Abstract
This study aims to develop a clinical trial to test the efficacy of a mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) and self-compassion (SC) program on self-reported values of anxiety, depression, and stress in parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in primary school, in order to assess their integration into the framework of community intervention programs in Spain. Methods: A brief 8-week training program using mindfulness-based intervention (MBSR) and self-compassion (SC) has been applied to twelve Valencian ASD parents, ten of whom completed the program. Participants were assigned to two groups; both groups received the same treatment but at two different measurement moments. Depression, anxiety, stress, satisfaction with life and mindful attention awareness measurements were performed, in all participants, in three testing stages. Results: Analysis of variance results suggested that MBSR and SC training reduces stress and anxiety and increases mindful attention awareness. No significant changes were found in life satisfaction measurements. Conclusions: The small number of participants prevents us from generalizing the results found. More MBSR and SC clinical trials are needed in parents of ASD with results on anxiety, depression and stress in order to demonstrate the relevance of the inclusion of these programs in community-based early intervention services.
Highlights
In the last decade, interest in mindfulness effects studies has increased significantly, as reflected in the number of recent publications [1,2]
In the case of the DASS-Stress and MAAS questionnaire, because they showed some significant effects on the variable GROUP on the corroborations that we made, we assumed that the observations of the data presented in the present work related to these two variables should be taken as orientating and in future work should be analyzed and supported with a larger sample of data
There is a great variety of parenting and parental stress that may be suffered by parents of children with neurodevelopmental problems
Summary
Interest in mindfulness effects studies has increased significantly, as reflected in the number of recent publications [1,2]. Found that with meditation practice, brain activity increased in the frontal, anterior and insular regions, showing different results in experienced meditation practitioners compared to those who were not experienced in meditation They studied the possible genetic mechanisms that underlie the oxytocin receptors and their relationship with executive functions and the empathic network (including the right angular gyrus, the medial prefrontal cortex and the anterior cingulate cortex) and the development of self-compassionate attention [10]. These findings, still preliminary, advance our understanding of how the improvement of mindfulness skills can enhance a person’s well-being and the prevention of any related psychological or physical conditions
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