CONSORT diagram.
Participants were asked to avoid exercising, drinking alcohol/caffeine, smoking nicotine and eating during the two hours prior to each testing session, since these are possible confounds to HRV measurements. We also confirmed each session that participants had not made any medication changes. HRV was measured by a research assistant whilst the participant engaged in three 4-minute activities, always in the following order: (i) reading a local city culture magazine (control task), (ii) engaging in relaxation imagery involving walking through a forest or on a beach, and (iii) engaging in self-compassion imagery. The order remained constant to prevent the effects of CFI from contaminating the relaxation task. An outline of one experimental session is illustrated in 