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Yoga ameliorates performance anxiety and mood disturbance in young professional musicians.

Sat Bir S Khalsa, Stephanie M Shorter, Stephen Cope, Grace Wyshak, Elyse Sklar

Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback August 6, 2009 DOI: 10.1007/s10484-009-9103-4 (opens in new tab)

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AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed
Sample size 45
Population Young adult professional musicians
Interventions Kripalu Yoga Meditation
Duration 2-month program; 1-year follow-up
Topics Anxiety Depression Meditation
Keywords Humans Treatment outcome Yoga Analysis of variance Stress, psychological Affect Life style Sleep Adult Female Surveys and questionnaires
Key findings Both yoga groups showed a trend toward less music performance anxiety and significantly less general anxiety/tension, depression, and anger at program end relative to controls, but no changes in performance-related musculoskeletal disorders, stress, or sleep. The authors suggest the yoga and meditation techniques themselves may have mediated the improvements.

Abstract

Yoga and meditation can alleviate stress, anxiety, mood disturbance, and musculoskeletal problems, and can enhance cognitive and physical performance. Professional musicians experience high levels of stress, performance anxiety, and debilitating performance-related musculoskeletal disorders (PRMDs). The goal of this controlled study was to evaluate the benefits of yoga and meditation for musicians. Young adult professional musicians who volunteered to participate in a 2-month program of yoga and meditation were randomized to a yoga lifestyle intervention group (n = 15) or to a group practicing yoga and meditation only (n = 15). Additional musicians were recruited to a no-practice control group (n = 15). Both yoga groups attended three Kripalu Yoga or meditation classes each week. The yoga lifestyle group also experienced weekly group practice and discussion sessions as part of their more immersive treatment. All participants completed baseline and end-program self-report questionnaires that evaluated music performance anxiety, mood, PRMDs, perceived stress, and sleep quality; many participants later completed a 1-year followup assessment using the same questionnaires. Both yoga groups showed a trend towards less music performance anxiety and significantly less general anxiety/tension, depression, and anger at end-program relative to controls, but showed no changes in PRMDs, stress, or sleep. Similar results in the two yoga groups, despite psychosocial differences in their interventions, suggest that the yoga and meditation techniques themselves may have mediated the improvements. Our results suggest that yoga and meditation techniques can reduce performance anxiety and mood disturbance in young professional musicians.

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