Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional survey

Long COVID affects approximately 10–20% of COVID-19 patients and has a devastating impact on their quality of life and mental health. This study aimed to evaluate symptoms of psychological distress in people with long COVID and explore whether high levels of self-compassion are associated with low l...

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Main Authors: Luca Bodini, Chiara Bonetto, Morena Colombi, Nila Barbieri, Tine Van Bortel, Antonio Lasalvia
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2024-12-01
Series:Cogent Psychology
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Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2024.2351151
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author Luca Bodini
Chiara Bonetto
Morena Colombi
Nila Barbieri
Tine Van Bortel
Antonio Lasalvia
author_facet Luca Bodini
Chiara Bonetto
Morena Colombi
Nila Barbieri
Tine Van Bortel
Antonio Lasalvia
author_sort Luca Bodini
collection DOAJ
description Long COVID affects approximately 10–20% of COVID-19 patients and has a devastating impact on their quality of life and mental health. This study aimed to evaluate symptoms of psychological distress in people with long COVID and explore whether high levels of self-compassion are associated with low levels of psychological distress. An online cross-sectional survey of people with Long COVID was conducted. In total, 332 respondents participated in the survey. All dimensions of self-compassion were found to be significantly associated with depression, anxiety, and perceived stress, independent of symptom severity. Specifically, self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness were strongly negatively associated with distress, whereas self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification were strongly and positively associated with distress. Self-compassion seems to play a role in explaining levels of psychological distress in people with long COVID symptoms. The centrality of self-compassion may lead to the development of effective interventions to help patients with long COVID reduce self-judgmental and self-critical tendencies and improve their psychological well-being.
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spelling doaj-art-cdcf1f676f79466eb5ba2f8345a175502025-08-20T02:38:23ZengTaylor & Francis GroupCogent Psychology2331-19082024-12-0111110.1080/23311908.2024.2351151Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional surveyLuca Bodini0Chiara Bonetto1Morena Colombi2Nila Barbieri3Tine Van Bortel4Antonio Lasalvia5Section of Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, ItalySection of Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, ItalyAdministrator of the Facebook community “Noi che il Covid lo abbiamo sconfitto”, Milan, ItalySection of Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, ItalyLeicester School of Allied Health Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, De Montfort University, Leicester, UKSection of Psychiatry, Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, ItalyLong COVID affects approximately 10–20% of COVID-19 patients and has a devastating impact on their quality of life and mental health. This study aimed to evaluate symptoms of psychological distress in people with long COVID and explore whether high levels of self-compassion are associated with low levels of psychological distress. An online cross-sectional survey of people with Long COVID was conducted. In total, 332 respondents participated in the survey. All dimensions of self-compassion were found to be significantly associated with depression, anxiety, and perceived stress, independent of symptom severity. Specifically, self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness were strongly negatively associated with distress, whereas self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification were strongly and positively associated with distress. Self-compassion seems to play a role in explaining levels of psychological distress in people with long COVID symptoms. The centrality of self-compassion may lead to the development of effective interventions to help patients with long COVID reduce self-judgmental and self-critical tendencies and improve their psychological well-being.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2024.2351151Self-compassionpost-COVID-19 syndromelong COVIDdepressionanxiety, perceived stressDaryl O’Connor, University of Leeds, United Kingdom
spellingShingle Luca Bodini
Chiara Bonetto
Morena Colombi
Nila Barbieri
Tine Van Bortel
Antonio Lasalvia
Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional survey
Cogent Psychology
Self-compassion
post-COVID-19 syndrome
long COVID
depression
anxiety, perceived stress
Daryl O’Connor, University of Leeds, United Kingdom
title Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional survey
title_full Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional survey
title_fullStr Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional survey
title_full_unstemmed Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional survey
title_short Is self-compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long COVID? Results from a cross-sectional survey
title_sort is self compassion associated with lower psychological distress in people with long covid results from a cross sectional survey
topic Self-compassion
post-COVID-19 syndrome
long COVID
depression
anxiety, perceived stress
Daryl O’Connor, University of Leeds, United Kingdom
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2024.2351151
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