Mindfulness Based Compassionate Living in Recurrent Depression

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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Since a few years, Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) has been used as treatment for patients suffering from recurrent depression. Though a number of studies show that MBCT is effective in this population and MBCT reduces the chances of relapse/recurrence in recurrent depressive patients, the chance of a new depression developing after end of treatment is still considerable. Ergo, there is room for improvement. Especially the development of a non-judging or compassionate attitude towards all experience seems to mediate the treatment effect. It is therefore our expectation that a follow-up intervention that focuses specifically on self-compassion could prove very useful in elaborating on the effects of MBCT. The research question of this research is therefore: what is the effect of compassion training in people suffering from recurrent depression who have already received MBCT training?

Official Title
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The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Based Compassionate Living in Recurrent Depression

Conditions
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Recurrent Depression

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Mindfulness Based Compassionate Living


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Recurrent depression according to the DSM-IV criteria. Having participated in an MBCT training (>= 4 sessions) Exclusion Criteria: One or more previous (hypo)manic episodes according to DSM-IV criteria. Primary psychotic disorder, e.g. schizophrenia or delusions. Clinically relevant neurological conditions (e.g. brain trauma or dementia) or somatic conditions (e.g. cancer, AIDS) that could be related to the depression. Current alcohol and/or drug abuse. Use of high dosages of benzodiazepines. Recent electro convulsive therapy (ECT) (less than 3 months ago). Problems impeding participating in a group, such as severe borderline personality disorder. No prior experience with MBCT. Problems impeding completing the questionnaires, such as cognitive dysfunctions (only assessed if suspected). Subnormal intelligence (IQ < 80) (only assessed if suspected).

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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No

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Treatment
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Single


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: MBCL + TAU<br>This cohort receives the Mindfulness Based Compassionate Living program in addition to treatment as usual. | Behavioral: Mindfulness Based Compassionate Living<br>* The MBCL program consists of eight biweekly group sessions of 2.5 hours, in which the participants get formal meditation exercises, some theoretical information and participate in inquiry on the meditation exercises and homework assignments. Homework assignments are given after every session, consisting of formal and informal meditation exercises primarily and some diary instructions.<br>* Other names: Mindfulness Based Compassion Training;|
| No Intervention: TAU<br>This cohort receives treatment as usual of any nature, e.g. psychotherapy, antidepressant medication etc. | |

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Beck Depression Inventory-II | The BDI-II measures depression symptoms. Measurements will be taken at baseline, end of treatment/control and follow up. | 1 year | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Self-Compassion Scale | The Self-Compassion Scale measures Self-Compassion. Measurements will be taken at baseline, end of treatment/control and follow-up. | 1 year | 
| Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire | The FFMQ measures mindfulness skills. Measurements will be taken at baseline, end of treatment/control and follow-up. | 1 year | 
| The Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II | The AAQ-II measures Experiential Avoidance. Measurements will be taken at baseline, end of treatment/control and follow-up. | 1 year | 
| Fears of Compassion Scale (3) | The FoCS (3) measures fear of Self-Compassion. Measurements will be taken at baseline, end of treatment/control and follow-up. | 1 year | 
| Types of Positive Affect Scale | The TPAS measures Positive Affect. Measurements will be taken at baseline, end of treatment/control and follow-up. | 1 year | 
| The World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale | The WHO-QoL measures Quality of Life. Measurements will be taken at baseline, end of treatment/control and follow-up. | 1 year | 
| The Ruminative Response Scale | The RRS measures Rumination. Measurements will be taken at baseline, end of treatment/control and follow-up. | 1 year | 
| The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire | The CTQ measures Childhood Adversity. Measurements will be taken at baseline only. | Baseline | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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Randomised controlled trial, Recurrent depression, Mindfulness training, Compassion training (MBCL), Fear of Compassion, Added value Compassion