Can moving meditation help breast cancer survivors with insomnia?

This study aimed to investigate the use of Tai Chi Chih, a movement meditation, in treating insomnia in breast cancer (BC) survivors.

This study concluded that both Tai Chi Chih and cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia provide similar benefits for breast cancer survivors. 

Breast cancer patients often suffer from insomnia during cancer treatment and for a period after treatment has finished. Insomnia can be defined as the inability to fall or stay asleep.

Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is commonly used to help breast cancer survivors with insomnia. It aims to change the thoughts and behaviors that are affecting the patient’s ability to sleep. It can be used with or without medication.

It is thought that Tai Chi Chih (TCC) could also be used to help with insomnia. This is a type of movement meditation.

It was unknown if TCC would provide any benefit and how it would compare to CBT-I. 

This study involved 90 breast cancer survivors with insomnia. 50% were treated with CBT-I and 50% were treated with TCC. They were treated for 3 months. Patients were evaluated 2, 3, 6 and 15 months after treatment.

Of the CBT-I group, 43.7% responded (treatment began to work) to the treatment at 15 months. Of the TCC group, 46.7% responded to treatment at 15 months.

The response to TCC was similar to CBT-I at 3, 6 and 15 months.

Of the CBT-I group, 46.2% had insomnia remission whereas 37.9% of the TCC group had insomnia remission.  

This study concluded that both CBT-I and TCC can improve insomnia in BC survivors. TCC was found to be just as good as CBT-I, which is a commonly used behavioral treatment of insomnia. 

One limitation of this study is that most patients involved were white women. Other ethnic groups should be included in further studies. 

Consult your physician about TCC as an alternative to CBT-I for treating insomnia.