Breath-Body-Mind Core Techniques to Manage Medical Student Stress.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Psychophysiology
• Mind-Body Interventions

Background:

• Medical students face significant stress, impacting their mental health and academic performance.
• Effective stress management techniques are crucial for medical student well-being and future patient care.
• The Breath-Body-Mind Introductory Course (BBM-IC) offers a structured approach to stress reduction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the feasibility of a live, interactive, online manualized intervention (BBM-IC) for medical students.
• To assess the impact of BBM-IC on stress, anxiety, emotion regulation, energy, sleep, and mental focus.
• To explore the potential of BBM-IC in improving the psychophysiological state of medical trainees.

Main Methods:

• A pilot study involving medical students participating in a 12-hour BBM-IC program.
• Weekly 45-minute group practice sessions were conducted over 6 weeks.
• Validated questionnaires (PHQ-9, GAD-7, EFI, SQS, BPQ-SF, PSS, MPQ) were used for pre- and post-intervention assessments.

Main Results:

• Significant improvements were observed in exercise-induced feeling inventory (EFI) tranquility and supradiaphragmatic reactivity.
• Near-significant improvements were noted in sleep quality scale (SQS) and patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9) scores.
• Preliminary evidence suggests potential benefits for stress and anxiety symptoms.

Conclusions:

• The BBM-IC is a feasible online intervention for medical students, showing potential for stress reduction and improved well-being.
• Challenges in student participation highlight the need for curriculum integration to promote self-care.
• BBM-IC may equip students with skills to mitigate stress effects on their health and patient care.