Yoga Therapy for Work / Life balance
The Effect of Yoga Therapy on Work – Life Balance
Breheny. K., June 2010
Australian Institute of Yoga Therapy, Melbourne, Australia
Keywords: Yoga, Yoga therapy, work-life balance, well-being, stress
Objective:
To establish whether a yoga therapy program, individually tailored to the needs of goal oriented / high achieving women in their late thirties and early forties, help to resolve the dilemmas between work and private pursuits and improve feelings of well-being?
Methods:
The research was based on a single-subject case study, conducted over a six week period. The participant attended a weekly yoga therapy session, complemented by home practice. The home practices involved sankalpa, mudra, pranayama, walking meditation, relaxation techniques and self-study. Questionnaires were completed at the beginning, mid-point and conclusion of the research period, focussed on measuring quality of life factors such as satisfaction with life, personal relationships, sleep, appetite, stress, mood, general health, anxiety and involvement in community.
Results:
The results of the yoga therapy study demonstrated a general trend toward improvement. All areas other than appetite showed a net improvement from the beginning to the end of the study. Only health showed a decline at the mid-point, before showing an overall improvement.
The largest gain was an increase in mood levels. The smallest gains were in satisfaction with personal relationships and quality of sleep; however both of these areas were assessed as being satisfactory at the commencement of the study. The areas that commenced at levels of dissatisfaction showed the greatest improvement.
Discussion
Work/life balance has been identified as a strategic issue for Human Resource Management and contributes extensively to employee retention strategies. As such, most research and programs specifically relating to work/life balance tend to be focussed on delivering work|/life balance through the workplace rather than ad-hoc activities undertaken by individuals.
One problematic aspect of work/life balance programs that are developed by organisations for their employees is that they tend to be generic in nature and rarely allow for the specific needs of individual participants.As a result employees often attempt to pursue their need for 'balance' outside of the workplace by participating in other regular activities such as exercise, study, entertainment and family duties. Unfortunately this can result in a feeling of additional burdens for the individual, increasing responsibilities and obligations in an already full, if not crowded, life.
This study had a number of limitations, including lack of a control group and only the single participant. Availability of only one set of results provided limited scope to analyse and interpret the effectiveness of yoga therapy in this situation. Multiple participants would have enabled more statistically significant conclusions to be drawn.
Conclusion:
The results of the study suggest that the introduction of an individually tailored yoga therapy program for a working woman in her late thirties can positively contribute to the resolution of dilemmas between work and private pursuits. This is evidenced by the improvements in chosen indicators of wellbeing and quality of life throughout the period of this study.
In particular, there was significant improvement in the participant’s mood levels and her ability to manage stress and anxiety. Satisfaction with the whole of life also showed significant improvement.
This research suggests that further multiple-subject, controlled studies on yoga therapy interventions for attaining work-life balance would be warranted, potentially conducted within a workplace as a part of an existing work-life balance program.
Correlation between Ayurvedic Doshas and Menopausal Symptoms
Havican. C. , June 2010
Australian Institute of Yoga Therapy, Melbourne, Australia
Keywords: Yoga, Yoga therapy, Ayurveda, menopause, Dosha
Objective:
To evaluate any correlation between a woman's dominant Ayurvedic Dosha and any menopausal symptoms she may experience.
Methods:
74 women between the ages of 40 and 55 participated in a survey to determine their dominant Ayurvedic Dosha and identify menopausal symptoms they commonly experience. For each participant their menopausal symptoms were evaluated to determine if they correlated with symptoms associated with a specific Dosha and in turn, whether the Dosha association of the symptoms correlated with their overall dominant Dosha. The participants were recruited from suburban fitness centres in Newcastle and Sydney.
Results:
The selections the participant's made on their survey were calculated and converted into percentages for Dosha dominance and Menopausal Symptom dominance. For simplicity the highest percentage was chosen as the indicator for dosha dominance. However in reality a result presenting 50% Vata and 46% Kapha would generally indicate a Vata/Kapha Bi-doshic dominance.
Of the 74 participants:
· 6 indicated Vata dominant doshas with:
· 2 presenting with Vata dominant symptoms,
· 2 with Vata/Kapha,
· 1 with Pitta and
· 1 with Tri-doshic symptoms.
· 50 indicated Pitta dominant doshas with:
· 13 presenting with Vata dominant symptoms,
· 3 with Pitta,
· 23 with Kapha,
· 1 with Vata/Pitta,
· 6 with Vata/Kapha,
· 1 with Pitta/Kapha and
· 3 with Tri-doshic symptoms.
· 13 indicated Kapha dominant doshas with:
· 11 presenting with Kapha symptoms and
· 2 with Vata symptoms.
· 5 indicated Bi-doshic dominance with:
· 2 presenting with Vata dominant symptoms,
· 1 with Pitta and
· 2 with Kapha symptoms.
Discussion
A reasonable correlation between Vata Dosha dominance and Vata Dosha symptoms was found, possibly indicating the natural shift towards the Vata stage of life, which is part of the natural ageing process.
The 3 stages of life are:
· The Kapha Age – childhood through to early 20's when growth and development of body and mind are encouraged
· The Pitta Age – early 20's through to 60's-70's plus
· The Vata Age – indicates the senior years from around the 60's until death.
Very little correlation was found between Pitta Dosha dominance and Pitta Dosha symptoms. However a strong correlation was found between women presenting with Kapha Dosha dominance and Kapha Dosha symptoms, possibly indicating that other lifestyle factors influence the nature of a women's menopausal symptoms. As a result further studies may be viable to consider lifestyle factors which may be affecting women in today's society. Questions to consider in future studies include:
· Could other lifestyle factors reflect the higher Kapha scores seen in these results?
