Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the effects of mindfulness-based mandala coloring made within nature on individuals with chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain (CWP). Thirty-six participants were randomly allocated. In the experimental group, identical interventions and procedures were administered for each experiment. The control group members were untreated and remained in an urban environment. Overall, the experiment showed significant improvements in tender points (f = 8.791, p = 0.006), total stress level (f = 14.570, p = 0.001), depressive symptoms (f = 15.205, p = 0.001), anger symptoms (f = 7.263, p = 0.011) and salivary cortisol (f = 10.619, p = 0.003) in the experimental group. The results reflect that MBMC within nature is effective in reducing pain, psychological stress responses, and cortisol levels in individuals with CWP. The positive results could be a product of the experimental design rather than the treatment itself. A rigorous experimental design provides better understanding of MBMC within nature.
Highlights
This study showed that mindfulness-based mandala coloring (MBMC) within nature relieved pain and psychological complications notably in individuals with chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain (CWP) as compared to participants who remained in an urban environment and did not receive MBMC
This study examined the effects of MBMC within nature
The results indicated that mindfulness-based art therapy and contact with nature were statically favorable in reducing chronic pain and stress levels in individuals suffering from CWP
Summary
CWP has been reported to be accompanied by psychological complications, including stress [4], anxiety, depression [5], and fatigue [6,7]. Studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of various non-pharmacological pain management interventions for conditions including CWP [8,9,10]. Studies have shown that mindfulness-based interventions are effective in reducing pain, anxiety, depression, and stress [11,12,13,14]. Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) [15] is one of such interventions first introduced to treat chronic pain [16]. MBSR was expanded to mindfulness-based art therapy (MBAT), which combines the elements of MBSR [17]
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