Doctors Esperanza González, Luis Moya Albiol and Josefa Pérez in the departments of Psycho-Biology and Developmental and Educational Psychology have studied to what extent people who looks after their autistic relatives are under chronic stress, having negative effects on health. Moreover, they have verified the beneficial effects of the application of a mindfulness programme on physical and mental health.
More than a hundred people has participated in this two-year project, which has been financed by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology and by the Valencian Ministry of Education.
Results suggest that the carers have poorer health than the parents who participated in the research but were not looking after their autistic children. The former must take a great amount of medicines and present a greater sensorineural, musculoskeletal, immune, respiratory, gastrointestinal and cardiovascular symptomatology.
The conclusions also state that autistics carers show a deterioration of affection (depression, anxiety and anger) and they have less social support. Regarding the physiological level, they have an organism overly active when they are at rest and a smaller response capacity when facing stress situations. These effects are bigger for carers with a greater workload.
In general, the results suggest that a loss of the stress response adaptative potential can occur. Nevertheless, some carers do not have such effects, then it is especially interesting to study which are the protection factors so that psychotherapy actions can be done to incite them.
This research has been done thanks to the collaboration of 88 carers (parents) of people diagnosed as autistics of different levels, from classic autism to Asperger syndrome, who were all compared with a group of people with similar characteristics not playing this role.
The research has been conducted by doctors Esperanza González Bono and Luis Moya Albiol, along with their research team in the Universitat de València Departament de Psicobiologia (Sara de Andrés, Ángel Romero, María Victoria Sanchis, Patricia Sariñana, Nicolás Ruiz, Juan Miguel Roa y otros investigadores y colaboradores). Moreover, the application of a mindfulness programme has proved to have a beneficial effect on a small group of carers. This programme has been conducted by doctor Josefa Pérez Blasco of the Devolopmental and Educational Psychology. The researchers have been in contact with the carers and they have had the collaboration of the Asociación Valenciana de Padres de Personas con Autismo (APNAV) and the Asociación Asperger Alicante (ASPALI).
Last update: 23 de january de 2012 13:01.
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