Menopause and Compassionate Living Education
The Effect of Compassionate Living Education on Symptom Management and Quality of Life in Menopausal Women: A Randomized Controlled Study
1 other identifier
interventional
68
1 country
1
Brief Summary
Menopause is a natural stage in a woman's life characterized by the permanent cessation of ovarian function and is frequently accompanied by vasomotor, psychological, urogenital, and sleep-related symptoms that can substantially impair quality of life. Although pharmacological treatments are available, many women seek non-pharmacological interventions to manage menopausal symptoms and improve their overall well-being. Mindfulness- and compassion-based interventions have shown promising effects on psychological health, stress reduction, and quality of life in different populations; however, evidence regarding the effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Compassionate Living (MBCL) for women experiencing menopause remains limited. This randomized controlled trial aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a Compassionate Living Education Program based on the principles of Mindfulness-Based Compassionate Living in improving symptom management and quality of life among menopausal women. The study will be conducted with menopausal women recruited from primary healthcare settings in Kars, Türkiye. Participants who meet the eligibility criteria will be randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control group. Participants in the intervention group will receive an eight-session online Compassionate Living Education Program delivered by a certified instructor. The program includes mindfulness practices, self-compassion exercises, breathing and relaxation techniques, compassionate imagery, loving-kindness meditation, and home practice assignments designed to strengthen emotional regulation, self-kindness, and adaptive coping skills. The control group will receive routine care only. Primary outcomes will include menopausal symptom severity and menopause-specific quality of life. Secondary outcomes will include self-compassion, mindfulness, anxiety, depression, and stress. Data will be collected using validated self-report questionnaires before and after the intervention and analyzed using appropriate statistical methods. The findings of this study are expected to provide evidence regarding the effectiveness of Compassionate Living Education as an accessible, low-cost, non-pharmacological intervention for improving symptom management and enhancing the quality of life of menopausal women. The results may contribute to the development of evidence-based nursing and women's health interventions in primary healthcare settings.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at P50-P75 for not_applicable
Started Sep 2026
Shorter than P25 for not_applicable
1 active site
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
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Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
First Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
July 22, 2026
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
July 27, 2026
CompletedStudy Start
First participant enrolled
September 30, 2026
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
December 15, 2026
ExpectedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
January 30, 2027
July 27, 2026
July 1, 2026
3 months
July 22, 2026
July 22, 2026
Conditions
Keywords
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (1)
Menopausal Symptom Assessment Scale/MSSA (Appendix-2)
Developed by Schneider et al. in 1992 to measure the severity of menopausal symptoms and their impact on quality of life, the Turkish validity and reliability of this scale was established by Gürkan (Gürkan, 2005). The scale, consisting of 11 items covering menopausal complaints, comprises 3 sub-dimensions: 1- Somatic complaints (items 1, 2, 3, 11), 2- Psychological complaints (items 4, 5, 6, 7), and 3- Urogenital complaints (items 8, 9, 10). The scale uses a 5-point Likert scale, with each item scored from 0: None, 1: Mild, 2: Moderate, 3: Severe, and 4: Very severe. The total score of the scale is calculated based on the scores given for each item. The minimum score obtainable from the scale is 0, while the maximum score is 44. An increase in the total score obtained from the scale indicates an increase in the severity of the complaints experienced, and on the other hand, it shows that the quality of life is negatively affected.
up to 1 day
Secondary Outcomes (1)
Menopause-Specific Quality of Life Scale (MSQLS) (Appendix-3)
up to 1 day
Other Outcomes (2)
Self-Compassion Scale Short Form (SCS-S) (Appendix-4)
up to 1 day
Mindfulness Awareness Scale (MAS) (Appendix-5)
up to 1 day
Study Arms (8)
Session 1: How We Evolved - Threat, Impulse, and Soothing Systems
EXPERIMENTAL• A "breath break with kindness" is practiced. • Encourage them to think about how threat, impulse and sedative systems have developed in their own lives. • A "safe place" application is made. • "Courtesy meditation" is done.
Session 2: Threat and Self-Compassion
EXPERIMENTAL• A "breath break with kindness" is practiced. • "Building a compassionate relationship with resilience" and "kindness meditation: a benevolent" practices are made. • "A hand on your heart" and "a compassionate comrade" practices are made.
Session 3: Unraveling the Knots of Desire and Patterns Agenda
EXPERIMENTAL• Talk about homework. • A "breath break with kindness" is practiced. • "Establishing a compassionate relationship with desire", "guided meditation to discover the inner pattern", "courtesy meditation: a good friend" practices are made.
Session 4: Internalizing compassion
EXPERIMENTAL• "Pretend-to-pretend" practice is made for participants to observe themselves. • In addition to the previous practices, the practice of "internalizing compassion" is made in order to increase their expanded mindfulness. • Courtesy meditation: a neutral person", "kindness towards your body", which is based on mindfulness practices and increases body awareness and mindful movement, is carried out. During the day, they will be informed that they should do the "walking with kindness" practice on their own.
