Self-Help Aids Quality of Life for People With Psoriasis

Findings show modest, but significant, benefit from either compassion-based or mindfulness-based self-help

TUESDAY, Jan. 25, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Self-help based on compassion and mindfulness is acceptable to users and can reduce feelings of shame and improve quality of life for people living with psoriasis, according to a study published online Jan. 18 in the British Journal of Dermatology.

Zina Muftin, from the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom, and colleagues randomly assigned 130 participants with psoriasis to receive either compassion-based self-help (65 participants) or mindfulness-based self-help (65 participants) for four weeks.

The researchers found that the interventions were acceptable, with more than 70 percent of study completers (30 percent attrition) reporting that the materials were helpful. There were modest but statistically significant reductions in shame, as well as improvements in quality of life, for both interventions.

“In conclusion, the current study suggests that self-help interventions based on compassion-focused therapy have clinical relevance and are welcomed by a community psoriasis sample,” the authors write. “The improvements were modest yet demonstrate potential for the benefit of brief self-help interventions. It is encouraging that despite the limitations of unguided self-help, the study has shown that self-help can reach a wide audience who do not have access to structured psychological support.”