Yoga classes as an early intervention for college students reporting high levels of stress and anxiety: A pilot study

Abstract

Background:Today’s college students are experiencing unprecedented rates of stress, anxiety, and mental health issues. As a result, college counseling centers are often overwhelmed by the demand for mental health services. Methods: The current study evaluated the potential for Hatha yoga classes to be used as an alternative to conventional psychotherapy for college students reporting high levels of stress and anxiety. Results: After 6 weeks of twice-weekly, hour-long yoga classes, significant reductions in stress, anxiety, pathological worry, and rumination were reported by 7 undergraduate college students. Conclusions: Results of this pilot study suggest that Hatha yoga classes may serve as a widely accessible, cost-effective early intervention that can be offered as a first-line recommendation to students who are struggling with heightened levels of stress and anxiety.

Keywords:

• Anxiety
• college students
• rumination
• stress
• worry
• yoga

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank our wonderful yoga teachers, Valerie Herzog and Susan Walsh, for their assistance and dedication to this project. We would also like to acknowledge the support of Aurorae and Gaiam, who generously donated the yoga supplies for this research.

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements of the United States, and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of William Paterson Univeristy.

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.