A Study of Positive Emotions With Long COVID-19

This study is testing a new brief mindfulness practice for people suffering from long COVID-19 symptoms. People suffering from long COVID are particularly vulnerable to negative emotions, as they must also cope with the long-term uncertainty of physical and psychological stress beyond the acute infection. The goal of the study is to measure the ability of a brief mindfulness practice to promote a sense of well-being in people suffering from long COVID.

This is a pilot randomized waitlist-controlled clinical trial (RCT) testing a new brief self-care intervention for people suffering from post-acute sequelae SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC). The overarching goal of this study is to establish the feasibility and early efficacy of microdosing mindfulness as a self-care intervention. The purpose of the intervention is to promote a sense of well-being among PASC patients who currently have limited access to other proven self-care modalities. Our research question is whether our newly developed training can assist PASC patients to self-microdose mindfulness (5-15 seconds activities in everyday life) and improve on perceived metrics of well-being (primary outcome). Our hypothesis is that self-microdosing mindfulness will evoke positive emotions that can improve well-being on patients suffering of PASC-related symptoms beyond 3 months post COVID-19 infection. If effective, an increased frequency of the mindfulness activity will then help buffer negative emotions (e.g., anger, loneliness, etc.) experienced during the pandemic and associated with ongoing stress and/or somatic symptoms.

The intervention consists of two parts: 1) four structured training sessions offered as online synchronous classes, and 2) self-microdosing of mindfulness activities in everyday life.

Inclusion Criteria: Able to participate in online zoom sessions and complete online surveys for 3 months English speakers Had a mild to moderate in severity COVID-19 infection > 3 months ago, feeling unwell, and are still experiencing in the present at least one PASC-related symptoms: Coughing or feeling short of breath Loss of smell or change in taste Recurrent Fever Body aches, headaches, chest pain, or stomach pain Brain fog (feeling like you can't think clearly) Having trouble sleeping Feeling very tired Mood changes Exclusion Criteria: Adults that were admitted to an intensive care unit or placed on a respirator, had invasive heart (heart catheterization) or lung tests (bronchoscopy) performed. Prisoners