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Mindfully Attending to Pain Sensations
Sponsor: Harvard University
Summary
Substantial evidence suggests that psychosocial factors play a key role in explaining the risk for development of chronic pain, as well as for coping with it. Such factors include psychological perceptions or orientation towards pain, mainly referring to fear of pain and pain catastrophizing. Nonetheless, although this link is well documented, the underlying mechanisms of these processes have yet to be established. The "Attention to Variability" paradigm presents an explanatory mechanism, according to which the ability to mindfully attend to chronic symptoms enables and promotes increased control over the etiology and the expression of chronic symptoms. In support of the ATV paradigm, empirical findings demonstrate that ATV improved pregnancy outcomes and allowed people to gain control over fluctuations in their heart rates. The goal of the present study is to examine whether mindfully attending to pain sensations will decrease the intensity and frequency of chronic pain, increase perceived control of pain, and improve well-being and health-related quality of life.
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
18 Years - Any
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Enrollment
300
Start Date
2018-04-20
Completion Date
2021-01-29
Last Updated
2026-04-21
Healthy Volunteers
No
Conditions
Interventions
High Mindfulness
Those in the "high mindfulness" group will also receive questions about their current pain intensity and unpleasantness in both the morning and evening for six days. In order to emphasize the variability in pain, participants will receive these text messages on a variable schedule. In addition, they will sent instructions every morning to pay attention to variability in their pain throughout the day and asked to report on how their pain is changing over time as a part of each text message prompt.
Low Mindfulness
Those in the "low mindfulness" group, who will receive receive two text messages per day (one at at 9am and one at 9pm) for six days, each prompting them to write about the activity they are currently engaged in. They will also be prompted with the 9pm text to report on their pain intensity and unpleasantness at that time.
Active Control
Participants in the "active control" group will receive 2 text messages per day for six days (one at 9am and one at 9pm) asking them to report on the activity they are currently engaged in.
Locations (4)
Tufts Medical Center
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Harvard University
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
New England Physiatry
Stoneham, Massachusetts, United States