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Akila Rayapuraju

5 papers in the library · publishing 2022-2026

Papers

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Meditation and breathwork on anxiety in Parkinson's disease: A pilot randomized controlled trial.

Journal of Parkinson's disease August 6, 2026 Akila Rayapuraju, Preeti U. Reed, Jennifer Liu et al.

BackgroundAnxiety and other non-motor symptoms can greatly diminish quality of life in people with Parkinson's Disease (PD). Yet, few randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have assessed accessible, non-pharmacological mental health treatments for people with PD.ObjectiveTo assess the feasibility and impact of brief, remotely-delivered meditation and breathwork on neuropsychiatric symptoms in...

From strain to strength: a yearlong study on the transformative influence of inner engineering online program on mental well-being

Frontiers in Psychology February 4, 2025 Ashwin Swaminathan, Braiden DeSchryver, Akila Rayapuraju et al.

Introduction Health is a multidimensional phenomenon encompassing physical, mental, and social well-being, all of which are deeply interconnected. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of mental and social health, as rates of loneliness, depression, and anxiety surged. Mindfulness practices, such as Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya (SMK), have gained attention for their potential to enhance...

The effect of the inner engineering program on interpersonal relationships: a qualitative study of emotional regulation and relational transformation.

Frontiers in Psychology 2025 Enas Mohamed, Arlene Katz, Nashaw Jafari et al.

Relationship difficulties are a major source of anxiety in contemporary society, contributing to social withdrawal, emotional reactivity, and conflict, which in turn increase isolation and distress. Meditation has emerged as a promising strategy for managing these stressors by fostering self-awareness, resilience, and empathy. This study explores the Inner Engineering (IE) program, a...

DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1595878 (opens in new tab) Full text (opens in new tab) Shambhavi mahamudra kriya Emotional regulation Inner engineering meditation Relationships +1

Online guided meditation training (Isha Kriya) improves self-reported symptoms of anxiety and depression within 2 weeks of practice—An observational study

Frontiers in Psychiatry September 23, 2022 Sepideh Hariri, Ramana V. Vishnubhotla, Preeti U. Reed et al.

Introduction Anxiety and depression have increased dramatically 2–3-fold with the COVID-19 pandemic. There is an urgent need for safe, cost-effective, and scalable approaches to alleviate this parallel mental health pandemic. Meditation has previously been shown to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms. Furthermore, online delivery of mind-body interventions will be impactful in...

Restoring Function in Long COVID Through Web-Based Isha Kriya Meditation and Breathwork: A Mixed Methods Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

Akila Rayapuraju, Enas Mohamed, Preeti Upadhyay Reed et al.

BACKGROUND Long COVID imposes severe functional impairments and strains health systems. Web-based mind-body interventions may offer scalable support for multidisciplinary care. OBJECTIVE We assessed the feasibility and efficacy of a 3-week web-based yogic breathing and meditation program on quality of life in individuals with long COVID. METHODS : In this 6-week waitlisted, mixed-methods...