Use of Mindfulness Meditation With Iraqi/Afghanistan War Veterans

Objectives: The primary objective of this study is to conduct a randomized pilot study on the efficacy of Mindfulness Meditation (MfM) on sleep in post war Iraqi/Afghanistan veterans with PTSD. It is hypothesized that the change in sleep (measured by actigraphy), sleep self report measures, and PTSD symptoms (measured by the PTSD Checklist) from baseline, 8 weeks and 12 weeks will be greater for veterans with PTSD who are treated with MfM, controlling for pretreatment values and other clinical and demographic factors. A secondary objective will investigate whether there is an improvement in psychological wellness (measured by optimism, perceived wellness, and spirituality) following MfM treatments. It is hypothesized that change in optimism, perceived wellness, and spirituality from baseline, 8 weeks and 12 weeks will improve in veterans with PTSD who are treated with MfM, controlling for pretreatment values and other clinical and demographic factors. Physiological measures of actigraphy in the home will be done at baseline, eight weeks, and twelve weeks. Subjective measure of sleep include measurements of sleep and quality of life(FOSQ) and subjective sleep quality (PSQI). Other self-report measures that will examine psychological wellness include the Life Orientation Test (LOT), the Perceived Wellness Survey (PWS) and the Spirituality Assessment Scale (SAS).