P02.28. Non-verbal communication of compassion: feasibility of measuring psychophysiological effects of blind exposure

Methods Subjects were healthy volunteers who were told the study was evaluating the effect of time and touch on the autonomic nervous system. The practitioner had more than 10 years experience with lovingkindness meditation (LKM), a form of NVCC. Subjects completed 10-point visual analog scales (VAS) for stress, relaxation and peacefulness before and after LKM. To assess physiologic effects, practitioners and subjects wore cardiorespiratory monitors to assess respiratory rate (RR), heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) throughout the 4 10-minute study periods: Baseline (both practitioner and subjects read neutral material); non-tactile-LKM (subjects read while the practitioner practiced LKM while pretending to read); tactile-LKM (subjects rested while the practitioner practiced LKM while lightly touching the S on arms, shoulders, hands, feet, and legs); PostIntervention Rest (subjects rested; the practitioner read). To assess blinding, subjects were asked what the practitioner was doing during each period.