Yoga for Veterans with PTSD: Intervention Feasibility, Changes in PTSD Symptom Severity, and Psychological and Physiological Health-Related Fitness Outcomes. Int J Yoga Therap 2024 Sep 01;34(2024)
Date
09/05/2024Pubmed ID
39232247DOI
10.17761/2024-D-23-00082Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85203397471 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a burdensome disorder associated with lower quality of life and increased morbidity and mortality. Veterans are particularly at risk for PTSD resulting from experiencing traumatic events during military service. Current treatments for PTSD often fail to remediate symptoms and are associated with high dropout rates; therefore, complementary and integrative health approaches, such as yoga, are being considered to treat PTSD-related symptoms. The present study investigated the feasibility of a 12-week, 1-hour/week, in-person, trauma-informed mindful resilience yoga intervention for improving PTSD symptom severity and secondary psychological outcomes (e.g., physical and mental health, sleep, mindfulness, and self-efficacy), physiological health-related fitness outcomes (e.g., body composition and muscular strength), and physical activity outcomes (e.g., accelerometry) in a sample of veterans with PTSD. Results demonstrated the intervention to be feasible, with 12 participants (9 male, 3 female; mean age 50.3) completing the program (10 participants completed ≥ 75% of the 12 sessions). Statistically significant improvement was demonstrated in the "nonjudging of inner experience" aspect of mindfulness (p = 0.005, d = 1.280). Although not considered statistically significant (p > 0.008), the majority of outcomes demonstrated trending improvement from pre- to postintervention, with small to large Cohen's d effect sizes. The novelty of this study is represented by the trending improvements in physiological health-related fitness outcomes, with lean mass and handgrip strength demonstrating small effect sizes (d = 0.243 and d = 0.267, respectively). Our results extend the existing literature on the feasibility and potential effectiveness of yoga as a complementary or integrative therapy for PTSD in the veteran population.
Author List
Bollaert RE, Bennett MM, Davis KE, Hillard CJ, Whittle J, Franco Z, Broadwell S, Fitzgerald JAuthors
Zeno Franco PhD Associate Professor in the Emergency Medicine department at Medical College of WisconsinCecilia J. Hillard PhD Associate Dean, Center Director, Professor in the Pharmacology and Toxicology department at Medical College of Wisconsin
Jeffrey Whittle MD Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of Wisconsin
MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdultFeasibility Studies
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Mindfulness
Physical Fitness
Severity of Illness Index
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
Treatment Outcome
Veterans
Yoga