Anxiety, Depression
Conditions
Keywords
childhood, adversity
Brief summary
This study investigates the clinical and neural effects of stress management skill building programs for young adults with childhood adversity. The investigators will recruit a total of 60 young adults (21-35 years old) who will be randomized into two different stress management skill building programs, both of which are 8 weeks long. MRI and psychological assessments will be acquired from all subjects before and after the intervention programs in order to investigate changes in clinical symptoms (such as depression, anxiety and stress) and hippocampus structure and function as well as other neural changes.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALStress Management Skill Building Program A
Subject will meet with the instructor and other students in the group once a week and complete homework and track amount of practice during the week.
BEHAVIORALStress Management Skill Building Program B
Subject will meet with the instructor and other students in the group once a week and complete homework and track amount of practice during the week.
Sponsors
Massachusetts General Hospital
Mclean Hospital
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Investigator)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
21 Years to 35 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* having childhood adversity * no history of psychiatric disorders of psychotic features or neurological disorders * verified age between 21-35 years old; * no suicidal attempts during the past six months; * being determined by the clinician to have the capability to comply with the program requirements and not detrimental to other participants in the group; * passing MRI eligibility criteria. * provided written informed consent to participate in this study; * committed to meeting the requirement of refraining from using marijuana or illicit drugs.
Exclusion criteria
* psychosis * active suicidal attempts during the past 6 months * psychoactive substance abuse * MRI
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Changes in hippocampal subfield gray matter density measured with high resolution structural MRI at 3T | before and after the 8-week intervention |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame |
|---|---|
| Changes in stress level measured by the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) | before and after the 8-week intervention |
| Changes in severity of depression symptom measured by Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) | before and after the 8-week intervention |
| Changes in severity of anxiety symptom measured by State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) | before and after the 8-week intervention |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed