Functional Neurological DisorderDMTforFNDNCT07378488
Dance/Movement Therapy for Functional Neurological Disorder
A study testing Structured dance/movement and Physical exercise/body coordination in people with Functional Neurological Disorder, run by King's College London at 1 site in United Kingdom.
Trial summary
Building on evidence for somatic or physical interventions in functional neurological disorder (FND), the goal of this study is to test the feasibility of a structured dance/movement task in individuals with FND, and explore the potential use of somatic or body-based therapies in this population. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and older
- Conditions the study is for
- Functional Neurological Disorder
- What is being tested?
- Structured dance/movement and Physical exercise/body coordination
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 30 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited Kingdom
- Study dates
- 28 Jan 2026to 28 Aug 2026
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 years and older
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Aged 18 or older
- Fluency in English language
- Normal or corrected eyesight
- Primary diagnosis of FND with seizures, motor symptoms, sensory symptoms, or mixed FND symptoms
- Participants will be asked to provide proof of FND diagnosis in the form of an existing medical letter from a qualified healthcare professional (not required to be from an NHS service). This will be checked prior to engaging in the screening interview for the study.
Who cannot join
- Physical symptoms or disability that would prohibit the participant's ability to engage with the intervention and/or attend the in-person sessions (e.g., upper/lower limb paralysis, seizure frequency > 10 per day, severe tremor)
- A diagnosis of functional cognitive disorder or functional cognitive symptoms only
- Current participation in another body-based therapy or intervention for FND - participants currently engaging in some form of body- based therapy, whether self-guided or therapist-guided, will be asked to abstain from these sessions during the course of this study. If this is not feasible, the participant will be excluded from the current study.
- Current comorbid diagnosis of a major neurological (e.g., epilepsy, Parkinson's), psychiatric (e.g., schizophrenia, active psychosis, severe alcohol or substance use disorder), or cardiovascular (e.g., coronary artery disease, heart failure) disorder that may impair the participant's ability to participate in the study and confound the results
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United Kingdom1 site
Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London
London, London, SE5 8AB
About this study
Official title: Structured Dance/Movement Therapy for Functional Neurological Disorder: A Feasibility Study
Building on evidence for somatic or physical interventions in functional neurological disorder (FND), the goal of this study is to test the feasibility of a structured dance/movement task in individuals with FND, and explore the potential use of somatic or body-based therapies in this population.
The primary study outcomes will be the feasibility and acceptability of a structured dance/movement therapy (DMT) intervention for individuals diagnosed with FND. The study will also explore whether this type of intervention has potential to contribute to elevating trust in the body and general wellbeing, alongside reducing functional neurological and dissociative symptoms.
Researchers will compare structured dance/movement therapy to a physical exercise/body coordination condition.
Read the detailed description
Functional neurological disorder (FND) sits in between neurology and psychiatry, including symptoms like tremors, limb weakness, functional seizures, and sensory issues. Previous research has found elevated dissociative symptoms (i.e., feelings of detachment or disconnection from the self or surroundings) and/or dissociative disorder comorbidities (i.e., dissociative identity disorder, dissociative amnesia) in FND populations relative to the general population. There is also emerging evidence for alterations in aspects of bodily awareness in FND, specifically including a lack of trust in the body and an increased tendency or likelihood to distract from bodily sensations, and atypical autonomic reactivity. These alterations may contribute to, or play a role in the experience of, FND symptoms.
Dance/movement therapy (DMT) may be a potentially beneficial intervention for disorders characterized by bodily symptoms or feelings of disconnection from the self, including FND. Generally, DMT is based on the premise that psychological and bodily experiences reciprocally influence one another and has been shown to improve health-related psychological outcomes and wellbeing in a range of populations (e.g., fibromyalgia, brain trauma). Previous research has shown promise for body-based approaches for the treatment of dissociation and trauma-related distress, encouraging individuals to attend to their bodies/bodily sensations.
Previous research demonstrates reductions in bodily disconnection post-DMT in individuals with Depersonalization-Derealization disorder, a dissociative disorder that, like FND, involves disconnections from the self and surroundings and alterations to bodily awareness (lack of trusting the body, difficulties with attention regulation). Using structured DMT for FND may help to encourage a conscious connection to the body/surroundings in the here and now, as well as a recognition of bodily states and, in turn, an adaptive regulation of them. The feasibility of dance/movement therapy has not yet been tested in FND and may provide new avenues for treatment.
