Mindfulness-based online intervention increases well-being and decreases stress after Covid-19 lockdown

Abstract

Mindfulness interventions were shown to be effective in improving well-being and reducing perceived stress in several conditions. These effects were also found in online mindfulness-based training, especially in employees in organizational environments. The aim of this study was to test the effectiveness of an online mindfulness intervention on healthy employees, especially after the first Italian Covid-19 lockdown. Participants in the intervention group underwent an 8-week mindfulness online training program based on the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) protocol compared to a control (no-intervention) group. All participants filled in weekly surveys for the whole intervention duration via online questionnaires to measure their habits, mindfulness (FFMQ-15), emotion regulation (ERQ), positive and negative affect (PANAS), depression, anxiety and stress (DASS-21), resilience (RSA) and insomnia (ISI). 69 participants in the intervention group and 63 in the no-treatment control group were considered in the longitudinal analyses. We found significant differences between the intervention and control groups over time in the measures of mindfulness (in particular the nonreactivity subscale), positive affect, depression, and insomnia. Moreover, we found that the frequency of practice and ease perceived in practicing were positively correlated to several indices of well-being (mindfulness, positive affect, cognitive reappraisal) and negatively correlated to several indices of stress (negative affect, depression, anxiety, stress, insomnia, expressive suppression). These results show the importance and effectiveness of online mindfulness training programs to cope with stress among employees, especially after the Covid-19 lockdown.

How and when perceived COVID-19 crisis strength impacts individuals' life satisfaction and sleep quality: A moderated mediation model

“…Such findings are consistent with Ye and Lyu's ( 74 ) research, which suggests that risk perception is low for individuals with a high trust in government. Meanwhile, our findings also confirm Bossi et al's ( 23 ) and Matiz et al's ( 22 ) findings, who found that mindfulness-based training is beneficial for mitigating the negative impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak.…”

“…In other words, individuals with a higher level of mindfulness often purposely focus their attention on their ongoing and present experiences, as well as maintain a non-judgmental attitude ( 19 , 21 ). Existing works suggest that mindfulness intervention is helpful for decreasing anxiety, depression, and emotional exhaustion during the COVID-19 pandemic ( 22 ), and is effective for relieving stress after COVID-19 lockdowns ( 23 ). Moreover, Zheng et al ( 24 ) indicated that the interaction between COVID-19 stressors and mindfulness could affect sleep duration.…”

Burnout, depression, anxiety and insomnia among medical staff during the COVID-19 epidemic in Shanghai

“…A study on operating room staff found that providing them with 30-min of music therapy three times a day for a consecutive month significantly decreased their emotional exhaustion, representing improved job burnout ( 51 ). In another pilot study, researchers chose mindfulness therapy based on an online app, which has also been shown to help reduce the stress and negative emotions of medical and non-medical participants, thereby improving burnout ( 52 , 53 ). We therefore recommend the use of non-drug interventions such as online mindfulness therapy or music therapy to help medical staff with job burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic.…”

Mindfulness Meditation Interventions for Long COVID: Biobehavioral Gene Expression and Neuroimmune Functioning

“…This intervention was effective in facilitating mindfulness practice, [179][180][181][182] as well as reducing stress, 178 and increasing well-being. 183 However, there are limitations to the research available, as the above findings are restricted to positive responses on self-report questionnaires of perceived well-being in relatively healthy samples.…”