Positive well-being and usefulness of brief mindfulness-based intervention for pain in cancer

Background and Aim: The experience of pain is a pivotal issue in the management of cancer. It has a detrimental impact on the overall well-being of the patients. Psychological management of pain remains an oblivious component of pain management in health-care facilities. The main aim of the study was to explore the relationship between positive well-being variables positive emotion, engagement, relationship, meaning & accomplishment (PERMA) with pain perception in persons suffering from cancer pain and to investigate the usefulness of brief mindfulness-based intervention in reducing cancer pain. Methods: Single group quasi experimental pre-to postintervention design was employed and 30 adult participants of any gender diagnosed with any cancer except lung cancer with breathing difficulties reporting pain were recruited. The tools administered were Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (to screen the presence of any psychiatric illness) PERMA Profiler (only at baseline), Brief Pain Inventory, Pain Catastrophizing Scale, and Cognitive and Affective Mindfulness Scale-Revised before the intervention and at 4 weeks following brief mindfulness-based intervention for cancer pain (BMBI-CP). Results: The findings indicate that among positive well-being variable (PERMA), the domain of relationship was found to be in a slightly higher range in comparison to other domains. There was a statistically significant difference found in the values of pain severity (t = 6.09, P < 0.01), pain interference (t = 7.79, P < 0.01), pain catastrophization (t = 4.68, P < 0.01), rumination (t = 5.20, P < 0.01), magnification (t = 3.03, P < 0.01), helplessness (t = 4.19, P < 0.01), and mindfulness traits (t = −2.82, P < 0.01) post intervention (BMBI-CP). Conclusion: Brief mindfulness-based intervention is useful in terms of the ease of delivery and managing psychological aspects of pain perception. Positive well-being variables are significantly associated with pain perception, which would help in the further therapeutic management of cancer pain.