Is Dispositional Self-Compassion Associated With Psychophysiological Flexibility Beyond Mindfulness? An Exploratory Pilot Study

Peaceful acceptance and struggle with terminal cancer: The role of mindfulness, self-compassion, and body image distress

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to examine the extent to which mindfulness, self-compassion, and body image distress are associated with peaceful acceptance or struggle with illness in terminally ill cancer patients, after controlling for psychological distress, sociodemographic characteristics (age, gender, education, marital status), and clinical characteristics (body mass index, Karnofsky Performance Status, time since diagnosis).

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted with 135 terminally ill cancer patients. Participants were consecutively sampled. Two five-step hierarchical regression models were performed, one for peaceful acceptance and the other for struggle with illness. The models included sociodemographic (step 1), clinical characteristics (step 2), psychological distress (step 3), mindfulness and self-compassion (step 4), and body image distress (step 5).

RESULTS

Body image distress was negatively associated with peaceful acceptance after controlling for the other variables. Both body image distress and self-compassion were uniquely associated with struggle with illness, in a positive and negative direction, respectively. The overall models explained 33% of the variance in peaceful acceptance and 61% in struggle with illness.

SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS

Targeting body image distress may be important for both enhancing peaceful acceptance and reducing struggle with one's terminal condition. Addressing self-compassion, however, may help patients alleviate the struggle alone. These findings suggest that peaceful acceptance and struggle with illness may follow different clinical pathways with partly different underlying mechanisms. This study provides a foundation for future research to develop interventions for body image and self-compassion specifically tailored to the needs of terminally ill cancer patients.

Self-Compassion Intervention Programs for Nurses: A Scoping Review

Background: Nurses frequently face various sources of stress in the workplace, making self-compassion interventions crucial for promoting their mental well-being. This scoping review aims to: (a) identify self-compassion intervention programs implemented within the nursing population; and (b) analyze the content and outcome measures of these interventions. Methods: The study follows Arksey and O'Malley's scoping review framework and adheres to the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. Relevant literature on self-compassion interventions for nurses published between January 2010 and May 2024 was systematically reviewed. Databases searched included PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, ProQuest, and the Cochrane Library, using MeSH terms and free-text keywords such as "self-compassion", "self-kindness", "self-appreciation", "self-worth", "self-forgiveness", "self-awareness", "nurses", and "nursing". Results: Fifteen studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Self-compassion interventions were categorized into two types: (1) mindfulness-focused programs, such as Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindful Self-Care and Resiliency (MSCR), which treat self-compassion as a potential outcome; and (2) self-compassion-focused programs, including Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC), Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), and Loving-Kindness Meditation (LKM). Conclusions: The mental health challenges faced by nurses have drawn growing attention, underscoring the importance of self-compassion interventions. This review examines empirical studies within the nursing population, contributing to the development of more targeted and effective strategies to enhance the mental health and well-being of nursing professionals.

Trait self-compassion enhances activation in the medial prefrontal cortex during fear extinction: An fNIRS study

Fear acquisition and fear extinction are the most widely used experimental models to study anxiety related disorders, with the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) playing an important role in this process. Previous research suggests that trait self-compassion is associated with lower anxiety, but the neural mechanisms underlying this relationship remain unclear. Women generally exhibit lower self-compassion than men, making them more vulnerable to fear and anxiety. In this study, female participants were divided into two groups - high and low trait self-compassion, based on their scores on the Self-Compassion Scale-Short Form (SCS-SF). Both groups completed fear acquisition and fear extinction tasks, during which conditioned responses (CRs) were measured using self-reported unconditioned stimulus (US) expectancy ratings, skin conductance response (SCR), and functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). The results showed that in the fear acquisition phase, all participants successfully acquired fear, showing greater responses to threat stimuli than safety stimuli. However, participants with high trait self-compassion exhibited lower SCR than those with low trait self-compassion. In the fear extinction phase, compared to individuals with low trait self-compassion, individuals with high trait self-compassion exhibited more effective fear extinction learning, characterized by lower US expectancy ratings, lower SCR, and higher mPFC activation. Moreover, trait self-compassion was significantly correlated with the behavioral extinction ability and the mPFC activation during the late phase of fear extinction, and behavioral extinction ability was significantly correlated with mPFC activation. The findings of this study suggest individuals with high trait self-compassion have better physiological flexibility during fear acquisition and fear extinction, and may through enhancing mPFC activation to facilitate fear extinction. The results provide new insights into the pathological mechanisms of anxiety.

Compassion Is Not a Benzo: Distinctive Associations of Heart Rate Variability With Its Empathic and Action Components

Recent studies have linked compassion with higher vagally mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV), a measure of parasympathetic activity, and meta-analytic evidence confirmed significant and positive associations. Compassion, however, is not to be confused with soothing positive emotions: in order to engage in actions aimed to alleviate (self or others) suffering, the pain should resonate, and empathic sensitivity should be experienced first. The present study examined the association between vmHRV and the empathic sensitivity and action components of trait and state compassion. To do so, several dispositional questionnaires were administered and two videos inducing empathic sensitivity (video 1) and compassionate actions (video 2) were shown, while the ECG was continuously recorded, and momentary affect was assessed. Results showed that (i) scores on subscales assessing the empathic component of trait compassion were inversely related to resting vmHRV; (ii) vmHRV decreased after video 1 but significantly increased after video 2. As to momentary affect, video 1 was accompanied with an increase in sadness and a decrease in positive affect, whereas video 2 was characterized by an increase in anger, a parallel decrease in sadness, and an increase (although non-significant) in positive affect. Overall, present findings support the notion that it is simplistic to link compassion with higher vmHRV. Compassion encompasses increased sensitivity to emotional pain, which is naturally associated with lower vmHRV, and action to alleviate others’ suffering, which is ultimately associated with increased vmHRV. The importance of adopting a nuanced perspective on the complex physiological regulation that underlies compassionate responding to suffering is discussed.