Compassion Focussed Therapy Interventions

About ten percent of the Dutch working population suffers from chronic stress and high levels of emotional exhaustion. Chronic stress is associated with depressive and anxiety disorders, which are very prevalent in the population. One of the individual causes of chronic stress may be high levels of self-criticism. This context warrants a public mental approach. A self-help book was written based on CFT. A randomized controlled trial was conducted with two groups (n=230): the intervention group working through the book and receiving weekly email guidance and a waiting-list control group. The intervention, the post-treatment (3 months) and short-term follow-up (6 months) effects on self-criticism, stress and well-being will be presented as well as a casestudy of one participant. Evidence for the beneficial effects of compassionate mind training in two distinct populations Marcela Matos and Cristiana Duarte Bio: Marcela Matos is a clinical psychologist and postdoctoral research fellow at the Cognitive and Behavioural Centre for Research and Intervention (CINEICC), University of Coimbra, in Portugal, who has developed research in evolutionary clinical psychology (e.g., social rank theory) and third wave psychological approaches (e.g., Compassion Focused Therapy). She completed her PhD on “Shame memories that shape who we are”, where she investigated how early shame experiences are structured as traumatic memories that become central to personal identity and increase vulnerability to psychopathology. She has worked and trained in Compassion Focused Therapy with Professor Paul Gilbert. At the moment, her main research focus is the design, application and efficacy study of a compassion and mindfulness based group intervention in promoting mental and physical wellbeing in several populations, and also investigating its impact on epigenetic mechanisms and physiological stress responses. Bio: Cristiana Duarte (Clinical Psychologist, MSc, Ph.D. student) is a researcher at the Cognitive and Behavioural Centre for Research and Intervention (CINEICC), in the University of Coimbra, Portugal. Her major research interests are focused on the role that self-evaluation and emotion regulation processes play on body image and eating-related problems. Abstract: The paper “An exploration of two weeks of personal compassion practice on compassion feelings, emotions, mood and heart-rate variability” will be presented by Marcela Matos and explores the impact of Compassionate Self Training practices (e.g., mindfulness, soothing rhythm breathing, voice tones, facial expressions and compassionate focusing) over 2 weeks on mental well-being and heart-rate variability. Using a longitudinal design, Portuguese college students and general population participants were assigned to one of two conditions: Compassionate Self Training (CST; n = 56) and Wait-List Control (WLC; n = 37). Participants in the compassionate self condition were asked to practice compassionate self imagery for 15 minutes everyday and in moments of stress or when facing setbacks during two weeks. Heart rate variability was assessed and self-report The paper “An exploration of two weeks of personal compassion practice on compassion feelings, emotions, mood and heart-rate variability” will be presented by Marcela Matos and explores the impact of Compassionate Self Training practices (e.g., mindfulness, soothing rhythm breathing, voice tones, facial expressions and compassionate focusing) over 2 weeks on mental well-being and heart-rate variability. Using a longitudinal design, Portuguese college students and general population participants were assigned to one of two conditions: Compassionate Self Training (CST; n = 56) and Wait-List Control (WLC; n = 37). Participants in the compassionate self condition were asked to practice compassionate self imagery for 15 minutes everyday and in moments of stress or when facing setbacks during two weeks. Heart rate variability was assessed and self-report measures of shame, self-criticism, compassion feelings and goals, fears of compassion, and psychopathological symptoms were completed at pre and post in the two conditions. Results demonstrated that a brief 2-week compassionate self training produces significant increases in levels of compassion for self and others and of the ability to receive compassion from others, and in positive affect. Furthermore, participants reported a decrease in fears of compassion, in shame and self-criticism, and in depressive symptoms and perceived stress. The CST group reported significant improvement in HRV. These findings support the efficacy of compassionate self training components on the cultivation of a compassionate way of relating both to oneself and to others, and on the promotion of wellbeing. Cristiana Duarte will present the paper "Compassion in body image, weight and eating-related problems". This paper will explore the role of shame and self-criticism on difficulties related to body image, weight and eating and the beneficial effect of compassion. A series of path analyses conducted in both nonclinical and clinical samples, supported that shame and self-criticism are significant predictors of disordered eating symptoms, namely binge eating symptoms. A brief 4-week compassion and mindfulness-based online intervention was delivered to women diagnosed with Binge Eating Disorder. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: intervention (n = 11) or wait-list control (n = 9). Participants in the intervention condition were invited to practice mindfulness, soothing rhythm breathing and compassionate imagery practices with a focus on awareness and acceptance of emotional states and triggers to binge eat and engagement in adaptive actions. Results revealed that, in the intervention group, there were significant reductions in eating psychopathology symptoms, binge eating, selfcriticism and indicators of psychological distress; there were significant increases in compassionate actions and body image-related psychological flexibility. These data suggest that developing compassion competencies may improve eating behaviour and psychological wellbeing in individuals with eating disorders. Integrating compassion focused and cognitive therapy for social anxiety disorder