Yoga for Traumatic Stress

Abstract

This three paper dissertation considers whether yoga--a popular mind-body practice combining physical postures and movement, mindfulness, and breath exercises--may be a useful component of treatment for adult trauma survivors. The first paper involves a systematic review and meta-analyses of the current evidence base for yoga in the treatment of anxiety, depression, and PTSD among trauma survivors. The second and third papers are grounded in a single, mixed-methods multi-wave data source aimed at examining yoga's contribution to recovery for adult women who have complex trauma histories (i.e., sustained and/or multiple traumatic experiences such as recurring physical or sexual abuse). The second paper is a quantitative study employing hierarchical linear and logistic regression to examine associations between yoga practice and reductions in traumatic symptomology over time. The third paper is a hermeneutic phenomenological study exploring how women with complex trauma histories experience practicing yoga and its potential role in their coping and healing processes over time. Taken together, these three papers offer insights into the complex healing needs of adult survivors suffering from the effects of traumatization, and the promising role of yoga within their recovery processes.