Protocol for a Pilot Study on the Neurocardiac Mechanism of an Interoceptive Compassion-Based Heart-Smile Training for Depression.

Background: Heart-Smile Training (HST) is an interoceptive compassion-based behavioral intervention that in case reports has been beneficial for depression. Interoception refers to the awareness and regulation of physiological signals from inside the body. Depressed patients often have diminished interoceptive awareness and often experience disconnection from bodily needs and sensations.

Beneficial effects of mindfulness-based intervention on hippocampal volumes and episodic memory for childhood adversity survivors.

Background: Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) has detrimental impacts on neural development, especially hippocampal morphometry. Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBI) has been shown to induce adaptive hippocampal changes especially at the subiculum. The present study aims to investigate the effects of MBI on subiculum volumes among ACE survivors, as well as the effects on episodic memory as a probe into hippocampal functionality.

Childhood adversity severity modulates the associations between adaptive psychological changes and amygdala volumetric changes in response to behavioral interventions.

Background: Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) has been shown to have detrimental impact on amygdala structure. Prior research found that adaptive psychological changes after Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBI) were associated with amygdala volumetric changes. The present study aims to further investigate whether such effects also occur among ACE survivors and whether the effects are unique to MBI.

Clinical effects of mindfulness-based interventions for adults with a history of childhood maltreatment: a scoping review.

Purpose Of Review: Survivors of childhood maltreatment are at high risk for developing complex psychiatric disorders. Traditional treatments, including psychopharmacology, tend to be less efficacious for this population. This scoping review aimed to discuss existing empirical studies on the effects of mindfulness-based interventions for adult childhood trauma survivors, as well as the documented clinical challenges and adaptations for this population.

A pilot study on amygdala volumetric changes among young adults with childhood maltreatment histories after a mindfulness intervention.

The amygdala morphometry is highly sensitive to stress and is implicated in various psychopathologies that are common among individuals with childhood maltreatment histories. This pilot study investigated bilateral amygdala volumetric changes among 15 young adults with childhood maltreatment histories undergoing an eight-week mindfulness intervention compared to 19 matched participants in a waitlist control group. Results indicated significant cross-individual variability in amygdala volumetric changes after the intervention, which resulted in no significant group by time interaction effect.

Effects of a mindfulness based behavioral intervention for young adults with childhood maltreatment history on hippocampal morphometry: a pilot MRI study with voxel-based morphometry.

Childhood maltreatment has long lasting impacts on neural development of the hippocampus, which is important for learning and memory. The present study aimed to assess the effects of a mindfulness based intervention on hippocampal morphometry and episodic memory in this population. We administered MRI, psychological questionnaires and an episodic memory task to 21 participants (5 males) before and after a mindfulness-based behavioral intervention, compared to 21 participants (7 males) on the waiting list.

Nonattachment Predicts Empathy, Rejection Sensitivity, and Symptom Reduction After a Mindfulness-Based Intervention Among Young Adults with a History of Childhood Maltreatment.

Objectives: Individuals with a childhood maltreatment history tend to have various psychological symptoms and impaired social functioning. This study aimed to investigate the related therapeutic effects of a mindfulness-based intervention in this population.

Methods: We analyzed self-report questionnaire scores of the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), Non-Attachment Scale (NAS), Adult Rejection Sensitivity Questionnaire (A-RSQ), Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), PTSD CheckList (PCL), and Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), from 16 (3 males) young adults (age range 22-29) with mild to moderate childhood maltreatment, compared to 18 matched participants (6 males) on a waiting list, during both pre- and post-intervention/waiting periods.

Effects of a Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Self-Compassion and Psychological Health Among Young Adults With a History of Childhood Maltreatment.

Background: Individuals who were maltreated during childhood are faced with increased risks for developing various psychological symptoms that are particularly resistant to traditional treatments. This pilot study investigated the effects of a mindfulness based behavioral intervention for young adults with a childhood maltreatment history.

Methods: This study looked at self-report psychological questionnaires from 20 subjects (5 males) before and after a mindfulness-based behavioral intervention, compared to 18 subjects (6 males) in the waiting list control group (age range 22-29); all subjects experienced mild-to-moderate childhood maltreatment.