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Purpose: To investigate the relationship between daily thoughts about historical loss and daily levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in American Indian (AI) adults residing on the Blackfeet reservation in Browning, Montana. Methods: The study was designed and conducted using a community‐based participatory research framework and ecological momentary assessment. Over a period of 1 week, 100 AI adults (mean age = 42.18, SD = 14.92) reported how often they thought about historical loss at the end of each day. During this week‐long period, all participants wore a wrist‐accelerometer to passively and objectively measure levels of physical activity. Findings: We found that Blackfeet AI adults who reported thinking about historical loss more frequently over the course of the week had lower average levels of MVPA over the course of the week compared to Blackfeet AI adults who reported thinking about historical loss less frequently (B = –10.22, 95% CI = –13.83, –6.60). We also found that on days when Blackfeet AI adults thought more about historical loss compared to their weekly average, they had fewer minutes of MVPA compared to their weekly average of minutes of MVPA (B = –0.87, 95% CI = –1.48, –0.27). Conclusions: Our data indicate that thoughts about historical loss are linked to lower levels of MVPA. Given high incidence of chronic health conditions linked to physical inactivity in AIs, more work is needed to identify the mechanisms through which thoughts about historical loss may inhibit physical activity in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Historical loss in American Indians (AIs) is believed to contribute to high incidence of mental health disorders, yet less is known about the associations between historical loss and physical health.Purpose: To investigate whether frequency of thought about historical loss predicts risk factors for chronic physical health conditions in an AI community.Methods: Using Community Based Participatory research (CBPR) and Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA), we measured frequency of thoughts about historical loss in 100 AI adults residing on the Blackfeet reservation. Participants completed a 1-week monitoring period, during which ambulatory blood pressure and daily levels of psychological stress were measured. At the end of the week, we collected a dried blood spot sample for measurement of C-reactive protein (CRP).Results: In hierarchical linear regression models controlling for demographics and relevant covariates, greater frequency of thoughts about historical loss predicted higher average daily psychological stress (B = .55, t = 6.47, p < .001, ΔR2 = .30) and higher levels of CRP (B = .33, t = 3.93, p < .001, ΔR2 = .10). Using linear mixed modeling with relevant covariates, we found that greater thoughts about historical loss were associated with higher systolic ambulatory blood pressure (B = .32, 95% CI = .22-.42, t = 6.48, p < .001, ΔR2 = .25; Fig. 1c) and greater diastolic ambulatory blood pressure (B = .19, 95% CI = .11-.27, t = 4.73, p < .001, ΔR2 = .19).Conclusions: The data suggest that frequency of thought about historical loss may contribute to increased subclinical risk for cardiovascular disease in the Blackfeet community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined changes in psychological outcomes related to the COVID-19 pandemic (ie psychological stress, perceived control, and perceived ability to cope) and changes in sleep health in the American Indian Blackfeet community over 4 months (August 24, 2020-November 30, 2020). American Indian adults residing on the Blackfeet reservation (n = 167) completed measures of perceived control over contracting COVID-19, perceived ability to cope with pandemic stressors, psychological stress linked to the pandemic, and a measure of sleep health each month. Linear-effects mixed models were used to examine changes in our outcomes. Community members who reported more control over contracting the virus had better sleep health relative to those who reported less control (B = 0.72, SE = 0.29, p = 0.015). Further, during months when individuals felt they had more control over contracting the virus compared to their average perceived control levels, they had better sleep health relative to their own average (B = 1.06, SE = 0.13, p < 0.001). Average sleep health was the lowest in October, 2020, the month during which COVID-19 incidence was at its highest on the reservation. Declines in sleep health linked to low levels of control over contracting COVID-19 may exacerbate high incidence of chronic mental and physical health conditions in tribal communities. Interventions which highlight strategies known to reduce risk of contracting the virus, may increase perceived control and sleep health, and thus may improve downstream health outcomes for this at-risk population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: American Indians (AIs) live with historical trauma, or the cumulative emotional and psychological wounding that is passed from one generation to the next in response to the loss of lives and culture. Psychological consequences of historical trauma may contribute to health disparities.Purpose: Here, we investigate whether historical trauma predicts changes in psychological stress associated with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in AI adults. Based on the stress-sensitization theory, we hypothesize that greater historical trauma will predict greater increases in levels of psychological stress from before the onset of the pandemic to after.Method: Our analytic sample consisted of 205 AI adults. We measured historical trauma and levels of psychological stress before and after the onset of the pandemic.Results: Using hierarchical regression models controlling for age, biological sex, income, symptoms of depression and anxiety, psychological stress at Time 1, COVID-19 specific stress, and childhood trauma, we found that greater historical trauma preceding the pandemic predicted greater increases in psychological stress (β = 0.38, t = 5.17 p < .01, ΔR2 = 0.12), and levels of social support interacted with historical trauma to predict changes in psychological stress (β = -0.19, t = -3.34, p = .001, ΔR2 = 0.04). The relationship between historical trauma and changes in stress was significant for individuals with low levels of social support.Conclusions: Historical trauma may contribute to AI mental health disparities, through heightened psychological stress responses to life stressors and social support appears to moderate this relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although previous research has established a relationship between childhood trauma and later-life anxiety and depression symptoms in American Indian samples, less is known about protective factors that may reduce the strength of this relationship. The purpose of the present study was to investigate in a sample of American Indian adults, whether age moderates the relationship between self-compassion and poor mental health associated with childhood trauma. Seven hundred and twenty-nine self-identifying American Indian adults (age 18–95) residing in the United States completed an online survey. All participants were self-identifying American Indian adults recruited via Qualtrics, which utilized targeted recruiting through managed research panels. Participants self-reported age, gender, income, and completed measures of self-compassion, childhood trauma, and symptoms of anxiety and depression. Lower self-compassion predicted higher levels of both anxiety symptoms (β = −2.69, R 2 change = 0.24, t (718) = −15.92, p <.001) and depression symptoms (β = −2.23, R 2 change = 0.26, t (718) = −16.30, p <.001). In line with our hypothesis, there was a significant three-way interaction between age, childhood trauma exposure and self-compassion in predicting later-life symptoms of anxiety (β = −0.68, t (712) = −3.57, p <.001, R 2 change = 0.01) and depression (β = −0.54, t (712) = −3.32, p =.001, R 2 change = 0.01). The findings indicate that for older American Indian adults, self-compassion may be a particularly promising protective factor for symptoms of depression for those who have experienced high levels of childhood trauma, and for symptoms of anxiety regardless of childhood trauma exposure. • Historical trauma contributes to high incidence of childhood trauma in American Indians. • American Indians have high incidence of mental health conditions. • Self-Compassion could be an important protective factor which may be moderated by age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]