Abstract
Background: In our pilot study, we investigated the psychological (well-being and personal coping strategies) and physiological (assessed by heart rate variability (HRV)) effects of the newly developed activity-based stress release (ABSR) program for people with depressive disorders, also in combination with burnout symptoms and/or anxiety disorders. Methods: A single-arm prospective observational study was carried out. Twenty participants diagnosed with depression and burnout or anxiety disorders were invited to participate in the 8-week ABSR program. All participants filled in two questionnaires (the multidimensional mental state questionnaire and the Ehrenfeld inventory on coping style) before, directly after and 2 months after the 8-week ABSR program. In addition, all participants were offered a 24-hour Holter ECG measurement before, directly after and 2 months after the 8-week ABSR program to measure HRV. Results: Calmness and serenity showed a statistically significant improvement after the 8-week ABSR program. However, complete questionnaire sets were not available from all of the participants. In the four individuals who had agreed to a 24-hour Holter ECG, the overall HRV and parasympathetic activity increased. Conclusions: The ABSR program is an encouraging novel therapeutic approach: A significant improvement in calmness and serenity was observed after ABSR. A larger and controlled trial of this treatment option in depression and burnout is recommended. It should be further investigated how ABSR affects task-evoked and resting brain activity, and what effects it has on the cardiovascular system in general (better blood flow and normalization of activity are to be expected).
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We thank all participants of the study as well as Delphine Meier, Felix Scholkmann and Hamoon Zohdi for valuable discussion.
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Kloter, E., Walder-Rohner, L., Haas, H., Hundhammer, T., Wolf, U. (2023). A Prospective Observational Pilot Study on the Effects of the Activity-Based Stress Release Program on the Mental State and Autonomic Nervous System in Psychiatric Patients. In: Scholkmann, F., LaManna, J., Wolf, U. (eds) Oxygen Transport to Tissue XLIV. ISOTT 2022. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, vol 1438. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-42003-0_36
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