title: Trauma-sensitive yoga as an adjunct mental health treatment in group therapy for survivors of domestic violence: a feasibility study.
abstract: This study is a feasibility test of whether incorporating trauma-sensitive yoga into group therapy for female victims of partner violence improves symptoms of anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) beyond that achieved with group therapy alone. Seventeen (9 control, 8 intervention) adult female clients seeking group psychotherapy were enrolled. A 12-week trauma-sensitive yoga protocol was administered once weekly for 30-40 min at the end of each group therapy session. The control group received typical group psychotherapy. Feasibility was assessed through recruitment and retention rates as well as participants' self-reported perceptions of the safety and utility of the study. The study enrolled 85% (17/20) of those screened eligible. Loss to follow-up was 30% (5/17). No one reported emotional or physical harm. All of the respondents reported that the study was personally meaningful and that the results would be useful to others.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA; School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Center for Spirituality and Healing, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA. Electronic address: cjclark@umn.edu.
authors.forename: Cari Jo
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.affiliation: School of Social Work, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, USA; Domestic Abuse Project, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lewis-Dmello
authors.affiliation: Domestic Abuse Project, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
authors.forename: Deena
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Anders
authors.affiliation: Domestic Abuse Project, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Parsons
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
authors.forename: Viann
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Nguyen-Feng
authors.affiliation: Division of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Henn
authors.affiliation: Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute, Brookline, MA, USA.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Emerson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000628:therapy*; D003863:Depression / Q000628:therapy*; D017579:Domestic Violence; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group / Q000379:methods*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D015013:Yoga / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: Community-based participatory research; Domestic violence; Group psychotherapy; Mind-body therapies; Yoga