- Conditions
- Functional Neurological Disorder
- Being tested
- Structured dance/movement, Physical exercise/body coordination
- Keywords
- Functional Neurological Disorder, Dance Movement Therapy, Interoception, FND, Intervention, Physical Exercise
- Medical subject headings
- Conversion Disorder, Motor Activity
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Structured dance/movementOther
Fifteen participants will be randomly assigned using a computer-generated allocation sequence to the dance/movement intervention. This will involve a combination of light stretching, warming up using contact with a stress ball, and aerobic dance movements which follow the rhythm of a piece of music. It will be accessible to a range of abilities and will take ~30 minutes.
This intervention has been developed with the aim of:
- Enhancing adaptive bodily awareness, allowing the participant to feel more safe and at home in their body while promoting accurate and non-judgmental detection of bodily signals
- Working with rhythms and coordinated movements leading to the elevation of the salience of bodily signals (heartbeat, sweating) in a structured setting - promoting adaptive noticing of signals in the body, not distracting from what one might be feeling.
- Helping participants to engage with their body, notice and sense what they're feeling, and feel more comfortable moving their body.
Physical exercise/body coordinationOther
Fifteen participants will be randomly assigned to this task. This will involve simple functional stretches, balances and limb coordination exercises and will use only neutral instructions. It will be accessible to a range of abilities and will take ~30 minutes.
This task has been developed as the control condition with the following in mind:
- Including functional movement matched for level of aerobic intensity to the dance/movement task.
- Matching the length of the task and level of contact with the lead researcher/research team.
- No prompts or explicit instructions to focus on bodily sensations, the self or body in the present moment, or to move in an expressive way; purely focused on mobility and physical functioning.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Structured dance/movement therapy | Experimental | Participants will receive a structured dance/movement therapy programme over a period of five weeks Receives: Other: Structured dance/movement |
| Physical exercise/body coordination | Active comparator | Participants will receive a physical exercise/body coordination programme over a period of five weeks Receives: Other: Physical exercise/body coordination |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Feasibility of the intervention: Recruitment
The number/proportion of eligible participants who consent to participate in the study by 29/05/2026
Measured: Up to 16 weeks
Feasibility of the intervention: Adherence
The number/proportion of in-person visits and mid-point calls attended and completed. The number of days the task was completed during the at-home periods.
Measured: Up to 20 weeks
Feasibility of the intervention: Withdrawal
The number/proportion of enrolled (consented) participants who withdraw from the study prior to completion.
Measured: Up to 20 weeks
Feasibility of the intervention: Adverse events
The number and nature of adverse events reported during study participation.
Measured: Up to 20 weeks
Feasibility of the intervention: Acceptability
Qualitative measures of perceived benefit of the intervention, barriers and facilitating factors, experiences of study procedures.
Measured: Up to 20 weeks
Secondary outcomes (23)
Clinical Global Impression - Improvement Scale
This is a one question measure that assesses self-reported current symptom severity relative to study intake. Patients will rate their current functional neurological disorder symptoms using this 7-point scale (1=very much improved; 2=much improved; 3=minimally improved; 4=no change; 5=minimally worse; 6= much worse; 7=very much worse).
