The role of brief mindfulness meditation instruction and practice in changing biophysical indicators in pregnant women and their babies

Clark, Mary Rosanne

The role of brief mindfulness meditation instruction and practice in changing biophysical indicators in pregnant women and their babies

dc.contributor.advisor	Barber, Carrie Cornsweet
dc.contributor.advisor	Isler, Robert B.
dc.contributor.author	Clark, Mary Rosanne
dc.date.accessioned	2012-09-04T04:30:24Z
dc.date.available	2012-09-04T04:30:24Z
dc.date.issued	2012
dc.date.updated	2012-01-26T20:28:42Z
dc.description.abstract	Pregnancy is a time of change that has the potential to be a stressful experience for some women. There is evidence from animal and human studies that longterm exposure to maternal stress can be detrimental to the unborn baby, both before and after birth. Non-pharmacological interventions that are aimed at assisting pregnant women to mediate the way they respond to stress are particularly relevant for the pregnant population, due to the potential teratogenic risks associated with drug therapy. Mindfulness-based therapies have the potential to be beneficial for pregnant women. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of a brief biofeedback-assisted mindfulness meditation procedure on the physiological responses of pregnant women and their babies. Six women in the last trimester of pregnancy completed a brief mindfulness meditation procedure. Each participant’s physiological responses (heart rate, respiration rate and galvanic skin response), and her baby’s heart rate, were measured across baseline, teaching and practice conditions. The results indicated that the procedure was associated with a physiological change in at least one of the variables for all of the participants. The procedure was not, however, associated with a change in all of the variables for any of the participants. The procedure was associated with a decrease in the mean fetal heart rate in four of the six babies. There was no clear association between maternal physiological responses and fetal responses for five of the six participants. The findings suggest that biofeedback is helpful in assisting participants to learn and practice a brief mindfulness meditation procedure.
dc.format.mimetype	application/pdf
dc.identifier.citation	Clark, M. R. (2012). The role of brief mindfulness meditation instruction and practice in changing biophysical indicators in pregnant women and their babies (Thesis, Master of Applied Psychology (MAppPsy)). University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10289/6616	en
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/10289/6616
dc.language.iso	en
dc.publisher	University of Waikato
dc.rights	All items in Research Commons are provided for private study and research purposes and are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated.
dc.subject	Mindfulness
dc.subject	Pregnancy
dc.subject	Biofeedback
dc.title	The role of brief mindfulness meditation instruction and practice in changing biophysical indicators in pregnant women and their babies	en
dc.type	Thesis
pubs.place-of-publication	Hamilton, New Zealand	en_NZ
thesis.degree.grantor	University of Waikato
thesis.degree.level	Masters
thesis.degree.name	Master of Applied Psychology (MAppPsy)