Coloring your way to calm: mandala therapy shows promise for hospitalized patients
NCT ID NCT06840171
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested whether coloring mandalas (circular patterns) could improve mood and quality of life for 51 adults hospitalized with depression and anxiety. Participants completed 8 guided coloring sessions over 3 weeks. Researchers measured changes in depression, anxiety, stress, psychological resilience, and quality of life before and after the sessions.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- mandala coloring
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a simple, low-cost activity to help ease depression and anxiety symptoms during a hospital stay.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, completed study with no control group, so results may not be reliable or apply to everyone. The effect may be due to general relaxation, not mandalas specifically.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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51 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Feb 2025
- Finished
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Sep 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 75 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Agreeing to participate in the study * Being 18 years of age or older * Diagnosed with anxiety and depression disorder Exclusion Criteria: * Those who gave incomplete answers to the scales used in the study * Those with serious psychiatric symptoms (e.g. harming themselves or others, sedation) * Those who did not participate in the mandala coloring session * Those who did not agree to participate in the study
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University
Ankara, 06010, Turkey (Türkiye)
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