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Mindful Self-Compassion for Veterans with Morally Injurious Experiences and Co-Occurring Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Substance Use Disorder: A Feasibility Study

Eaton E, Capone C, Reese S, Shea MT, Serpa JG, Germer C

Journal of dual diagnosis, 2025

26 participants · 2 citations

Abstract

Objective: This study evaluates the feasibility and acceptability of delivering Mindful Self-Compassion (MSC) to veterans with moral injury and co-occurring PTSD and substance use disorder (PTSD-SUD). Methods: Veterans (N = 26; M age = 50.92; 100% male) were recruited for an 8-week MSC group. Participants completed measures of self-compassion, guilt, shame, PTSD, and substance use outcomes at baseline, post-treatment, and one-month post-treatment. Results: The recruitment target was easily met, and dropout rates were low (30.8%) for a comorbid veteran sample. Participants reported satisfaction with the intervention. Clinically meaningful change was examined for self-compassion, trauma-related symptoms, and substance use. A clinically meaningful increase for self-compassion and clinically meaningful decreases in PTSD symptoms, guilt, shame, and number of drinking days were observed. Conclusions: The open-label design and small sample size preclude conclusions regarding efficacy. However, these preliminary findings are encouraging and suggest further investigation of MSC as a compliment to existing trauma-related therapies (NCT03681288).

How strong is the evidence?

Evidence Hub reads this as a clinical trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 3 of 5 (Moderate · trial / cohort / secondary analysis). Trials without a large randomized design, cohorts and secondary analyses give moderate evidence. Reported size: 26 participants or records.

How the five levels of evidence work. The level is assigned automatically from the abstract and can be wrong, so check the paper.

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