindfulness and psychological well-being among individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 in Jianghan District, Wuhan, China: A cross-sectional study
Zhenwei Dai, Hao Wang, Weijun Xiao, Yiman Huang, Mingyu Si, Jiaqi Fu, Xu Chen, Mengmeng Jia, Zhiwei Leng, Dan Cui, Liming Dong, Winnie W. S. Mak, Xiaoyou Su
Journal of Affective Disorders September 23, 2022 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.09.062 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional survey Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 1,541 |
| Population | Adults who had recovered from COVID-19 in Jianghan District, Wuhan, China |
| Measures | Five Facets of Mindfulness Questionnaire-Short Form (FFMQ-SF), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire (GAD-7), Resilience Style Questionnaire (RSQ), Impact of Events Scale-Revised (IES-R), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Citations | 15 |
| Key findings | Among 1,541 recovered COVID-19 patients, 36.2% had mild and 27.1% had severe depressive and anxiety symptoms respectively, and 15.2% screened positive for PTSD. Mindfulness was negatively associated with depressive symptoms directly and indirectly via resilience and anxiety, and negatively associated with PTSD indirectly via anxiety. |
Abstract
Background: In the global pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have commonly occurred among COVID-19 patients, whose experiences of infection and subsequent treatment might develop negative consequences on their mental well-being even after recovery. Despite the general recognition of efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing psychological distress among various populations, there were insufficient studies on the relationship between mindfulness and mental health among individuals who have recovered from COVID-19.
Objective: The current study aims to identify the prevalence of common mental health challenges among recovered COVID-19 patients in Jianghan District, Wuhan, China and to explore the potential mechanism through which mindfulness alleviate depression and PTSD.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey on mental health was conducted among a convenience sample of adults recovered from COVID-19 in Jianghan District, Wuhan, China. The study participants completed questionnaires under the assistance of trained investigators. The questionnaire included Chinese version of Five Facets of Mindfulness Questionnaire-Short Form (FFMQ-SF), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire (GAD-7), Resilience Style Questionnaire (RSQ), Impact of Events Scale-Revised (IES-R), and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) to measure mindfulness, anxiety, resilience, PTSD, and depression respectively. Structural equation modeling was used to explore the relationship between mindfulness and mental health outcomes of this population.
Results: 1541 respondents (654 [42.4 %] men and 887 [57.6 %] women) completed the questionnaire between June 10 and July 25, 2021, of whom 36.2 % and 27.1 % had mild and severe levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms respectively, and 15.2 % was indicated with PTSD. The average score of mindfulness of the study participants was (3.100 ± 0.387), and that of resilience was (3.560 ± 0.877). The structural equation model fit the data well, demonstrating that mindfulness was negatively associated with depressive symptoms directly (β = -0.031, P = 0.021) or indirectly through the mediation effect of resilience (β = -0.019, P = 0.009) and anxiety symptoms (β = -0.208, P < 0.001), and was negatively associated with PTSD through the mediation effect of anxiety symptoms (β = -0.142, P < 0.001).
Conclusion: Individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 commonly experienced psychological distress. Mindfulness is associated with alleviation of depressive and PTSD symptoms directly or indirectly. Interventions based on mindfulness are suggested to improve the mental well-being of this population.