· Does this high Kapha influence show a reflection for the society we currently live in?
Conclusion:
A reasonable correlation was found with Vata dominant symptoms in the participants with a dominant Vata dosha. This may be a reflection of a woman entering the Vata stage of life i.e. the senior years of approximately 60+ years.
A strong correlation was seen between participants with a Kapha dominant dosha and Kapha symptoms. Kapha dominant symptoms were also high amongst the other doshas, possibly indicating that other lifestyle factors may be influencing the results of this study.
The results from this study were deemed to be inconclusive. Further studies were recommended to explore the questions -
· Could the lifestyle one leads in our society promote a Kapha imbalance for Menopausal women?
· Does the Vata stage of life influence the type of menopausal symptoms a woman may experience?
Pranayama for Emotional Intelligence
The Impact of a Prescribed Pranayama on Emotional Intelligence
Little, M. , June 2010
Australian Institute of Yoga Therapy, Melbourne, Australia
Keywords: Yoga, Yoga therapy, pranayama, emotional intelligence
Objective:
The aim of this study was to gauge the impact of a prescribed pranayama practice on Emotional Intelligence, in particular its influence on an individual’s outlook on life and their response/reactions to life.
Methods:
This multiple case study (N=8) of four weeks duration evaluated the effects of a daily practice of nadi shodhana (alternate nostril breathing) on Emotional Intelligence (EI). Participants were recruited from fitness centres and Yoga schools in suburban Melbourne and the randomly selected group consisted of eight females with an age range of 18 to 50. Participants were taught the nadi shodhana breathing practice and asked to practice it for eight rounds after rising each morning. A ‘self-reporting’ Trait Emotional Intelligence (TEIQue-SF) questionnaire (short version) was administered at the beginning, midway and at the end of the study. The four categories of EI measured were: well-being, self-control, emotionality and sociability.
Results:
Considering the average score of all participants, there was improvement noted in the areas of Self Control and Well Being. However there was no marked change for Emotionality and Sociability from pre to post trial. The following chart shows the number of participants indicating changes in the post-trial questionnaire, compared to the pre-trial.
|
|
increased |
Decreased |
Remained the same |
|
Emotionality |
3 |
3 |
2 |
|
Self-control |
6 |
2 |
|
|
Well-being |
5 |
2 |
1 |
|
Sociability |
4 |
3 |
1 |
Discussion
EI is a relatively new area of investigation, with limited guidelines on protocols for its study. Since emotional traits can be ingrained by adulthood, it is likely that meaningful changes will require a long period of time to become established in an individual’s behaviours, attitudes and mind-sets. The initial trial period of four weeks may have started emotions moving rather than actually improving the emotional intelligence of participants.
The breathing practice may have brought up emotional issues that had not been recognised or examined previously, and on the TEIQue-SF questionnaire, participants may have noticed that how they perceived themselves to be during the first week, was challenged as the breathing practice created space and possible stillness for the reflection to be more honest than perhaps in the initial stages of the trial.
Conclusion:
While this study did show improvement in two of the areas of EI, following the daily practice of nadi shodhana pranayama, the short duration of the trial, the small number of participants, the lack of controls and the inability to accurately evaluate participant compliance meant that meaningful conclusions have been difficult to establish.
The modestly positive results of this study however do indicate that further studies of longer duration, with larger sample size and with a more rigorous analysis of the data are warranted.
Yoga for sleep
ABSTRACT - The efficacy of Yoga Therapy as a Treatment for Sleep Disturbance.
J. Burt, J. Goossens Australian Institute of Yoga Therapy and the Centre for Adult Education
Keywords: Yoga, Yoga Therapy, Sleep Disturbance, Insomnia
Objective: There is growing interest in the use of Yoga Therapy for treatment of some medical and psychological conditions. This study aimed to explore the efficacy of Yoga Therapy in the treatment for Sleep Disturbance or Insomnia.
Method: Ten clients of a local Yoga Studio who were troubled by Insomnia were invited to take part in a Yoga Therapy Program. The Program consisted of six weekly one hour Yoga Therapy sessions at the Studio as a group, the techniques learned were applied at home between sessions. All participants completed a questionnaire exploring their life patterns and sleep problems for the month prior to starting the Program, and immediately the Program ended. The questions covered firstly Demographics, then Occupational, Physical and Social Functioning, and General Health, Quality of Life and Emotional Health scored on a 5 point scale from worst to best. Pre- and post-Program Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index questionnaires were also completed.
Results: Participation in the Yoga Therapy Program and home application of the techniques learnt were excellent, as was completion of the questionnaires. Occupational functioning improved 24.6%, Physical functioning improved 16.1%, Social functioning improved 20.6%; General Health improved 9.1%, Quality of Life improved 31.25% and Emotional Health improved 36.7%. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index showed improvement in sleep duration, sleep efficiency and sleep quality Components ( Components 1, 3, 4, and 5 ). Examination of the Global Scores showed that all participants improved sufficiently in enough Components to register a significant average improvement in their overall sleep quality and quantity of 20%, which flowed on to their life patterns.
Conclusion: The Yoga Therapy Program resulted in a significant improvement in Participant’s sleep patterns using easily replicated Yoga, breathing and relaxation techniques, and provided impetus for the institution of a longer, wider and controlled study into the efficacy of Yoga Therapy in the treatment of Insomnia.
Presented in fulfilment of the requirements of a minor thesis for the Graduate Certificate in Yoga Therapy, Australian tertiary accredited course code 21720VIC,
