Self-Management Interventions for Long COVID-19

Interventions to Teach Self-management Skills for Persisting Symptoms of COVID-19: Minimizing Impact of Symptoms on Everyday Functioning and on Healthcare Usage/utilization

The purpose of this study is to investigate and compare the feasibility and efficacy of two group-based interventions (education vs. mindfulness) to help self-manage Long-COVID symptoms.

After a COVID-19 infection, more than 75% of patients report ongoing somatic, cognitive, and psychiatric symptoms. At this time, research is needed to help develop treatments that limit the impact of these symptoms on people who have had COVID-19. The present study investigates the feasibility and efficacy of two group-based interventions in a single-centre, 3-arm, pragmatic RCT comprising (i) an Education Intervention Group arm, (ii) a Mindfulness Skills Intervention Group arm, and (iii) a No-Treatment Control Group arm. Phase 1 is a pilot RCT and will employ a mixed methods design with qualitative post-treatment interviews in a subset of participants in the Education Intervention Group arm only. Phase 2 is a full-scale, quantitative-only RCT, with refinements and power analysis based on the results of Phase 1. Sessions of both groups are delivered by licensed therapists and clinicians. Sessions last 1.5 hours per week for 8 weeks, with 10-15 patients/group in an online format. The Education group participants will learn about the nature of Long-COVID symptoms and discuss strategies for self-care/self-management of symptoms in recovery. The Mindfulness Skills Intervention group participants will receive an introduction to some basic mindfulness skills and practice strategies such as Mindfulness of Breath, Body, Sounds, Thoughts, and Choiceless Awareness.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Clinically diagnosed Long-COVID plus PCR positivity with and without hospitalization
• 3-12 months post-diagnosis of COVID-19
• >2 self-reported persisting symptoms in >1 mood, cognitive and/or somatic symptom domain
• Age >18
• English speaking
• Private access to computer/internet

Exclusion Criteria:

• Acute ventilator support
• Diagnosed dementia
• Past/present history of psychotic illness or mania and, because of potential overlap in symptoms, diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, chronic lyme disease or traumatic brain injury
• Long-COVID symptom severity (i.e., physical, cognitive, emotional symptoms) at a level that would significantly interfere with attendance/adherence to the intervention protocol