Role of Yoga and Mindfulness in Severe Mental Illnesses: A Narrative Review.
Gopinath Sathyanarayanan, Ashvini Vengadavaradan, Balaji Bharadwaj
International Journal of Yoga 2019 DOI: 10.4103/ijoy.ijoy_65_17 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Systematic review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Depression Meditation |
| Keywords | Bipolar disorder Schizophrenia Severe mental illnesses Yoga |
| Key findings | The authors conclude that yoga and mindfulness appear useful as adjunctive treatments for severe mental illness, with studies showing reduced psychopathology, anxiety, and improved cognition and functioning in schizophrenia, and reduced depressive symptom severity in major depressive disorder. Evidence for bipolar disorder is very sparse, and the authors call for more rigorously designed, larger trials. |
Abstract
Yoga has its origin from the ancient times. It is an integration of mind, body, and soul. Besides, mindfulness emphasizes focused awareness and accepting the internal experiences without being judgemental. These techniques offer a trending new dimension of treatment in various psychiatric disorders. We aimed to review the studies on the efficacy of yoga and mindfulness as a treatment modality in severe mental illnesses (SMIs). SMI includes schizophrenia, major depressive disorder (MDD), and bipolar disorder (BD). We conducted a literature search using PubMed, Google Scholar, and Cochrane Library with the search terms "yoga," "meditation," "breathing exercises," "mindfulness," "schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders," "depressive disorder," and "bipolar disorder" for the last 10-year period. We also included relevant articles from the cross-references. We found that asanas and pranayama are the most commonly studied forms of yoga for schizophrenia. These studies found a reduction in general psychopathology ratings and an improvement in cognition and functioning. Some studies also found modest benefits in negative and positive symptoms. Mindfulness has not been extensively tried, but the available evidence has shown benefits in improving psychotic symptoms, improving level of functioning, and affect regulation. In MDD, both yoga and mindfulness have demonstrated significant benefit in reducing the severity of depressive symptoms. There is very sparse data with respect to BD. Both yoga and mindfulness interventions appear to be useful as an adjunct in the treatment of SMI. Studies have shown improvement in the psychopathology, anxiety, cognition, and functioning of patients with schizophrenia. Similarly, both the techniques have been established as an effective adjuvant in MDD. However, more rigorously designed and larger trials may be necessary, specifically for BD.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being Diverse adult clinical populations | 2014 | Meta-analysis | n = 3,515 |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis Healthy subjects | 2009 | Systematic review and meta-analysis | |
| The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Nonclinical groups of adult meditators | 2012 | Meta-analysis | n = 163 |
| Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Prevention of Depressive Relapse Adults with recurrent depression in full or partial remission | 2016 | Meta-analysis of individual patient data from randomized controlled trials | n = 1,258 |
| Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness‐Based Cognitive Therapy – a systematic review of randomized controlled trials | 2011 | Systematic review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 5
- Modeling intentionality in the human brain Frontiers in Psychiatry August 9, 2023
- The Effect of Mindfulness-Based Yoga on Psychological Well-Being and Happiness in Individuals with Schizophrenia: A Randomized Controlled Trial Journal of Integrative and Complementary Medicine July 20, 2026
- Recent trends in yoga therapies for psychiatric disorders International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health March 31, 2026
- Methodological issues in conducting yoga- and meditation-based research: A narrative review and research implications. Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine July 1, 2022
- Yoga and meditation, an essential tool to alleviate stress and enhance immunity to emerging infections: A perspective on the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on students. Brain, Behavior, & Immunity - Health January 19, 2022
Cites 15
- Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Psychosomatic Medicine July 1, 2003
- Sudarshan Kriya Yogic Breathing in the Treatment of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression: Part II—Clinical Applications and Guidelines The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine August 1, 2005
- Loving‐kindness meditation to enhance recovery from negative symptoms of schizophrenia Journal of Clinical Psychology March 6, 2009
- A Breathing-based Meditation Intervention for Patients with Major Depressive Disorder Following Inadequate Response to Antidepressants: A Randomized Pilot Study The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 2017
- Turning Towards or Turning Away: A Comparison of Mindfulness Meditation and Guided Imagery Relaxation in Patients with Acute Depression. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy July 2016
and 10 more in the library