Mind-body approaches and chronic illness: Status of research

An increasing number of children experience chronic health issues that affect their academic and behavioral functioning, as well as psychological well-being. At the same time, psychological stress can exacerbate the chronic illness. The first line of treatment most often is medical (e.g., pharmacolo...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of school & educational psychology 2016-01, Vol.4 (1), p.16-24
Main Authors: Riccio, Cynthia A., Pliego, Jessica, Rae, William A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Behavior Modification
Biofeedback
child psychology
Children
Chronic Illness
Cognitive Restructuring
Drug Therapy
guided imagery
Health Services
Intervention
Metacognition
mindfulness
pediatric psychology
Pharmacology
psychological interventions
Relaxation Training
stress reduction
Stress Variables
Symptoms (Individual Disorders)
Well Being
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:An increasing number of children experience chronic health issues that affect their academic and behavioral functioning, as well as psychological well-being. At the same time, psychological stress can exacerbate the chronic illness. The first line of treatment most often is medical (e.g., pharmacology, surgery, radiation). Even when the medical approach addresses the physical issues adequately, there may be residual effects on functioning. To better address overall well-being, as well as to potentially decrease reliance on medication, one approach has been to use mind-body or mindfulness interventions. Overall, results from existing studies suggest that mindfulness interventions may be beneficial for reducing symptoms and associated problems through relaxation for many chronic illnesses, including epilepsy, fibromyalgia, headaches or migraines, cancer, and asthma. While the research is promising, there is a need for additional, more controlled studies that integrate mind-body approaches with traditional medical approaches. Suggestions for future studies are provided.
ISSN:2168-3603
2168-3611
DOI:10.1080/21683603.2016.1130544