A Pilot Trial of Mindfulness Meditation Training for ADHD in Adulthood: Impact on Core Symptoms, Executive Functioning, and Emotion Dysregulation

Abstract

Introduction Mindfulness meditation training is garnering increasing empirical interest as an intervention for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adulthood, although no studies of mindfulness as a standalone treatment have included a sample composed entirely of adults with ADHD or a comparison group. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of mindfulness meditation for ADHD, executive functioning (EF), and emotion dysregulation symptoms in an adult ADHD sample. Methods Adults with ADHD were stratified by ADHD medication status and otherwise randomized into an eight-week group-based mindfulness treatment (n=11) or waitlist (n=9) group. Results Treatment feasibility and acceptability were positive. In addition, self-reported ADHD and EF symptoms (assessed in the laboratory and ecological momentary assessment), clinician ratings of ADHD and EF symptoms, and self-reported emotion dysregulation improved for the treatment group relative to the waitlist group over time with large effect sizes. Improvement was not observed for EF tasks. Conclusions Findings support preliminary treatment efficacy, though require larger trials.

The association of emotional lability and emotional and behavioral difficulties among children with and without ADHD

“…It is thus particularly important that interventions focus on helping children with ADHD recognize and cope with emotional lability to allow them to reduce the frequency and intensity of their impairing emotional variability. Encouragingly, initial pilot studies of a multidimensional cognitive-behavioral intervention for children with ADHD (Rosen et al 2010) and a mindfulness-based intervention for adults with ADHD (Mitchell et al 2013) have suggested that interventions may improve the emotional and behavioral functioning of individuals with ADHD through improved emotional awareness and emotional control.…”

Dispositional Mindfulness Uncouples Physiological and Emotional Reactivity to a Laboratory Stressor and Emotional Reactivity to Executive Functioning Lapses in Daily Life

“…Across the seven days, average scores ranged from M = .87 (1.19) to 1.36 (1.27) with α ranging from .44 to .68. A similar approach was used effectively in a recent study to measure changes in daily EF after a mindfulness-based intervention for ADHD (Mitchell et al, 2013). …”

“…Mindfulness training has been found to enhance select laboratory measures of executive functioning (EF) (Chiesa et al, 2011; Jha, Stanley & Baime, 2010; Teper, Segal & Inzlicht, 2013; Zeidan et al, 2010) as well as self-reported EF (Mitchell et al, 2013). Addressing EF difficulties in the context of mindfulness training may also have important implications for emotional well-being.…”

Impact of Internet Addiction on Mental Health: An Integrative Therapy Is Needed

“…In this treatment group 63.6% also showed a 30% reduction in ADHD symptoms compared to a 0% reduction in the control group in the self-rating scale. These studies show evidence of acceptability and feasibility in MT [59]. Studies on the brain activation before and after variable periods of MT using fMRI have shown that during MT attention-related cortices such as the prefrontal cortex and Acc get activated [60].…”