Project Title: Merging Yoga and self-management to develop Skills (MY-Skills) Adult caregiving dyads (i.e., caregivers and care recipients) are virtually neglected and ignored in health interventions; especially as programing relates to improving individuals? chronic pain. Further, yoga and self- management are effective and useful modalities for improving pain-related disability and is relevant to the mission of NCCIH. However, yoga and self-management have not been combined for the caregiving dyad. Thus, the goal of this innovative planning grant is to treat the caregiving dyad with an 8-week intervention to improve pain-related disability and health outcomes for individuals in the caregiving dyad.
The Aims are:
Aim 1 : Develop and manualize the MY-Skills intervention.
Aim 2 : Assess feasibility and acceptability of MY-Skills and research procedures including planned assessments. Methods: Using focus groups, clinical reasoning, literature, and findings from previously tested interventions of yoga and self-management, we will develop, refine, and standardize the MY-Skills intervention for chronic pain. In parallel, we will develop a control group that includes exercise and health and wellness education. In a small randomized controlled trial, we will examine feasibility and acceptability of the 8-week MY-Skills procedures and intervention compared to a control group, with 30 caregiving dyads randomly assigned to the two groups (15 dyads for My-Skills and 15 dyads for control group; N = 60 participants/30 dyads). Surveys will be administered and focus groups will be conducted to understand participant satisfaction and experiences with MY-Skills. After each intervention session, interventionists, caregivers, and care recipients will rate their satisfaction with the session content and activities. Members of the caregiving dyad will complete pre and post- assessments regarding the primary outcome, pain-related disability and secondary outcome measures guided by the Biopsychosocial model including assessment of the dyadic relationship. Our primary hypothesis is that MY-Skills will be feasible and acceptable to caregiving dyads, as measured by benchmarks for recruitment, screening, attendance, and completion of assessments and intervention. Our expected outcomes include MY- Skills intervention workbooks for participants and manuals (i.e., training methods and methods to assess interventionist fidelity) for interventionists leading the MY-Skills intervention and control group.
Pain is a global multifaceted problem, and people with disabilities and their caregivers frequently have chronic pain. The holistic nature of yoga merged with self-management education potentially improves pain-related disability.
