Self-compassion in Dissociative Seizures - Version 1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Exploring Self-compassion in Adults who Experience Dissociative Seizures
IRAS ID
254199
Contact name
Safir Maner
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Edinburgh
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 4 months, 24 days
Research summary
Dissociative Seizures refer to epilepsy-like seizures in the absence of electrical brain activity associated with epilepsy. It can be a debilitating chronic condition which affects patients’ quality of life and create significant distress. Self-compassion refers to realising one's own suffering when facing difficulties and relieving this distress by adopting a kind approach to oneself. It enables individuals to soothe themselves when experiencing difficult emotions, thus helping them better deal with life stress and psychological problems.
Currently there is limited research investigating self-compassion in people who have dissociative seizures. This study aims to interview people with dissociative symptoms to explore what being self-compassionate means for them and to understand their views on what enables and prevents them from taking a self-compassionate stance.
Participants will be recruited from an inpatient ward in Western General Hospital and Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. To be able to take part, participants must have a diagnosis of Dissociative Seizures, be above the age of 16 and have a fluent command of English. Eligible participants will be invited to an interview session with the researcher which will last between 60-90 minutes. Participants will be asked questions about their experiences with self-compassion and fill in two questionnaires on mood and self-compassion. Participants who are unable to travel to interview sessions will be offered telephone interviews. All sessions will be digitally recorded. The researcher will analyze the data by looking at common themes emerging from the interviews. Some participants will be invited to look at researchers’ interpretations and to check that their views have been well represented. Results will be written in a doctoral thesis format and published in an article so that other researchers can also find out about the study outcome.
REC name
South East Scotland REC 01
REC reference
19/SS/0064
Date of REC Opinion
6 May 2019
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion