Improvements in Psychological and Occupational Well-being Following a Brief Yoga-Based Program for Education Professionals.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine changes in psychological and occupational well-being in education professionals who attended a yoga-based program. METHODS: Education professionals who attended a 3-day yoga-based RISE (resilience, integration, self-awareness, engagement) program were recruited to participate. RISE was administered at the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health. Measures of psychological and occupational well-being, and health-related behaviors were completed before (baseline), after (post), and 2 months after RISE (follow-up). Forty-four participants completed baseline and post and were included in the analysis. Of those, 33 participants also completed the follow-up. Paired samples t tests were used to compare scores between time points. RESULTS: Compared to baseline, at post, participants showed improvements in perceived stress, mindfulness, empowerment, positive affect, negative affect, self-compassion, total work engagement, vigor, sleep quality (all P values < .001), resilience, satisfaction with life, as well as exhaustion and professional efficacy which are dimensions of burnout (all P values < .01). At the follow-up, significant improvements were maintained for mindfulness, empowerment, self-compassion, sleep quality (all P values < .001), resilience, vigor, and exhaustion (all P values < .01) and positive affect, satisfaction with life, and work engagement (all P values < .05). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that the yoga-based RISE program improves psychological and occupational well-being in education professionals. In addition, participants reported that attending RISE was feasible, they could continue using RISE practices long-term, shared them with work colleagues, and reported that RISE positively impacted both their daily lives and workplace environment. With these promising results, additional controlled research is warranted.

Improvements in Psychological and Occupational Well-Being in a Pragmatic Controlled Trial of a Yoga-Based Program for Professionals.

Objective: The purpose of this pragmatic controlled trial was to examine changes in psychological and occupational well-being in professionals who attended a yoga-based program. Setting: The 5-day RISE (resilience, integration, self-awareness, engagement) program was delivered at the Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health. RISE included 5 h per day of yoga, meditation, lectures, and experiential activities. Subjects: Adult professionals from education, corrections, and social service institutions were pragmatically assigned to the RISE group (n = 61) or a waitlist control group (n = 60). Outcome measures: Measures of psychological and occupational well-being were completed before RISE (baseline), immediately after RISE (postprogram), and 2 months after RISE (follow-up). Analyses of covariance were conducted to compare change scores between groups. Results: Eighty-two participants (RISE n = 41, control n = 41) completed baseline and postmeasures and were included in the analysis, and 57 (RISE n = 27, control n = 30) also completed the follow-up. Relative to controls, the RISE group reported improvements in stress (p = 0.001, r2 = 0.51), resilience (p = 0.028, r2 = 0.34), positive affect (p = 0.001, r2 = 0.52), negative affect (p = 0.001, r2 = 0.52), mindfulness (p = 0.021, r2 = 0.13), and job satisfaction (p = 0.034, r2 = 0.08) from baseline to postprogram. From baseline to follow-up, compared with controls the RISE group showed improvements in stress (p = 0.001, r2 = 0.33), resilience (p = 0.001, r2 = 0.24), positive affect (p = 0.006, r2 = 0.49), negative affect (p = 0.043, r2 = 0.32), mindfulness (p = 0.001, r2 = 0.28), empowerment (p = 0.005, r2 = 0.20), and self-compassion (p = 0.011, r2 = 0.19). Conclusions: The RISE program was associated with improvements in psychological and occupational well-being immediately after and 2 months after the program. Future research is needed to confirm these results.

Improvements in Psychological Health Following a Residential Yoga-Based Program for Frontline Professionals.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the effects of a residential yoga-based program on psychological health and health behaviors in frontline professionals. METHODS: Frontline professionals from education, health care, human services, and corrections participated in the RISE (Resilience, Integration, Self-awareness, Engagement) program and completed questionnaires at baseline, post-program, and 2 months following RISE. RESULTS: Paired samples t tests revealed improvements in mindfulness, stress, resilience, affect, and sleep quality from baseline to post-program (all Ps < 0.001, N = 55), which were sustained at the 2-month follow-up (all Ps < 0.01, N = 40). Participants also reported increases in exercise, fruit, and vegetable consumption post-program (all Ps < 0.001), all of which persisted at the 2-month follow-up (all Ps < 0.01) except exercise. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that RISE improved indices of psychological health and healthy behaviors that remained 2 months following RISE.