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Functional Neurological Symptoms Questionnaire
Measures the presence, impact, and severity of functional neurological symptoms including seizures, tremors, etc.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness - 2
A 37-item self-report questionnaire assessing various abilities relating to awareness and recognition of bodily experiences, including eight subscales: Noticing, Not-Distracting, Not- Worrying, Attention Regulation, Emotional Awareness, Self-Regulation, Body Listening, Trust. Each question is rated from 0-5, and average scores are calculated across the items for each subscale. Higher scores on all subscales indicate better outcomes.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire
A 39-item scale with five facets (Observing, Describing, Acting with Awareness, Non-Judging, Non-Reactivity) measuring trait mindfulness in everyday life each facet. Each question is rated from 1-5, with higher scores indicating better outcomes.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Cognitive Behavioural Response Questionnaire - Short Form
An 18-item self-report scale to capture cognitive and behavioural responses to symptoms with six subscales: Fear Avoidance, Damaging Beliefs, Embarrassment Avoidance, Symptom Focusing, All-or-Nothing Behaviour, Resting Behaviour. Each question is rated from 0-4, with higher scores across subscales indicating worse outcomes.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Multiscale Dissociation Inventory
A 30-item self-report measure that assesses different types of psychological dissociative symptoms across five subscales: Disengagement, Depersonalisation, Derealisation, Memory Disturbance, Emotional Constriction, and Identity Dissociation. Each question is rated on a scale from 1-5, with total scores on each subscale (ranging from 5-25) converted into T scores once calculated. Higher scores indicate worse outcomes.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Toronto Alexithymia Scale - 20
A 20-item self-report questionnaire assessing alexithymia across a total score and three subscales: Difficulty Describing Feelings, Difficulty Identifying Feelings, Externally Oriented Thinking. Total scores range from 20-200, with higher scores indicating worse outcomes.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Work & Social Adjustment Scale
A five-item self-report measure assessing impairments in social and occupational functioning. Total scores range from 0-40, with higher scores indicating worse outcomes.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Short-Form Health Survey
A 36-item measure of health-related quality-of-life over the past four weeks across eight subscales: Physical Functioning, Role Limitations Due to Physical Health, Role Limitations Due to Emotional Problems, Energy and Fatigue, Emotional Wellbeing, Social Functioning, Pain, and General Health. Individual items are rated from 1-6 and, after participant ratings, each item is recoded on a 0-100 scale, with higher scores indicating better outcomes.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Body Perception Questionnaire - ANS
A 20-item scale measuring autonomic nervous system symptoms in everyday life. Total scores range from 20-100, with higher scores indicating worse outcomes.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Body Perception Questionnaire - VSF
A 12-item scale measuring awareness of particular sensations within the body. Total scores range from 12-60, with higher scores indicating greater sensitivity to internal bodily sensations.
Measured: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Cardiac interoceptive accuracy
Measured using a heartbeat tracking task (HTT) in the laboratory. Participants are asked to pay attention to and count the number of heartbeats they feel over different periods of time to determine how accurate they are with regards to this, over four trials.
Measured: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Cardiac interoceptive confidence
Measured using a heartbeat tracking task (HTT) in the laboratory. Participants are asked to judge their level of confidence in how accurate the are in detecting their heartbeats over four trials within the task.
Measured: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Time estimation accuracy
A control task to the heartbeat tracking task (HTT) where participants are asked to count seconds over differing periods of time to measure their accuracy with regards to time perception, over four trials.
Measured: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Time estimation confidence
A control task to the heartbeat tracking task where participants are asked to count seconds over differing periods of time to, indicating their confidence in this ability over four trials.
Measured: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Physiological and psychological states
Measured in the laboratory. Self-report questions of current state pain, bodily/autonomic arousal, fatigue, functional neurological symptoms, and dissociation.
Measured: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Autonomic arousal
Participants will be asked to wear sensors to measure their heartrate and electrical conductivity of the skin (measures of physiological/autonomic arousal). Heartrate will be measured with electrocardiography: two sensors will be attached under the collarbones and one on the left ankle. Electrical conductivity of the skin/electrodermal activity will be measured with two sensors on the index and middle fingers of the non- dominant hand. The electrocardiography sensors will also be worn during completion of the heartbeat tracking and time estimation tasks.
Measured: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
At-home Diary Sheet: ease of task performance
Completed on days when participants perform the intervention or control task at home. Post task, participants are asked to indicate on a 1-7 Likert scale (1: very easy, 7: very difficult) how easy it was to perform the task.
Measured: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: feeling during task performance
Completed on days when participants perform the intervention or control task at home. Post task, participants are asked to indicate on a 1-7 Likert scale (1: very bad, 7: very good) how they felt while performing the task.
Measured: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: physical states
Completed on days when participants perform the intervention or control task at home. Likert scale from 1-7 (1: not at all, 7: extremely) measuring current state: pain, bodily arousal, fatigue, functional neurological symptoms (e.g., tremors, weakness, seizures, tingling/numbness).
Measured: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: state dissociation
Completed on days when participants perform the intervention or control task at home. Ten questions of state dissociation (e.g., feeling detached from oneself and surroundings) from the Clinician Administered Dissociative States Scale, measured on a scale from 0 (not at all) to 4 (extremely) and total scores ranging from 0-40.
