Stress Clinical Trials

The transition from high school to college is a developmentally sensitive period that is high risk for escalations in alcohol use. Although risky drinking is a common problem among freshmen, engagement in treatment services is very low. The proposed study will test a behavioral activation intervention that addresses factors limiting participation in standard treatment services by targeting alcohol use indirectly, by directly addressing concerns most relevant to incoming college freshmen, and by integrating an intervention into the college curriculum. Read Less

The main purpose of this research study is to assess the feasibility and participants' satisfaction of the Stress Management and Resiliency - Relaxation Response Resiliency Program (SMART-3RP) and compare this treatment with SMART-3RP versus referral to a group-based, online support group to see which is better for improving resilience and decreasing distress of participants with cancer and their caregivers. The name of the study intervention involved in this study is: Smart-3RP (virtual, mind-body group treatment program). Read Less

The goals of this study are to assess the feasibility and acceptability of a dietary intervention to increase choline intake through whole foods (eggs) in pregnant and lactating women for mental health benefits. We will achieve these goals through the following specific aims: To determine the effects of including eggs as a source of choline in the diets of pregnant and lactating women on biomarkers, we will measure concentrations of choline and choline metabolites in maternal serum and breastmilk at 24-26 weeks gestation and 4-6 weeks postpartum. To evaluate adherence to a food-based dietary choline intervention in pregnant and lactating women, we will track intake via daily photo and written food logs. To assess the feasibility of collecting repeated measures of dietary intake and maternal depression, anxiety, and stress in the perinatal period, we will track completion rates for project surveys. The data from this study will inform the design and sample size calculations for a longitudinal cohort study that will assess neurological outcomes for both mother and child and follow the offspring over time to reassess mental health and cognitive development in preschool-aged children. Choline is an underconsumed nutrient of concern for public health, specifically during pregnancy and lactation. There is limited data on biomarker or health outcomes related to perinatal choline intake. Determining relationships between perinatal choline intake and maternal mental health has the potential to impact public health by ultimately informing development of nutrition education materials in the clinical setting focused on encouraging maternal perinatal choline intake through whole foods such as eggs. Read Less

The purpose of this study is to pilot test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of healthcare provider referrals to a tax filing app within parent-child health programs to test whether such referrals can increase receipt of tax credits among low-income parents. The study will use a single-group, pre/post test design with a sample of approximately 100 women who have a child under 6 years of age. Participants will be recruited from parental-child health programs and clinics in Los Angeles and will complete surveys at baseline, immediately after tax filing season, and six months after tax filing season to assess 1) frequency of tax filing after referral (Feasibility), 2) the acceptability of the tax filing app from the perspective of users (Acceptability), and 3) pre/posttest changes to parent and child health, child development, and healthcare utilization measures for users (preliminary efficacy). Read Less

The goal of this observational study is to explore the impact of a resiliency and trauma informed care educational intervention for Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) students at the University of Arizona College of Nursing during the final, clinical year of the program. Specifically, the investigators will examine if the educational intervention is feasible, acceptable and helpful to students, and can decrease burnout and increase resiliency. Read Less

The primary goal of this study is to demonstrate that digital mental health interventions for children, such as Mightier, can have an impact on caregiver functioning, including parenting stress, overall wellbeing, and work engagement. Participants will be caregivers of children who are using Mightier, a video-game based heart rate biofeedback intervention used to build emotion regulation. Caregivers will be asked to complete a short survey prior to their child's first play and then complete that survey two more times, at 8 weeks and 12 weeks post baseline. The pre-post self report design will allow us to observe changes during Mightier use and relate those changes to overall engagement with the intervention. Read Less

Obesity is a major public health problem related to a variety of illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes. Prior research indicates that social stressors contribute to risk for obesity, possibly through alterations in diet and physical activity. However, it is not fully clear how these alterations contribute to obesity. The purpose of this study is to examine how the stressors of social isolation and discrimination relate to eating behaviors and dietary patterns, and further, how these behaviors affect the brain-gut-microbiome (BGM) connections. This study will focus on Mexican and Filipina women because research shows that they encounter a high burden of obesity and exposure to social stressors. Approximately 300 Mexican and Filipina women will be screened and enrolled. They will then provide information about social stressors via food diaries, physical body measures (e.g. waist circumference), questionnaire data regarding diet and eating behaviors, and measures of physical activity. Stool and serum will be collected to analyze microbes and metabolomics, and MRI to assess brain changes in the reward network. Analytic techniques will be used to integrate data from these multiple data sources. This analysis will determine the unique differences associated with ethnicity and social stressors in moderating eating behaviors and dietary patterns. The results of this study will provide new information about a possible pathway whereby social stressors affect behavioral, neurological and microbiome mechanisms related to obesity risk and provide new information in BGM patterns in two understudied ethnic groups. In the long term, this research may suggest possible approaches for intervention that may help reduce inequalities in obesity and related health problems. Read Less

