Relations between depression, mindfulness and childhood traumas among individuals diagnosed with obesity

In this study, the aim is to determine the effect of relations between depression and mindfulness levels of individuals diagnosed with obesity and their level of exposure to childhood traumas on their adulthood obesity development. This study is realized with the data obtained from 116 participants (88 being women, 28 being men) who applied to Clinical Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Clinic in Istanbul and Üç İki Bir Diet Consultancy Center in Kocaeli and received regular treatment between September and December 2020 while being diagnosed with obesity. Participants with body mass index (BMI) value of 30 and beyond (BMI≥30 kg/m2) and aged between 20 and 65 are included in the study. The data belonging to participants are obtained via self-report method and face-to-face meetings. Sociodemographic information form is applied with face-to-face survey method. "Beck Depression Inventory (BDI)" is used in order to measure the level of depression indicators, while "Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire – Short Form (FFMQ-SF)" is used in order to measure the level of mindfulness and "Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ)" is used in order to measure the level of childhood traumas. There is no meaningful relation between the depression and BMI levels of participants (r= .060; p>.05). It is determined that there is no significant relation between the BMIs of individuals diagnosed with obesity and their mindfulness levels. When the relations between the sub-dimensions of mindfulness are examined, it is seen that the highest relation in positive terms is in between the total points of sub-dimensions called "Monitoring and Watching Without Judgement" and "Naming Emotions" (r=.425; p<.01). It is determined that there are significant relations in negative terms between the depression points of individuals diagnosed with obesity and their mindfulness levels. When the relations between the sub-dimensions of mindfulness are examined, it is seen that the highest relation in positive terms is in between the total points of sub-dimensions called "Coordinating Attention" and "Naming Emotions" (r=.425; p<.01). It is determined that there is no significant relation between the BMI levels of individuals diagnosed with obesity and their level of exposure to childhood traumas. It is found out that there is no significant relation between the sub-dimensions of mindfulness and BMI level (p>.05).