HELP Lab
The Healing Emotions iLlness Pain (HELP) lab focuses on developing and testing tailored approaches to improve psychological care for youth with chronic painful health conditions and co-occurring psychological symptoms and increasing access to such care.
We are currently exploring the neural mechanisms underlying the effect of a tailored cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) developed by Dr. Cunningham, called the Aim to Decrease Pain and Anxiety Treatment (ADAPT), which targets pain and anxiety in youth with functional abdominal pain disorders.
We are recently completed a randomized clinical trial testing feasibility and effect of a remotely delivered CBT called the Treatment and Education Approach for Childhood-onset Lupus (TEACH) to improve fatigue, depressive symptoms, and pain in adolescents and young adults with childhood-onset lupus. We are beginning a multi-site clinical trial that aims to implement TEACH directly into rheumatology clinics in the US and Canada in partnership with mental health champions.
Natoshia Cunningham, PhD, Principal Investigator
Michelle Adler Research Assistant
Mallet Reid, MSW, Graduate Research Assistant
Mariela Monzalvo Graduate Research Assistant
Elizabeth Ross, MS3
Elise Cheney-Makens, MS4
Brooke Rezmer, MS4
Elliane Siebert, MS3
Ivana Khreizat, MS3
Lucy Nguyen, MS2
Samuel Vyortkin, MS2
Apoorva Ojha, MS2
Lab Alumni:
Taylor Abounader, Psy. M., Current Role: Intern at Metrohealth, MI.
Alessandra Daskalakis, MD, Current Role: First year resident of internal medicine at Maine Medical Center, Portland, ME.
Alaina Miller, Psy. M., Current Role: Intern at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, Miami, FL.
Samantha Ely, BS, Current Role: Doctoral student of neuroscience, Wayne State University, Detroit MI.
Corewell Health/Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital Research Collaborators:
- Khalid Abulaban, Elizabeth Kessler, Pediatric Rheumatology, Spectrum Health/Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital
- Brittany Barber Garcia, Pediatric Psychology, Spectrum Health/Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital
- Ryan Cox, Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Mark DeLano, Radiology
- Todd Mulderink, Radiology
- Yong Zhou, Radiology
Additional Projects:
- ACE’s (adverse childhood experiences) in JIA (juvenile idiopathic arthritis)
- Cognitive function in lupus patients
MSU Press Coverage
https://humanmedicine.msu.edu/news/2022-cunningham-abdominal-pain-children.html
https://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2020/cbt-pedi-func-ab-pain
Current Projects:
Transforming behavioral healthcare to improve the quality of life for individuals with childhood-onset lupus (Cunningham & Knight, PIs)
The primary goal of this study funded by the Department of Defense is to determine the effectiveness of a cognitive behavioral coping skills program called TEACH (the Treatment and Education Approach for Childhood-onset Lupus). TEACH is designed to improve psychological/functional- and disease- related outcomes in youth with cSLE. We will also investigate longitudinal trajectories of depressive symptoms in recipients and explore implementation outcomes. MSU will serve as the data coordinating center for this multi-site trial. Participating rheumatology sites include Toronto Hospital for Sick Children (Toronto, Canada), Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital (MI), Seattle Children’s Hospital (WA), Montefiore Medical Center (NY), Cincinnati Children’s Hospital (OH), University of Alabama, Birmingham (AL), and Children’s Hospital New Orleans (LA).
Neural Mechanisms of response to ADAPT for youth with FAPD (Cunningham, PI)
This NIH-funded study (K23 AT009458) investigates the neural mechanisms of response to the Aim to Decrease Pain and Anxiety Treatment (ADAPT), a tailored cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) Dr. Cunningham developed (F32 HD078049) to manage pain and anxiety in youth with functional abdominal pain disorders (FAPD). Dr. Cunningham is working in partnership with researchers at MSU, and with colleagues in pain psychology, gastroenterology, and radiology at Spectrum Health and Helen Devos Children’s Hospital to conduct this research.
Engaging School Providers to Manage Student Pain in Michigan Schools (Cunningham, PI)
The goal of the HELP Pain training program is to engage school professionals (school nurses and mental health workers) to manage student pain in Michigan communities. The program will train school providers in cognitive behavioral therapy techniques to help address pain and related symptoms in school children. The study is funded by the Michigan Health Endowment Fund and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation of Michigan. Collaborators include representatives from the Michigan Association of School Nurses, the Health Department of Northwest Michigan, Ellsworth Community Schools, Concord Academy of Petoskey, and Alanson Public Schools.