Receiving a cancer diagnosis is a life-altering event for patients and their families that not only carries serious physical health implications but also causes significant stress and emotional distress. After initial diagnosis, restaging appointments can bring back additional fear, sadness, and anxiety. Music listening interventions can alleviate stress associated with cancer diagnosis by improving patients' ability to cope with the mental and emotional strain that accompanies their disease. Yet, current music listening interventions lack personalization and moment-to-moment adjustments that accompany traditional music therapy in the hands of a seasoned professional. Rubato Life™ (RL) application uses a proprietary algorithm for music selection that utilizes machine-learning and deep neural network to select music that reduces stress as measured by heart rate variability in real time, offering improved personalization of stress-reducing music. We hypothesize that using personalized musical playlists, through RL, will improve stress and anxiety outcomes for patients undergoing cancer restaging more than participant-selected music. This 3-week longitudinal study will include 200 patients from St. Elizabeth's Medical Center who have scheduled appointments for cancer restaging. Participants will be randomized into one of two groups: a) an intervention group, in which patients will listen to music using Rubato Life app, and b) a control group, in which patients listen to music of their own choice that they believe to be stress reducing. Patients in both groups will be asked to listen to at least 45 minutes per day, for a period of 2 weeks coming up to their scheduled restaging appointment (or at least 12 total hours of listening), and for one hour immediately after the appointment. Patients in the Intervention group will wear smartwatches to monitor heart rate variability throughout the study. Patients will be asked to complete assessments of anxiety (STAI-S) prior to randomization, on the day of their restaging, and following one hour of post-restaging music listening. Read Less

The proposed study aims to evaluate whether different features of a relaxation room affect how individuals recover from acute stress. This study will use a unique methodology to capture participants' physiological and behavioral measures through a combination of non-invasive technologies, including wearables devices, active sensors, cognitive tasks, and/or subjective questionnaires. Participants will perform a stress induction task, after which they will rest in a relaxation room. Physiological measures and cognitive performance will be recorded throughout the experiment to determine whether features of the relaxation room promote recovery after acute stress. Identifying the occurrence of stress and ways to potentially reduce the effects of stress could lead to novel interventions for helping individuals reduce work-related stress. Read Less

Objectives: To assess the EEG patterns and EKG recordings of participants with no meditation experience with simply closing the eyes for 10 minutes followed by relaxing for 30 minutes. To assess the EEG patterns and EKG recordings of participants with no meditation experience by simply closing the eyes for 10 minutes and then with guided Heartfulness relaxation and meditation for 30 minutes. To assess the baseline anxiety score through GAD-7 questionnaire, subjective experience of all the participants through MEDEQ questionnaire that measures the depth of the meditation experience after the session and correlate with the EEG patterns of the brain and heart rate changes. EEG and EKG data from the groups will be analyzed by the sleep specialist. EKG device data for HRV and the EEG data will be correlated with the subjective depth of meditation experience in both the groups Read Less

The study's objective is to assess whether CAM methods are feasible and beneficial in the WSRH setting; to assess stress (using the Perceived Stress Scale-14 and using BioSquares™), anxiety (using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale), depression (using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 scale), pain (using the Wong-Baker FACES scale), and vital signs using a multidisciplinary complementary approach with Heartfulness Meditation, Conscious Breathing, and Emotional Freedom Technique - the CAM practices for this study; and, to assess and compare the above scores for each participant just prior to and immediately after each treatment session. The study hypothesizes that using CAM modalities in the WSRH is both feasible and beneficial in that patient population; the patients receiving the CAM modalities of treatment will show an improvement in the above-mentioned scores compared to participant scores prior to the intervention; and there may also be an improvement in patients' vital signs following the intervention of CAM practices. Read Less