Session 5: Me and others - Expanding the circle
EXPERIMENTAL• A "compassionate letter" application is made by asking participants to think about a situation they encountered recently or some time ago and is still causing distress. It is explained that they can gain insight with this application. • "Courtesy meditation: the 'difficult' person", "compassion and breathing: yourself" and "compassionate breathing: others" practices are made
Session 6: Growing happiness
EXPERIMENTAL• "Revisiting the good" practice is carried out to define the five sense organs for the participants. • "Forgiveness", "Asking for forgiveness", "forgiving others", "gratitude" practices are carried out. • The practice is expanded as "kindness meditation: groups and all beings".
Session 7: Weaving Wisdom and Compassion into Daily Life
EXPERIMENTAL• Participants are made to choose a day in their life and allow a few minutes to pause in a mindful way. • "A breather for wise and compassionate action", "calmness meditation" and "joy sharing meditation" practices are carried out.
Session 8: Living with the Heart
EXPERIMENTAL• The participants are told about the applications that they can apply for, where they need help to develop compassion towards self-healing skills, and the whole training is evaluated. • The "river of life" application, which evaluates mindfulness in depth, is carried out. • An overall summary of the 8-session study is made and feedback is received.
Interventions
The practice of "Breath break with kindness" will be applied for 5 minutes. Afterwards, 15 minutes of information on threats, impulses and soothing systems, "A safe place" application for 11 minutes, "Courtesy meditation" for 10 minutes. After each application, 10 minutes of feedback will be received from the participants.
The practice of "breathing with kindness" will be done for 7 minutes. The practice of "Building a compassionate relationship with resilience" will be held for 12 minutes, and the practice of "Kindness meditation: a benevolent" will take place for 11 minutes. "A hand over your heart" application will be made for 3 minutes and "A compassionate comrade" application will be done for 10 minutes. After each application, 3 minutes of feedback will be received from the participants.
The practice of "breathing with kindness" will be done for 7 minutes. "Building a compassionate relationship with desire" 12 minutes, "Guided meditation to discover the inner pattern" 10 minutes and "Courtesy meditation: a good friend" 11 minutes. Except for the "breath break with kindness" application, 3 minutes of feedback will be received from the participants after each application
The "pretend-to-be" practice for the participants to observe themselves will be made for 10 minutes. The practice of "internalizing compassion" will be done for 7 minutes, "kindness meditation: a neutral person" practice for 10 minutes, and "kindness towards your body" for 10 minutes. After each application, 3 minutes of feedback will be received from the participants.
The "a compassionate letter" practice with the participants will continue for 15 minutes. "meditation: the 'difficult' person" 8 minutes, "compassion and breathing: yourself" 10 minutes and "compassionate breathing: others" 7 minutes. A "compassionate break" application is performed for 7 minutes.
The practice of "Revisiting the good" is carried out for 10 minutes with the participants. "Forgive yourself", "wish for forgiveness", "forgive others", "gratitude" practices will be held for 5 minutes each and will take 20 minutes in total. "Courtesy meditation: groups and all beings" will be practiced for 10 minutes. After each application, 3 minutes of feedback will be received from the participants
Participants will be given 10 minutes to choose a day in their life and allow a few minutes to pause mindfully. The practice of "a breather for wise and compassionate action" is 10 minutes, the practice of "calmness meditation" is 8 minutes, and the practice of "sharing the joy meditation" is 8 minutes. After each application, 3 minutes of feedback will be received from the participants.
The participants are told about the applications they can apply for, where they need help to develop compassion towards self-healing skills, and the entire training will be evaluated for 20 minutes. The "river of life" application is carried out for 20 minutes. 10 minutes of feedback will be received after the application.
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- Women who are in the menopausal period.
- Aged 45 years or older.
- Registered at the participating primary healthcare center.
- Able to read and understand Turkish.
- At least a primary school graduate.
- Willing to participate and provide written informed consent.
- Able to attend the online Compassionate Living Education sessions.
- Able to complete the study questionnaires.
You may not qualify if:
- Failure to complete the study questionnaires.
- Failure to attend the Compassionate Living Education sessions.
- Withdrawal of informed consent at any stage of the study.
- Inability to complete the post-intervention assessment.
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
Study Sites (1)
Ataturk University Vocational School of Health Services
Erzurum, Yakutiye, Turkey (Türkiye)
Central Study Contacts
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- RANDOMIZED
- Masking
- SINGLE
- Who Masked
- OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
- Purpose
- SUPPORTIVE CARE
- Intervention Model
- PARALLEL
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
- PI Title
- Lecturer Physician
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
July 22, 2026
First Posted
July 27, 2026
Study Start
September 30, 2026
Primary Completion (Estimated)
December 15, 2026
Study Completion (Estimated)
January 30, 2027
Last Updated
July 27, 2026
Record last verified: 2026-07