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Everyday Pain in Middle and Later Life: Associations with Daily and Momentary Present-Moment Awareness as One Key Facet of Mindfulness

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 August 2023

Theresa Pauly
Affiliation:
Department of Gerontology, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Anna Nicol
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Jennifer C. Lay
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
Maureen C. Ashe
Affiliation:
Center for Aging SMART, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada Department of Family Practice, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Denis Gerstorf
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
Peter Graf
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Wolfgang Linden
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Kenneth M. Madden
Affiliation:
Center for Aging SMART, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada Department of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Atiya Mahmood
Affiliation:
Department of Gerontology, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Rachel A. Murphy
Affiliation:
Cancer Control Research, BC Cancer, Vancouver, BC, Canada School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Christiane A. Hoppmann*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
*
Corresponding author: La correspondance et les demandes de tirés-à-part doivent être adressées à : / Correspondence and requests for offprints should be sent to: Christiane A. Hoppmann, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver, B.C., Canada, V6T 1Z4, (choppmann@psych.ubc.ca).

Abstract

This study investigated everyday associations between one key facet of mindfulness (allocating attention to the present moment) and pain. In Study 1, 89 community-dwelling adults (33–88 years; Mage = 68.6) who had experienced a stroke provided 14 daily end-of-day present-moment awareness and pain ratings. In Study 2, 100 adults (50–85 years; Mage = 67.0 years) provided momentary present-moment awareness and pain ratings three times daily for 10 days. Multi-level models showed that higher trait present-moment awareness was linked with lower overall pain (both studies). In Study 1, participants reported less pain on days on which they indicated higher present-moment awareness. In Study 2, only individuals with no post-secondary education reported less pain in moments when they indicated higher present-moment awareness. Findings add to previous research using global retrospective pain measures by showing that present-moment awareness might correlate with reduced pain experiences, assessed close in time to when they occur.

Résumé

Résumé

Cette étude a examiné les associations quotidiennes entre un aspect clé de la pleine conscience (l’attention portée au moment présent) et la douleur. Dans l’étude 1, 89 adultes (33–88 ans; âge moyen = 68.6) vivant dans la communauté et ayant subi un accident vasculaire cérébral ont fourni 14 évaluations quotidiennes de la conscience du moment présent et de la douleur en fin de journée. Dans l’étude 2, 100 adultes (50–85 ans; âge moyen = 67.0 ans) ont évalué leur conscience du moment présent et leur douleur trois fois par jour pendant 10 jours. Les modèles multiniveaux ont montré qu’un niveau plus élevé de conscience du moment présent était lié à une douleur globale plus faible (dans les deux études). Dans l’étude 1, les participants ont signalé moins de douleur les jours où ils ont indiqué une conscience du moment présent plus élevée. Dans l’étude 2, seules les personnes qui n’ont pas suivi d’études postsecondaires ont signalé moins de douleur dans les moments où elles indiquaient une plus grande conscience du moment présent. Les résultats complètent les recherches antérieures utilisant des mesures rétrospectives de la douleur globale en montrant que la conscience du moment présent pourrait être en corrélation avec des expériences de douleur réduites, évaluées à un moment proche de celui où elles se produisent.

Type
Article
Copyright
© Canadian Association on Gerontology 2023

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Footnotes

*

T.P. and A.N. share first authorship.

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