REVIEW article
Front. Psychol.
Sec. Mindfulness
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1518141
This article is part of the Research TopicNovel Intervention Models Transcending Borders for Stress Management - Volume IIIView all 19 articles
Why Mindfulness Matters in Musculoskeletal Therapies: A Narrative Review
Provisionally accepted
- 1Universal Health, Sydney, Australia
- 2University Research Institute of Maternal and Child Health and Precision Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
- 3Faculty of Health Sciences, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
This narrative review explores the integration of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) into musculoskeletal (MSK) care, based on the premise that addressing the mind–body interface can enhance patient outcomes. First, we outline how chronic stress affects twelve physiological systems and contributes to the onset and persistence of MSK conditions. Second, we synthesise evidence showing that MBIs mitigate these stress effects through mechanisms such as improved attention regulation, interoceptive awareness, and reduced catastrophising. Third, we highlight Neuro-Emotional Technique (NET) as a practitioner-facilitated hybrid-MBI exemplar that targets unresolved emotional stress patterns and aligns with the biopsychosocial model of healthcare. We also note contraindications via red and yellow flag considerations, emphasising the importance of careful patient selection and responsible application. Taken together, this review provides a rationale for incorporating MBIs as adjuncts to conventional therapies, supporting recovery, fostering resilience, and advancing patient-centred MSK care.
Keywords: mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs), Musculoskeletal therapy, Chronic Stress Management, Biopsychosocial Model of Healthcare, Neuro-Emotional Technique (NET), Psychoneuroimmunology Mindfulness, Mind-body interventions, stress physiology
Received: 28 Oct 2024; Accepted: 29 Sep 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Bablis, Day, Bablis and Pollard. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Ryan R Day, ryandaychiro@gmail.com
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.