Measured: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: autonomic arousal
Completed on days when participants perform the intervention or control task at home. Post task, two questions regarding the ability to currently feel one's heartbeat (yes/no) and if one is currently sweating (yes/no).
Measured: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: open comments
Completed on days when participants perform the intervention or control task at home. Open comments box for participants to add any thoughts or feelings about the session.
Measured: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted30 Jan 2026
- Study start28 Jan 2026
- Primary completion30 Jul 2026 (estimated)
- Study completion28 Aug 2026 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (5)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Functional Neurological DisorderStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- King's College London
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07378488
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- HR-25/26-51710
- Acronym
- DMTforFND
- Status last verified
- Jan 2026
- First submitted
- 13 Jan 2026
- Last updated
- 26 Jun 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Undecided: The datasets of the study will be available from the corresponding author on reasonable request after the findings have been published in relevant peer-reviewed journals.
Publications
Kennedy-Barnes E, Millman LSM, Basamh Y, Duarte A, Pacelli J, Hodsoll J, Pick S. Somatic yoga therapy for functional neurological disorder: feasibility randomised controlled trial. BJPsych Open. 2026 Jun 2;12(4):e151. doi: 10.1192/bjo.2026.12003.
PubMed 42226608Pick S, Rojas-Aguiluz M, Butler M, Mulrenan H, Nicholson TR, Goldstein LH. Dissociation and interoception in functional neurological disorder. Cogn Neuropsychiatry. 2020 Jul;25(4):294-311. doi: 10.1080/13546805.2020.1791061. Epub 2020 Jul 8.
PubMed 32635804Pick S, Goldstein LH, Perez DL, Nicholson TR. Emotional processing in functional neurological disorder: a review, biopsychosocial model and research agenda. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2019 Jun;90(6):704-711. doi: 10.1136/jnnp-2018-319201. Epub 2018 Nov 19.
PubMed 30455406Millman LSM, Hunter ECM, Terhune DB, Orgs G. Online structured dance/movement therapy reduces bodily detachment in depersonalization-derealization disorder. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2023 May;51:101749. doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2023.101749. Epub 2023 Mar 30.
PubMed 37018935Millman LSM, Short E, Stanton B, Winston JS, Nicholson TR, Mehta MA, Reinders AATS, Edwards MJ, Goldstein LH, David AS, Hotopf M, Chalder T, Pick S. Interoception in functional motor symptoms and functional seizures: Preliminary evidence of intact accuracy alongside reduced insight and altered sensibility. Behav Res Ther. 2023 Sep;168:104379. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2023.104379. Epub 2023 Jul 25.
PubMed 37516011
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 26 Jun 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Structured Dance/Movement Therapy for Functional Neurological Disorder: A Feasibility Study
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07378488
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- DMTforFND / HR-25/26-51710
- Conditions
- Functional Neurological Disorder
- Keywords
- Functional Neurological Disorder, Dance Movement Therapy, Interoception, FND, Intervention, Physical Exercise
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Active, not recruiting
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- King's College LondonUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 28 Jan 2026 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 30 Jul 2026 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 28 Aug 2026 (estimated)
- First posted
- 30 Jan 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
Building on evidence for somatic or physical interventions in functional neurological disorder (FND), the goal of this study is to test the feasibility of a structured dance/movement task in individuals with FND, and explore the potential use of somatic or body-based therapies in this population.
The primary study outcomes will be the feasibility and acceptability of a structured dance/movement therapy (DMT) intervention for individuals diagnosed with FND. The study will also explore whether this type of intervention has potential to contribute to elevating trust in the body and general wellbeing, alongside reducing functional neurological and dissociative symptoms.
Researchers will compare structured dance/movement therapy to a physical exercise/body coordination condition.
Detailed description
Functional neurological disorder (FND) sits in between neurology and psychiatry, including symptoms like tremors, limb weakness, functional seizures, and sensory issues. Previous research has found elevated dissociative symptoms (i.e., feelings of detachment or disconnection from the self or surroundings) and/or dissociative disorder comorbidities (i.e., dissociative identity disorder, dissociative amnesia) in FND populations relative to the general population. There is also emerging evidence for alterations in aspects of bodily awareness in FND, specifically including a lack of trust in the body and an increased tendency or likelihood to distract from bodily sensations, and atypical autonomic reactivity. These alterations may contribute to, or play a role in the experience of, FND symptoms.
