Awareness and Self-Compassion Enhancing Narcolepsy Treatment

Summary

The overall goal of this research is to test the effectiveness of a mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) for improving health-related quality of life as a complementary practice to standard care for narcolepsy. This study is a feasibility trial in which 60 adults with narcolepsy will be randomized to receive either a 4-week (brief), 8-week (standard), or 12-week (extended) MBI. Each MBI will be delivered in small groups using a live videoconferencing platform and teaches mindfulness practices to help cope with narcolepsy symptoms. By developing a scalable mind-body intervention, this project can addresses a major research gap on improving psychosocial functioning in people with narcolepsy.

Conditions

• Narcolepsy
• Narcolepsy Without Cataplexy
• Narcolepsy With Cataplexy

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Brief MBI

The brief MBI consists of four weekly group sessions that are two hours each and one all day mediation retreat. The rationale for testing the short MBI is to evaluate a low-dose (8 hours of contact) MBI that optimizes cost-effectiveness and minimizes patient burden.

BEHAVIORAL

Standard MBI

The standard MBI consists of eight weekly group sessions that are approximately two hours each and one all day meditation retreat. The length of this package is based on the standard length of MBSR as an 8-week program. The rationale for testing the standard MBI is to provide a comparison to a dose (16 hours of contact) that is most similar to the length of MBSR and has the fewest modifications, making it easier to train MBI providers.

BEHAVIORAL

Extended MBI

The extended MBI consists of four weekly group sessions followed by four group sessions every other week over the course of 12 weeks. Each group session will be two hours. The group sessions will be identical to the standard package except for the timing (every other week) of the last four sessions. In addition to the group sessions, the MBI provider will offer "office hours" in between the bi-weekly group sessions, where participants will be able to schedule individual sessions with the MBI provider to discuss questions and troubleshoot their mindfulness practice. In addition, participants will receive an all-day meditation retreat, similar to the other conditions. The rationale for testing the extended MBI is to optimize acceptability and uptake based on the investigator's preliminary data by allowing for a slower, extended pace of learning mindfulness practices with an opportunity to have individual discussions with the instructor (16 hours of contact + individual office hours).

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

  collaborator NIH

• Northwestern University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Jennifer Mundt, PhD · Northwestern University

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

100 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2020-06-15

Primary Completion

2022-05-30

Completion

2022-06-30

Countries

• United States

Study Locations