Mindfulness training for people after Stroke: a Feasibility Study

This will be a modified Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction programme delivered by a Mindfulness trainer, Marlies Dorrestein. The programme will comprise weekly, individualised 45-minute sessions over six weeks, with brief, daily homework exercises to be completed between sessions. There will be one ‘top-up’ session at 4 weeks post-completion of the initial six week programme. Top-up or ‘booster’ sessions have been shown to be important for discussing any barriers encountered in implementing the intervention in everyday life and to facilitate long term outcomes. The sessions will be based on standard MT approaches but will emphasise simple, brief mindfulness exercises to minimise potential difficulties due to reduced executive function, impaired concentration or fatigue. Participants will be provided with examples of ways they can incorporate and apply these exercises into their daily life. Sessions will include education about stroke as well as mindfulness. Homework tasks will involve 5-10 minute, guided (i.e. DVD) mindfulness exercises that gradually increase the ‘dose’ over the duration of the programme. Handouts will be provided to participants as reminders of the techniques they have learnt and they will be supplied with a book (Mindfulness for Health) and accompanying DVD to guide their home-based practice. Grant Rix of the Mindfulness Education Group https://mindfulnesseducation.nz/about/ will meet with Marlies for one hour a week initially and then fortnightly by Skype for a maximum of 40 1 hour sessions to provide professional supervision and mentoring. The study will be monitored to ensure data quality and to facilitate entry of participants into the study and subsequent adherence. The Study coordinator will set up and maintain a tracking sheet outlining date and outcome of contact with participants, and dates of completion of MT sessions to ensure documentation of outcome for all participants.