Association between a guided meditation practice, sleep and psychological well-being in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients

Background Type 2 diabetes mellitus [T2DM] is one of the leading causes for mortality. This study examined the role of an self-awareness based guided meditation practice, Cyclic Meditation [CM] on perceived stress, anxiety, depression, sleep and quality of life in T2DM patients. Design A single arm pre-post design was used for the study. Setting The study was conducted in an auditorium for general public diagnosed with T2DM in Ernakulam, Kerala, India. Subjects Subjects were 30 T2DM patients, both male and female of age 50.12 ± 11.15 years and BMI 25.14 ± 4.37 Kg/m2 and not having a history of hospitalisation were randomly recruited for the study following advertisements in national dailies. Intervention Participants completed a supervised CM programs in the evenings, 5 days a week for 4 weeks, in addition to their regular medication. Measures Perceived stress, anxiety and depression were assessed with Perceived Stress Scale, State Anxiety Inventory and Beck’s depression inventory, respectively. Sleep and quality of life were assessed with Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and WHO-Quality of Life – BREF respectively. Analysis Changes in the outcome measures from baseline to 4 weeks were compared using paired “t” test. Results After 4 weeks, the quality of life and sleep scores increased 7.1% [p = 0.001] and 32.7% [p = 0.001], respectively. The perceived stress, anxiety and depression reduced 26.1% [p = 0.001], 16.01% [p = 0.003] and 37.63% [p = 0.006] as compared to their baseline reports. The CM practice also reduced daytime dysfunction. Conclusions A guided self-awareness based meditation program was safe and effective in improving depression, anxiety, perceived stress and enhance sleep and quality of life in T2DM patients, which could be helpful in reducing the future complications of T2DM. Mind management is essential along with medical management to achieve better clinical results.