Dance/movement therapy (DMT) may be a potentially beneficial intervention for disorders characterized by bodily symptoms or feelings of disconnection from the self, including FND. Generally, DMT is based on the premise that psychological and bodily experiences reciprocally influence one another and has been shown to improve health-related psychological outcomes and wellbeing in a range of populations (e.g., fibromyalgia, brain trauma). Previous research has shown promise for body-based approaches for the treatment of dissociation and trauma-related distress, encouraging individuals to attend to their bodies/bodily sensations.
Previous research demonstrates reductions in bodily disconnection post-DMT in individuals with Depersonalization-Derealization disorder, a dissociative disorder that, like FND, involves disconnections from the self and surroundings and alterations to bodily awareness (lack of trusting the body, difficulties with attention regulation). Using structured DMT for FND may help to encourage a conscious connection to the body/surroundings in the here and now, as well as a recognition of bodily states and, in turn, an adaptive regulation of them. The feasibility of dance/movement therapy has not yet been tested in FND and may provide new avenues for treatment.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind (outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Structured dance/movement therapy | Experimental | Other: Structured dance/movementParticipants will receive a structured dance/movement therapy programme over a period of five weeks |
| Physical exercise/body coordination | Active comparator | Other: Physical exercise/body coordinationParticipants will receive a physical exercise/body coordination programme over a period of five weeks |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (5 listed)
- Aged 18 or older
- Fluency in English language
- Normal or corrected eyesight
- Primary diagnosis of FND with seizures, motor symptoms, sensory symptoms, or mixed FND symptoms
- Participants will be asked to provide proof of FND diagnosis in the form of an existing medical letter from a qualified healthcare professional (not required to be from an NHS service). This will be checked prior to engaging in the screening interview for the study.
Key exclusion criteria (4 listed)
- Physical symptoms or disability that would prohibit the participant's ability to engage with the intervention and/or attend the in-person sessions (e.g., upper/lower limb paralysis, seizure frequency > 10 per day, severe tremor)
- A diagnosis of functional cognitive disorder or functional cognitive symptoms only
- Current participation in another body-based therapy or intervention for FND - participants currently engaging in some form of body- based therapy, whether self-guided or therapist-guided, will be asked to abstain from these sessions during the course of this study. If this is not feasible, the participant will be excluded from the current study.
- Current comorbid diagnosis of a major neurological (e.g., epilepsy, Parkinson's), psychiatric (e.g., schizophrenia, active psychosis, severe alcohol or substance use disorder), or cardiovascular (e.g., coronary artery disease, heart failure) disorder that may impair the participant's ability to participate in the study and confound the results
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Structured dance/movementFifteen participants will be randomly assigned using a computer-generated allocation sequence to the dance/movement intervention. This will involve a combination of light stretching, warming up using contact with a stress ball, and aerobic dance movements which follow the rhythm of a piece of music. It will be accessible to a range of abilities and will take ~30 minutes. This intervention has been developed with the aim of: * Enhancing adaptive bodily awareness, allowing the participant to feel more safe and at home in their body while promoting accurate and non-judgmental detection of bodily signals * Working with rhythms and coordinated movements leading to the elevation of the salience of bodily signals (heartbeat, sweating) in a structured setting - promoting adaptive noticing of signals in the body, not distracting from what one might be feeling. * Helping participants to engage with their body, notice and sense what they're feeling, and feel more comfortable moving their body. | Other | Structured dance/movement therapy |
| Physical exercise/body coordinationFifteen participants will be randomly assigned to this task. This will involve simple functional stretches, balances and limb coordination exercises and will use only neutral instructions. It will be accessible to a range of abilities and will take ~30 minutes. This task has been developed as the control condition with the following in mind: * Including functional movement matched for level of aerobic intensity to the dance/movement task. * Matching the length of the task and level of contact with the lead researcher/research team. * No prompts or explicit instructions to focus on bodily sensations, the self or body in the present moment, or to move in an expressive way; purely focused on mobility and physical functioning. | Other | Physical exercise/body coordination |
Primary outcome
Feasibility of the intervention: Recruitment
Time frame: Up to 16 weeks
The number/proportion of eligible participants who consent to participate in the study by 29/05/2026
Feasibility of the intervention: Adherence
Time frame: Up to 20 weeks
The number/proportion of in-person visits and mid-point calls attended and completed. The number of days the task was completed during the at-home periods.
