Association between a guided meditation practice, sleep and psychological well-being in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients.
Mathew P Varghese, Ragavendrasamy Balakrishnan, Subramanya Pailoor
Journal of Complementary and Integrative Medicine July 19, 2018 DOI: 10.1515/jcim-2015-0026 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Single-arm pre-post study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 30 |
| Population | Adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus, both male and female, mean age 50.12 ± 11.15 years and BMI 25.14 ± 4.37 kg/m2, without a history of hospitalisation, recruited from the general public in Ernakulam, Kerala, India |
| Intervention | Cyclic Meditation |
| Duration | 4 weeks, 5 days a week, evening sessions |
| Measures | Perceived Stress Scale, State Anxiety Inventory, Beck's Depression Inventory, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, WHO-Quality of Life-BREF |
| Topics | Depression Meditation |
| Keywords | Cyclic meditation Quality of life Sleep |
| Key points | After four weeks of supervised Cyclic Meditation, participants with type 2 diabetes showed improved sleep (32.7%) and quality of life (7.1%) and reduced perceived stress (26.1%), anxiety (16.01%), and depression (37.63%) relative to baseline. The authors conclude the program was safe and effective for these outcomes and propose mind management alongside medical management for better clinical results. |
Abstract
Background: Type 2 diabetes mellitus [T2DM] is one of the leading causes for mortality. This study examined the role of an self-awareness based guided meditation practice, Cyclic Meditation [CM] on perceived stress, anxiety, depression, sleep and quality of life in T2DM patients.
Design: A single arm pre-post design was used for the study.
Setting: The study was conducted in an auditorium for general public diagnosed with T2DM in Ernakulam, Kerala, India. Subjects Subjects were 30 T2DM patients, both male and female of age 50.12 ± 11.15 years and BMI 25.14 ± 4.37 Kg/m2 and not having a history of hospitalisation were randomly recruited for the study following advertisements in national dailies. Intervention Participants completed a supervised CM programs in the evenings, 5 days a week for 4 weeks, in addition to their regular medication. Measures Perceived stress, anxiety and depression were assessed with Perceived Stress Scale, State Anxiety Inventory and Beck's depression inventory, respectively. Sleep and quality of life were assessed with Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and WHO-Quality of Life - BREF respectively. Analysis Changes in the outcome measures from baseline to 4 weeks were compared using paired "t" test.
Results: After 4 weeks, the quality of life and sleep scores increased 7.1% [p = 0.001] and 32.7% [p = 0.001], respectively. The perceived stress, anxiety and depression reduced 26.1% [p = 0.001], 16.01% [p = 0.003] and 37.63% [p = 0.006] as compared to their baseline reports. The CM practice also reduced daytime dysfunction.
Conclusions: A guided self-awareness based meditation program was safe and effective in improving depression, anxiety, perceived stress and enhance sleep and quality of life in T2DM patients, which could be helpful in reducing the future complications of T2DM. Mind management is essential along with medical management to achieve better clinical results.
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 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 2
- Effects of Compassion Meditation on Psychological Status in Patients With Diabetes: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial Western Journal of Nursing Research June 29, 2026
- A Comparative Effect of Cyclic Meditation and Mind Sound Resonance Technique on Anxiety Reduction and Quality of Life Improvement in the General Population Journal of Applied Consciousness Studies 2025
Cites 4
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- A review of the scientific studies on cyclic meditation. International Journal of Yoga July 1, 2009
- Attention regulation and monitoring in meditation. Trends in Cognitive Sciences April 1, 2008
- Changes in p300 following two yoga-based relaxation techniques. International Journal of Neuroscience December 2006