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De resultaten tonen een aanzienlijke vooruitgang in het psychologische en fysieke functioneren, vooral in de vermindering van stress & pijn, het toegenomen vermogen om de situatie te hanteren, en een verhoogde algemene gezondheid.
De onderzoekers stellen dat de belangrijkste verbeteringen in de studies zijn waargenomen bij patiënten met de meest ernstige symptomen.
Het team heeft verder onderzoek gedaan bij patiënten met kanker, musculo-skeletale aandoeningen, en geestelijke gezondheid stoornissen of psychologische stress; hierbij is het effect van de techniek bevestigd.
'Gentle touch' (genezing via wrijven en handoplegging) is gebaseerd op sessies van ongeveer 40 minuten waarin de alternatieve genezers lichte, niet-invasieve handoplegging toepassen bij de patiënt op het hoofd, borst, armen, benen en voeten.
En het effect van de therapie varieërt van een betere nachtrust en pijnreductie, tot verhoging van de energie-niveaus.
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Substantial improvements
Helen Leathard, een professor van de genezende wetenschap aan de Universiteit van Cumbria, wordt als volgt geciteerd in 'The Telegraph':
“On the basis of this sound evidence, healing by gentle touch should play a part in the treatment of people with cancer, mental health problems or a wide variety of illnesses where help with pain or stress reduction will enhance their well-being”.
“The treatment provided at the Centre for Complementary Care is beneficial and well regarded by many doctors and nurses in the Cumbria area. But it is very definitely complementary to conventional medicine and not a replacement,” zegt Helen Leathard.
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Eerder verricht onderzoek: 'Healing by Gentle Touch'
Het huidige onderzoek werd voorafgegaan door eerdere studies met Prof Helen Leathard :
2004 Research:
Evaluation of healing by gentle touch
Abstract:
Objectives - To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of healing by gentle touch in clients attending The Centre for Complementary Care (CCC) in Eskdale, Cumbria.
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Prof. Helen Leathard
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Study design: An evaluation of data collected by questionnaire over 6 years.
Methods: All clients attending the CCC between 1995 and 2001 were invited to participate in this study, and data were collected from 300 subjects with a wide range of ailments who received four treatment sessions within 6 weeks. Exclusion criteria were: recent treatment at the CCC; failure to complete four treatment sessions; and age under 16 years. Outcome measures included comparison of pre- and post-treatment levels of physical (pain, disability, immobility, sleep disturbances, reliance upon medication, daily activities) and psychological (stress, panic, fear, anger, relaxation, coping, depression/anxiety) functioning; these were assessed using a questionnaire with visual analogue scales for subjective rating of symptoms and the EuroQoL (EQ-5D), a generic state-of-health measure.
Results: Wilcoxon signed ranks tests showed statistically significant improvements in both psychological and physical functioning, particularly in stress reduction (median stress levels fell by four points), pain relief (median pain ratings fell by two points), increased ability to cope (median improvement of three points) and increased general health ratings (median improvement of 20 points) between study entry and end of treatment (P<0.0004 for all these symptoms). The most substantial improvements were seen in those with the most severe symptoms at study entry. No adverse effects of treatment were documented.
Conclusions: This audit of treatment outcomes provides evidence consistent with the hypothesis that healing, as provided at the CCC, was associated with improved psychological and physical functioning in the majority of subjects, and is worthy of further evaluation.
2006 Research:
Healing by Gentle Touch Ameliorates Stress and Other Symptoms in People Suffering with Mental Health Disorders or Psychological Stress
Abstract:
Previous studies on healing by gentle touch in clients with various illnesses indicated substantial improvements in psychological well-being, suggesting that this form of treatment might be helpful for people with impaired quality of mental health. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of healing by gentle touch in subjects with self-reported impairments in their psychological well-being or mental health. One hundred and forty-seven clients who identified themselves as having psychological problems received four treatment sessions. Pre- to post-treatment changes in psychological and physical functioning were assessed by self-completed questionnaires which included visual analogue scales (VAS) and the EuroQoL (EQ-5D). Participants recorded reductions in stress, anxiety and depression scores and increases in relaxation and ability to cope scores (all P < 0.0004). Improvements were greatest in those with the most severe symptoms initially. This open study provides strong circumstantial evidence that healing by gentle touch is safe and effective in improving psychological well-being in participants with self-reported psychological problems, and also that it safely complements standard medical treatment. Controlled trials are warranted.
Keywords: alleviation of symptoms – complements medical treatments – gentle touch – healing – psychological well-being – relaxation – stress - hand
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Gerelateerde bronnen:
Palmtherapy verminderd Angst bij Hart Patienten
BBC News
University of Cumbria
ScienceDirect Article
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