ABSTRACT
Most chronic illness management occurs outside clinics and hospitals, in the everyday lives of individuals. We use data from semi-structured interviews with 37 veterans from Southeastern Louisiana and Northern California to illustrate how "health work" for mental health concerns are shaped by place. Using health work as an orienting concept for analysis, we discerned variation between the two study sites in how Veterans used interacting with the natural environment, cultivating time alone, and religious practice to manage their mental health and well-being. Through these findings, we advocate for a situated notion of health work that is mindful of how health-related behaviors are shaped by place and the attributes that constitute place.
Subject(s)
Chronic Disease/psychology , Mental Disorders/therapy , Self Care , Veterans/psychology , California , Female , Health Behavior , Humans , Interviews as Topic , Louisiana , Male , Middle Aged , Nature , Qualitative Research , Religion , Rural PopulationABSTRACT
The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of a yoga program as an adjunctive therapy for improving post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in Veterans with military-related PTSD. Veterans (n = 12) participated in a 6 week yoga intervention held twice a week. There was significant improvement in PTSD hyperarousal symptoms and overall sleep quality as well as daytime dysfunction related to sleep. There were no significant improvements in the total PTSD, anger, or quality of life outcome scores. These results suggest that this yoga program may be an effective adjunctive therapy for improving hyperarousal symptoms of PTSD including sleep quality. This study demonstrates that the yoga program is acceptable, feasible, and that there is good adherence in a Veteran population.
