Guided Imagery and Stress in Pregnant Adolescents

The influence of antenatal relaxation classes on perinatal psychological wellbeing and childbirth experiences: a qualitative study

BACKGROUND

There is growing evidence that antenatal education incorporating relaxation practices can positively influence perinatal psychological wellbeing. However, a paucity of qualitative research is evident. Gaining insight into how and why such education may influence childbearing women, can inform the design of effective educational interventions. This study aimed to explore the perspectives of women and their partners on how and why a single Antenatal Relaxation Class (ARC) might influence perinatal psychological wellbeing and childbirth experiences.

METHOD

In this descriptive qualitative study, 17 women and 9 partners participated in semi-structured in-depth interviews and the data were analysed using thematic analysis. The study was carried out in a Scottish NHS Health Board where ARC was provided to expectant parents.

FINDINGS

Two themes were generated, namely: 'the turning point', and 'recognition of an inner resource'. Participants perceived ARC as 'the turning point' when they became more confident, equipped, and less fearful and anxious towards childbirth. 'Understanding of the psychophysiological processes of childbirth', 'positive stories', and 'practice of relaxation techniques' were reported as the main reasons for these positive changes. Participants explained ARC had enabled them to access a deep sense of calmness as 'an inner resource' and motivated the use of relaxation techniques as a self-care behaviour throughout pregnancy and childbirth.

CONCLUSION

A single antenatal relaxation class has the potential to enhance perinatal psychological wellbeing and childbirth experiences. This study provides valuable insights for maternity services seeking to develop effective health-promoting antenatal education.

Stress management strategies for NP practice

ABSTRACT

Knowledge of stress management strategies is helpful to NPs in clinical practice, as they frequently encounter patients or patients' family members who require assistance in managing acute stress. Patients or patients' family members may experience a high level of stress due to health factors such as pain, life-changing diagnoses, treatment options viewed as undesirable, and/or poor medical prognoses. In addition, healthcare visits, hospitalization, diagnostic tests, surgical procedures, and other treatments can cause stress for some patients. NPs should therefore be well informed about stress management strategies to be able to effectively educate and provide compassionate care for their patients. This article reviews four strategies designed to assist patients and/or their family members in reducing stress to allow for a more positive experience during a healthcare visit or hospitalization.

The Effect of Online-Delivered Guided Imagery Relaxation on Stress and Well-Being of Primary School Children

Background

In the context of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, effectively coping with daily stressors is crucial for children who experience restrictions on physical movement and social activities. We examined the effects of the online-delivered guided imagery relaxation (GIR) technique on the stress and well-being of primary school children.

Methods

Thirty-four (N = 34) 11-year-old students were randomly assigned to either intervention (n = 17) or waitlist-control (n = 17) groups. The participants from the intervention group were required to attend a 4-week online GIR session and practice the techniques daily for 5 min-10 min. The Stress in Children (SiC) questionnaire, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire-Parent Reported (SDQ-PR) and tracking form were administered pre- and post-intervention.

Results

Eleven (64.7%) participants attended all sessions and eight (47.0%) completed daily practices. Mixed-model ANOVA indicated no significant difference between participants from intervention and waitlist-control groups across pre- and post-intervention time points, with P-values greater than 0.05 for stress and well-being.

Conclusion

Issues regarding online intervention, including managing children's activities from a distance, Internet connectivity, and time limitations might have affected their adherence and the research outcome. Nonetheless, the online-delivered GIR technique is a promising intervention modality. However, its implementation should be improvised to be more impactful.

The influence of laughter yoga on pregnancy symptoms, mental well-being, and prenatal attachment: A randomized controlled study

The researchers' aim was to evaluate the impact of laughter yoga on pregnancy symptoms, mental well-being, and prenatal attachment. They carried out this study on 85 pregnant women randomized in a maternity hospital in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. The researchers collected data using the Pregnant Introduction Form, Pregnancy Symptom Inventory (PSI), Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS), and Prenatal Attachment Inventory (PAI). After applying the laughter yoga practice, they found that mental well-being and prenatal attachment levels were higher in pregnant women in the experimental group and the difference was statistically significant. Thus, they concluded that laughter yoga was an effective practice in reducing the frequency of pregnancy symptoms and limiting daily activities by pregnancy symptoms and increasing mental well-being and prenatal attachment levels.

COVID-19 pandemic: study on simple, easy, and practical relaxation techniques while wearing medical protective equipment

BACKGROUND

No studies have reported on how to relieve distress or relax in medical health workers while wearing medical protective equipment in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The study aimed to establish which relaxation technique, among six, is the most feasible in first-line medical health workers wearing medical protective equipment.

METHODS

This was a two-step study collecting data with online surveys. Step 1: 15 first-line medical health workers were trained to use six different relaxation techniques and reported the two most feasible techniques while wearing medical protective equipment. Step 2: the most two feasible relaxation techniques revealed by step 1 were quantitatively tested in a sample of 65 medical health workers in terms of efficacy, no space limitation, no time limitation, no body position requirement, no environment limitation to be done, easiness to learn, simplicity, convenience, practicality, and acceptance.

RESULTS

Kegel exercise and autogenic relaxation were the most feasible techniques according to step 1. In step 2, Kegel exercise outperformed autogenic relaxation on all the 10 dimensions among the 65 participants while wearing medical protective equipment (efficacy: 24 v. 15, no space limitation: 30 v. 4, no time limitation: 31 v. 4, no body position requirement: 26 v. 4, no environment limitation: 30 v. 11, easiness to learn: 28 v. 5, simplicity: 29 v. 7, convenience: 29 v. 4, practicality: 30 v. 14, acceptance: 32 v. 6).

CONCLUSION

Kegel exercise seems a promising self-relaxation technique for first-line medical health workers while wearing medical protective equipment among COVID-19 pandemic.

After-school poly-strengths programming for urban teens at high risk for violence exposure

Violence exposure increases teens' risk for emotion dysregulation, anxiety, depression, and aggression towards peers. Teens of color are disproportionately more likely to be exposed to violence and less likely to receive mental health services. Community after-school programs can help reduce disparities by offering opportunities for skills development and mental health promotion to mitigate risk associated with violence exposure. The present study explores the promise of a parks-based after-school paid internship program for black and Latinx teens with weekly, group-based enrichment to promote educational attainment, job skills, and health behaviors. University and park administrators collaborated to design a program comprised of paid work (10 hr/week at US$9.05/hr) and weekly 2 hr enrichment (e.g., job skills, meditation, and sleep health psychoeducation). The sample includes 38 youth (n = 38; 15-17 years old [M = 16.26, SD = .73]; 42.1 per cent female; 95.2 per cent non-Latinx black, 4.8 per cent Latinx white). Data analyses include pre-/post-measures of violent and nonviolent adversity, emotion regulation, anxiety, depression, and self-efficacy to manage peer conflict. There were no significant changes from Time 1 (T1) to Time 2 (T2) in teen-reported cognitive reappraisal, emotion suppression, anxiety, depression, or self-efficacy to resolve peer conflict. Teens with more violence exposure at T1 reported significant reductions in anxiety at T2. Teens with more overall adversity reported significant reductions in anxiety and improvements in self-efficacy to resolve peer conflict. Findings indicate that after-school programs infused with poly-strengths programming can benefit diverse teens at high risk for violence exposure.