Improving Wellbeing of SHP Personnel at UAB

NCT ID: NCT05468112

Last Updated: 2023-03-27

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: WITHDRAWN
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2024-11-15
• Study Completion Date: 2025-12-30

Brief Summary

The main objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of a well-being program, SKY Campus Happiness, on well-being of students, faculties, and staff working/studying at School of Health Professional (SHP). SHP is leaning on the SKY Campus Happiness (SKY) program which is an integrative workshop format that includes both skill-building and group dynamics and may be critical for the effectiveness of the program. SKY is a university leadership and well-being program (campushappiness.org) that includes stress-management and tools for psychological resilience: yoga postures, breathing exercises, a breath-based meditation technique [Sudarshan Kriya Yoga]. SKY also includes positive psychology skills (e.g., gratitude, social connection, acts of kindness, meaning and purpose). In addition, the curriculum includes discussion and application of leadership skills and service learning. Relying on existing evidence of previous studies, we hypothesize that participating in this program will increase the well-being of people involved.

Detailed Description

Students/staff/faculties of SHP will be offered to participate in the SKY Breath Happiness workshop followed by participating in a research program designed to study the potential effectiveness of the SKY Breath Happiness Program as a stress-management, resilience building wellness tool in this population. They will be given an informed consent form to sign if they choose to participate in the study. The course that the students are enrolled in is the SKY program, which is an evidence-based bio-psycho-social program that utilizes a multi-dimensional relationship between biology and behavior. It utilizes a unique set of standardized breathing techniques to rapidly reduce neuro-endocrine stress responses and the autonomic imbalance due to sympathetic overdrive, thus restoring autonomic homeostasis. These are interwoven with coping and stressor appraisal strategies, and simple stretching exercises. Classes will be 3 hours long on each of three consecutive days, and participants must be willing to attend all three sessions. There will also be one mandatory one hour follow-up session one week later. Participants will be asked to engage in daily 10 to 25 minute home resilience practice sessions performed five days per week. To support participants stabilization of the practices, optional daily guided practice will be offered online at a determined convenient time for all participants to allow full participation. The breathing techniques will be taught by certified instructors.

Conditions

Stress, Psychological

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NA
• Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Sky Meditation and Mindfulness Intervention

In person meditation classes will be 3 hours long on each of three consecutive days, and participants must be willing to attend all three sessions. An additional 7 online sessions will be delivered to participants in successive days after the initial in-person intervention. Participants will be asked to engage in daily 10 to 25 minute home resilience practice sessions performed five days per week. To support participants stabilization of the practices, optional daily guided practice will be offered online at a determined convenient time for all participants to allow full participation. The breathing techniques will be taught by certified instructors.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

SKY Meditation and Mindfulness

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

The intervention is a 3-day in-person meditation and mindfulness workshop using the SKY meditation approach. It utilizes a unique set of standardized breathing techniques to rapidly reduce neuro-endocrine stress responses and the autonomic imbalance due to sympathetic overdrive, thus restoring autonomic homeostasis. These are interwoven with coping and stressor appraisal strategies, and simple stretching exercises. Classes will be 3 hours long on each of three consecutive days, and participants must be willing to attend all three sessions with an additional 7 consecutive days of online sessions immediately thereafter. In addition, participants will be asked to engage in daily 10 to 25 minute home resilience practice sessions performed five days per week. They will complete a follow-up session once per week in the subsequent 8 weeks.

Interventions

SKY Meditation and Mindfulness

The intervention is a 3-day in-person meditation and mindfulness workshop using the SKY meditation approach. It utilizes a unique set of standardized breathing techniques to rapidly reduce neuro-endocrine stress responses and the autonomic imbalance due to sympathetic overdrive, thus restoring autonomic homeostasis. These are interwoven with coping and stressor appraisal strategies, and simple stretching exercises. Classes will be 3 hours long on each of three consecutive days, and participants must be willing to attend all three sessions with an additional 7 consecutive days of online sessions immediately thereafter. In addition, participants will be asked to engage in daily 10 to 25 minute home resilience practice sessions performed five days per week. They will complete a follow-up session once per week in the subsequent 8 weeks.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Other Intervention Names

SKY Yoga; Sudarshan Kriya Yoga

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Healthy students/faculty/staff who at UAB, School of Health Professionals
• Willingness to complete all study interventional components

Exclusion Criteria

• Inability to understand standard English
• Previous participation in a SKY intervention
• Pregnant persons
• Diagnosis of bipolar disorder or schizophrenia

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

University of Alabama at Birmingham

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Keith McGregor

Associate Professor

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

References

Sharma A, Barrett MS, Cucchiara AJ, Gooneratne NS, Thase ME. A Breathing-Based Meditation Intervention for Patients With Major Depressive Disorder Following Inadequate Response to Antidepressants: A Randomized Pilot Study. J Clin Psychiatry. 2017 Jan;78(1):e59-e63. doi: 10.4088/JCP.16m10819.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 27898207 (View on PubMed)

Lai KSP, Watt C, Ionson E, Baruss I, Forchuk C, Sukhera J, Burhan AM, Vasudev A. Breath Regulation and yogic Exercise An online Therapy for calm and Happiness (BREATH) for frontline hospital and long-term care home staff managing the COVID-19 pandemic: A structured summary of a study protocol for a feasibility study for a randomised controlled trial. Trials. 2020 Jul 14;21(1):648. doi: 10.1186/s13063-020-04583-w.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 32665041 (View on PubMed)

Seppala EM, Bradley C, Moeller J, Harouni L, Nandamudi D, Brackett MA. Promoting Mental Health and Psychological Thriving in University Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial of Three Well-Being Interventions. Front Psychiatry. 2020 Jul 15;11:590. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00590. eCollection 2020.

Reference Type: RESULT

PMID: 32760296 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

IRB-300008660

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id