The experience of meditation for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and their caregivers – a qualitative analysis

Abstract

There is a lack of studies about psychological interventions for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and their caregivers. We investigated the experience of a meditation training program tailored for ALS needs. People with ALS (pALS) and their caregivers that joined a meditation program for ALS were interviewed at the end of the program. Verbatims were analyzed with a qualitative approach. Both pALS and their caregivers reported a positive impact on their psychological well-being, promoted by an increase in acceptance and non-judgmental attitude. Furthermore, coping strategies seem to improve, with a positive effect on resilience skills. The ALS meditation training program seems to be an effective psychological intervention for the promotion of well-being in pALS and their caregivers.

Keywords:

• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
• meditation
• quality of life
• caregivers
• mindfulness
• psychological interventions

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Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.