Stand-Alone Mobile Mindfulness App for People Experiencing Infertility: A Pilot Randomised Controlled Trial
Tessy Boedt1,2, Nele Willaert2,3, Sharon Lie Fong4,5
1Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
Psychologica Belgica
|October 13, 2025
Summary
A mobile mindfulness app improved self-compassion and mindfulness skills in individuals undergoing fertility treatments. While not directly reducing emotional distress, the app offers accessible mental support for fertility care.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive medicine and mental health.
- Digital health interventions.
- Mindfulness-based interventions.
Background:
- Infertility treatments impose significant emotional burdens on individuals.
- Mobile applications offer a potential avenue for accessible mental health support.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of a stand-alone mobile mindfulness application (MoMiFer-app) on emotional well-being and quality of life in individuals experiencing infertility.
- To assess the app's effect on emotional distress, fertility-related quality of life, repetitive negative thinking, self-compassion, and mindfulness skills.
Main Methods:
- A pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing the MoMiFer-app intervention group with a wait-list control group.
- Outcomes measured at baseline, 1.5, and 3 months using experience sampling method (ESM) and self-report questionnaires.
- Primary outcomes: emotional distress (DASS-21+ESM) and fertility-related quality of life (FertiQoL). Secondary outcomes: repetitive negative thinking (PTQ), self-compassion (SCS-SF), and mindfulness skills (CHIME-SF+ESM).
Main Results:
- No significant improvements were observed in primary outcomes (emotional distress, fertility-related quality of life).
- The MoMiFer-app significantly enhanced self-compassion and mindfulness skills, with significant condition×time effects observed at 1.5 and 3 months for mindfulness, and at 3 months for self-compassion.
- No effect was found on repetitive negative thinking. App usage was moderate, with 47% practicing mindfulness once a week or less.
Conclusions:
- Online mindfulness interventions can provide valuable, accessible mental support in fertility care, despite not directly improving distress or quality of life in the short term.
- Factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic timing and low app adherence may have influenced outcomes.
- Further research is needed to explore stressors and enhance user adherence to optimize the impact of such digital interventions.
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