So… Does Mindfulness Really Work?
Mindfulness and Pediatric Health
Mindfulness is in the news and on social media a lot. Supporters often claim many benefits for physical and mental health, such as improving blood pressure, sleep, anxiety, and depression. It might make you wonder- is trying mindfulness worth it for children and teens with chronic health conditions?
A group of researchers reviewed the current evidence and published their findings in the Journal of Pediatric Psychology (Hughes et al., 2023). They looked at studies up to date in 2023 that included a mindfulness-focused intervention for children 8 to18 years old and with some sort of physical health condition. They found 18 studies that included children with conditions such as headache, inflammatory bowel disease, cancer, and cardiovascular conditions.
Summary of Current Research
Overall, most of the studies (10) reported that their interventions reduced anxiety. Fewer (6) reported that their interventions reduced depressive symptoms. The more children practiced their mindfulness exercises at home, the more their depression reduced. When the researchers asked their participants a while later if they were still feeling better, their findings were mixed.
Interestingly, they found that parents who were involved in the treatments also benefited- if they participated in some way, they found that they worried less about their children and noticed positive benefits on themselves and their whole families.
Some concerns about these results: the treatments were really different from one another. Some had just one session, some had many, and differed in format (e.g. groups, on-line, in—person, and parent involvement). Some of the studies had many participants, and some sample sizes were as small as 6. Together, this means we need to be cautious about over-interpreting results.
In summary, mindfulness seems to be a promising intervention. Currently, however, it has less robust evidence to support its effectiveness than cognitive-behavioral therapy. At this point, mindfulness may not be universally recommended, but a personalized approach can integrate these skills into a comprehensive treatment program that takes into account an individual’s strengths, development, family functioning, illness characteristics, and more.
So, should you or your child try mindfulness? Tips for Success
Learn about mindfulness and how it may work to reduce physiological stress. This can directly impact health symptoms, and help with coping with illness as well.
Consider mindfulness in the context of more evidence-based interventions such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT).
Younger children can try more concrete examples and activities.
Get the whole family involved! Practice separately and together.
Practice makes progress!
How can you try mindfulness?
Mindfulness is defined as, “awareness that arises through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgementally.”
You can try mindfulness through every day activities such as walking and eating and through active and focused exercises.
There are lots of resources available online, and more personalized and developmentally appropriate skills can be integrated into your treatment at Pediatric Pain and Behavioral Health. Use the Get Started button at the top of the page if you are interested.
Reference:
Hughes, O., Shelton, K. H., Penny, H., & Thompson, A. R. (2023). Living With Physical Health Conditions: A Systematic Review of Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Children, Adolescents, and Their Parents. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 48(4), 396-413.