40 research outputs found
Humor and Laughter may Influence Health. I. History and Background
Articles in both the lay and professional literature have extolled the virtues of humor, many giving the impression that the health benefits of humor are well documented by the scientific and medical community. The concept that humor or laughter can be therapeutic goes back to biblical times and this belief has received varying levels of support from the scientific community at different points in its history. Current research indicates that using humor is well accepted by the public and is frequently used as a coping mechanism. However, the scientific evidence of the benefits of using humor on various health related outcomes still leaves many questions unanswered
Mecanismos neurocognitivos de la terapia basada en mindfulness
Presentamos un resumen y una breve historia del creciente campo de Intervenciones Basadas en mindfulness o conciencia plena. En los últimos tiempos, existe un gran interés en este modelo terapéutico para reducir la vulnerabilidad al estrés crónico y distrés emocional. Mindfulness requiere intencionalmente enfocar nuestra atención a las experiencias que ocurren en el momento presente. A medida que la investigación avanza en esta temática, es vital definir cuidadosamente la estructura de mindfulness y comprender mejor sus mecanismos de acción neurocognitiva. Este informe presenta un marco conceptual que enfatiza el papel central de control atencional y mecanismos de sostenibilidad para desarrollar las habilidades de conciencia plena. También, repasamos la estructura de mindfulness y la autorregulación de las emociones; luego describimos brevemente nuestra investigación relacionada con nuestro programa de Reducción del Estrés en Cáncer de Mama basado en Mindfulness (MBSR-AC) en la University of South Florida. Se presenta, a partir de esta premisa, un modelo propuesto que explica nuestros mecanismos cognitivos basados en la lógica del modelo de biocomportamental
The assessment of the perceived emotional distress: The neglected side of cancer care
The purpose of this research was to present the latest development of the The Perceived Emotional Distress Inventory (PEDI) as a brief 15-item self-report measure intended to be used for the assessment of psychological distress in cancer patients. Factor Analyses of Principal Components with promax rotations were performed with a combined male and female sample of 481 cancer patients at St. Joseph’s hospital Cancer Institute in Tampa, Florida, to provide further evidence of construct validity. The factor structure, internal consistency, and Pearson correlation coefficients of the PEDI are presented in this report. The factor analysis identified three factors comparable to those found in previous samples in USA: The first factor, anxiety/depression; second factor, hopelessness; and third factor, anger expression. Global alpha coefficient of 0.92 for the inventory indicates strong internal consistency. Pearson correlations between the subscales of the instrument is impressive for such a brief measure. This study emphasizes the need for a brief, self-report instrument to assess anger expression, anxiety, depression and hopelessness as components of perceived emotional distress in cancer patients, while explicitly excluding the potentially confounding effects of somatic symptoms commonly associated with cancer treatments. Further research will be needed to provide information about the PEDI’s use in populations other than cancer patients including attempts to replicate these findings in more heterogeneous populations
Relief of Symptoms, Side Effects, and Psychological Distress Through Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Women With Breast Cancer
Relief of Symptoms, Side Effects, and Psychological Distress Through Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Women With Breast Cancer
The effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction on objective and subjective sleep parameters in women with breast cancer: a randomized controlled trial
Abstract Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction for breast cancer survivors (MBSR(BC)) on multiple measures of objective and subjective sleep parameters among breast cancer survivors (BCS). Methods: Data were collected using a two-armed randomized controlled design among BCS enrolled in either a 6-week MBSR(BC) program or a usual care (UC) group with a 12-week follow-up. The present analysis is a subset of the larger parent trial (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01177124). Seventy-nine BCS participants (mean age 57 years), stages 0-III, were randomly assigned to either the formal (in-class) 6-week MBSR(BC) program or UC. Subjective sleep parameters (SSP) (i.e., sleep diaries and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI)) and objective sleep parameters (OSP) (i.e., actigraphy) were measured at baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks after completing the MBSR(BC) or UC program. Results: Results showed indications of a positive effect of MBSR(BC) on OSP at 12 weeks on sleep efficiency (78.2% MBSR(BC) group versus 74.6% UC group, p = 0.04), percent of sleep time (81.0% MBSR(BC) group versus 77.4% UC group, p = 0.02), and less number waking bouts (93.5 in MBSR (BC) group versus 118.6 in the UC group, p < 0.01). Small nonsignificant improvements were found in SSP in the MBSR(BC) group from baseline to 6 weeks (PSQI total score, p = 0.09). No significant relationship was observed between minutes of MBSR(BC) practice and SSP or OSP. Conclusions: These data suggest that MBSR(BC) may be an efficacious treatment to improve objective and subjective sleep parameters in BCS