As part of a larger mixed-methods study, data from 20 personal journals were analyzed to examine the experience of a 12-week yoga treatment program for binge eating among a sample of 25 women who were obese. Qualitative analysis revealed a positive shift experienced by the women during the program, summarized by a general structural description: disconnection versus connection. Women's comments suggested that the program appeared to encourage a healthy reconnection to food, as well as the development of physical self-empowerment, through cultivating present-moment awareness. Specifically, women perceived an overall reduction in the quantity of food they consumed, decreased eating speed, and an improvement in food choices throughout the program. The women also reported feeling more connected to and positive about their physical well-being. These evolving outcomes were summarized through two major themes: the way their physicality changed, and the way their food consumption changed over time. Findings provide insights relevant to therapeutic processes that might occur within eating disorder interventions that draw on meditation-based approaches.
Qualitative results extend comparable quantitative research by detailing how an appropriately tailored 8-week meditation-based program has the potential to decrease perceived stress in highly stressful work environments. SO WHAT?: Triangulated data suggest that an appropriately adapted mindfulness meditation program can be an effective, efficient and low-cost inclusion within an organisation's health promotion repertoire to help increase mental health among staff.
Most expected deaths occur in acute hospitals, and medical staff providing end-of-life care are generally not palliative medicine specialists. Through a voluntary self-administered survey, this study explored resident doctors' attitudes to palliative medicine and their perceived educational needs. Fifty-two resident doctors participated (response rate 39%), mostly acknowledging the importance of palliative medicine to their practice and emphasising that further postgraduate education is necessary.
Physicians should be aware that the expectations of patients and carers regarding information communication to carers may not match their own. Meanwhile, patients and carers should be made aware of the constraints upon physicians and should be encouraged to convey their preferences for information sharing. These tasks could be facilitated by the development of a prompt sheet to assist the clinical encounter.
Objectives
Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is recommended for treating anxiety and depression, demonstrating good efficacy and moderate rates of engagement. To further improve outcomes and access to evidence‐based treatments, researchers have sought to enhance CBT protocols with mindfulness‐based approaches, such as yoga. This study aimed to examine whether yoga is an acceptable and complementary adjunct to CBT through exploring the lived experiences of adults with anxiety and depression who engaged in an adjunct therapeutic yoga programme alongside group CBT.
Design
Single‐group qualitative design with post‐intervention and follow‐up timepoints.
Methods
Thirty‐six adults with anxiety and depression self‐selected into a therapeutic yoga programme as an adjunct to group CBT. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 27 participants immediately after the eight‐week programme and again three months later. Thematic analysis was used to identify common themes from the lived experiences.
Results
Three primary themes, with nine subthemes, were identified which reflect the experiences of the combined therapies, the complementary elements, and process of engagement over time. The adjunct yoga programme was highly acceptable to adults with anxiety and depression, enhancing engagement and perceived outcomes. Yoga was identified as providing a unique combination of elements that complemented processes of CBT, such as behavioural activation and thought disputation. Yoga practices represented mental health self‐management tools that are accessible and available as relapse prevention strategies.
Conclusions
Therapeutic yoga warrants consideration as an adjunct treatment for anxiety and depression as it offers unique and complementary elements to CBT and can enhance engagement and perceived clinical outcomes.
Practitioner points
Adults with anxiety and depression experienced a therapeutic yoga programme as a suitable and appealing adjunct that enhanced engagement with psychological treatment.
Yoga offers a unique combination of elements, including a values system, body‐based mindfulness practices, and breathing techniques, that complement CBT processes, such as behavioural activation, awareness of maladaptive patterns, and thought disputation.
A therapeutic yoga programme provides adults with anxiety and depression with an accessible and sustainable mental health self‐management tool.
Therapeutic yoga can be considered for integration to models of mental health service provision to enhance engagement and clinical outcomes for adults with anxiety and depression.
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