Feasibility of the intervention: Withdrawal
Time frame: Up to 20 weeks
The number/proportion of enrolled (consented) participants who withdraw from the study prior to completion.
Feasibility of the intervention: Adverse events
Time frame: Up to 20 weeks
The number and nature of adverse events reported during study participation.
Feasibility of the intervention: Acceptability
Time frame: Up to 20 weeks
Qualitative measures of perceived benefit of the intervention, barriers and facilitating factors, experiences of study procedures.
23 secondary outcomes
Clinical Global Impression - Improvement Scale
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Functional Neurological Symptoms Questionnaire
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness - 2
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Cognitive Behavioural Response Questionnaire - Short Form
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Multiscale Dissociation Inventory
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Toronto Alexithymia Scale - 20
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Work & Social Adjustment Scale
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Short-Form Health Survey
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Body Perception Questionnaire - ANS
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Body Perception Questionnaire - VSF
Time frame: Baseline, Week 2.5, Week 5, Week 9
Cardiac interoceptive accuracy
Time frame: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Cardiac interoceptive confidence
Time frame: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Time estimation accuracy
Time frame: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Time estimation confidence
Time frame: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Physiological and psychological states
Time frame: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
Autonomic arousal
Time frame: Day 1 baseline, Day 1 post single intervention session, Week 5
At-home Diary Sheet: ease of task performance
Time frame: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: feeling during task performance
Time frame: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: physical states
Time frame: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: state dissociation
Time frame: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: autonomic arousal
Time frame: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
At-home Diary Sheet: open comments
Time frame: Day 3, Day 6, Day 9, Day 12, Day 15, Day 18, Day 21, Day 24, Day 27, Day 30
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 26 Jun 2026.
- Background: PubMed 42226608Kennedy-Barnes E, Millman LSM, Basamh Y, Duarte A, Pacelli J, Hodsoll J, Pick S. Somatic yoga therapy for functional neurological disorder: feasibility randomised controlled trial. BJPsych Open. 2026 Jun 2;12(4):e151. doi: 10.1192/bjo.2026.12003.
- Background: PubMed 32635804Pick S, Rojas-Aguiluz M, Butler M, Mulrenan H, Nicholson TR, Goldstein LH. Dissociation and interoception in functional neurological disorder. Cogn Neuropsychiatry. 2020 Jul;25(4):294-311. doi: 10.1080/13546805.2020.1791061. Epub 2020 Jul 8.
- Background: PubMed 30455406Pick S, Goldstein LH, Perez DL, Nicholson TR. Emotional processing in functional neurological disorder: a review, biopsychosocial model and research agenda. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2019 Jun;90(6):704-711. doi: 10.1136/jnnp-2018-319201. Epub 2018 Nov 19.
- Background: PubMed 37018935Millman LSM, Hunter ECM, Terhune DB, Orgs G. Online structured dance/movement therapy reduces bodily detachment in depersonalization-derealization disorder. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2023 May;51:101749. doi: 10.1016/j.ctcp.2023.101749. Epub 2023 Mar 30.
- Background: PubMed 37516011Millman LSM, Short E, Stanton B, Winston JS, Nicholson TR, Mehta MA, Reinders AATS, Edwards MJ, Goldstein LH, David AS, Hotopf M, Chalder T, Pick S. Interoception in functional motor symptoms and functional seizures: Preliminary evidence of intact accuracy alongside reduced insight and altered sensibility. Behav Res Ther. 2023 Sep;168:104379. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2023.104379. Epub 2023 Jul 25.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Undecided. The datasets of the study will be available from the corresponding author on reasonable request after the findings have been published in relevant peer-reviewed journals.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
The record lists no contact. Use the official record to reach the sponsor.
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Structured dance/movement and Physical exercise/body coordination in people with Functional Neurological Disorder, run by King's College London at 1 site in United Kingdom.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 5 inclusion and 4 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: under way, not looking for participants, as of the sponsor's last update on 26 Jun 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United Kingdom. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Feasibility of the intervention: Recruitment (time frame: Up to 16 weeks). The study lists 5 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT07378488, which also lists 5 linked publications.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 26 Jun 2026.