Does Self-Compassion Expressive Writing Help People With an Ostomy?
Overview of the Study
This study aimed to see if self-compassion expressive writing could improve the mental well-being of people with an ostomy. Key areas assessed included:
- Body image distress
- Ostomy-specific quality of life (QOL)
- Self-compassion
- Dispositional disgust
Study Design
The research used a randomized controlled trial involving 175 English-speaking patients over 18 years old with a fecal or urinary ostomy. Participants were recruited online from Australia and New Zealand between May and July 2019.
Methodology
Participants completed a baseline questionnaire and were randomly assigned to one of two groups:
- Intervention Group: 88 participants completed an online self-compassion expressive writing exercise.
- Control Group: 87 participants completed a standard expressive writing exercise.
Follow-up questionnaires were completed one week and one month after the writing tasks.
Key Findings
The results showed that:
- Younger participants with an ostomy experienced more body image distress and lower self-compassion compared to older individuals.
- Those who had lived with their ostomy longer reported better QOL and less body image distress.
- Self-compassion and QOL improved only for those in the intervention group with low dispositional disgust.
Conclusion
While expressive writing is an easy-to-use method, it mainly benefited those with low levels of disgust. More research is needed to find effective psychological tools for this under-researched group.
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