View clinical trials related to Subjective Stress.
Filter by:Medical practice often comes with high stress. Stress negatively affects our health and well-being and is linked to doctors making mistakes, some of which can be deadly. In this study, the effect of two quick stress-relief methods on daily stress levels is estimated. The two anti-stress exercises are designed to easily fit into daily routines: 1. Box breathing (6 minutes) is known to reduce stress and lower the heart rate. It is used by the military and law enforcement, among others, to manage stress. 2. Breathing and mindfulness exercise (10 minutes): This guided breathing and mindfulness intervention combines mindful breathing with simple body movements, developed to reduce the perceived level of stress. The effectiveness of these interventions is being examined in a series of N-of-1 trials. Each participant can choose between the interventions. After being randomly allocated to an individual sequence of one-week intervention and control phases, the study begins. Participants record their stress levels daily over the four-week study period. The intervention is only performed in the intervention phases. Upon completing the study, the stress levels during the intervention phases are compared to those in the control phases. Each participant will receive an individual analysis based on the collected data. In addition, the investigators will estimate the effects at the population level. Three months after the study, a survey will be sent to the participants to check if the benefits have persisted.
This pilot study aims at investigating short-term effects of clown visits by RED NOSES Clowndoctors Austria in children and adolescents in psychiatric care without control group. It is assumed that children and adolescents involved in an interaction with the clowns will experience a shift in their focus. Individual attention and distraction from painful emotions have the ability to redirect their attention to the current pleasurable moment and increase their level of energy. Scientific evidence has shown that the distraction and switch to positive emotions associated with healthcare clowning can decrease the level of stress and pain (Vagnoli et al., 2005; Dionigi et al., 2014). The study examines subjective and physiological stress levels of participants receiving clown visits in a group setting on a weekly basis. Using a non-controlled pre-/post-test design, the level of salivary cortisol and self-reported stress and mood will be measured before and after each clown visit over four consecutive weeks. Additionally, effects on care staff at the health facilities will be assessed based on a questionnaire after each clown visit within the same time period of four weeks. The sample will consist of approximately 40 children and adolescents in inpatient or outpatient psychiatric care. The examined intervention, i.e. clown visits by RED NOSES Clowndoctors Austria, is an integral part within the selected psychiatric health care institutions. The study hypotheses are: 1. Children and adolescents will report a reduced subjective stress level and better mood states in the three assessed dimensions (good - bad mood; alertness - tiredness; calmness - restlessness) after the experience of a clown visit (post-test) compared to before the clown visit (pre-test) independent of age and gender. 2. Children and adolescents will display a reduced cortisol level after the experience of a clown visit (post-test) compared to before the clown visit (pre-test) independent of age and gender. 3. The more frequently children and adolescents experience the weekly clown visits over the course of the four-week study, the stronger the stress-reducing and mood-enhancing effects in the pre-/post-comparison will be over time. 4. Self-reported perceptions of care staff at the health facilities will indicate a positive effect of the clown visits on their own individual moods, the atmosphere within the care team, and the patients' well-being.