Highlights
- •Yoga might play a role in stabilizing the electroencephalogram and the autonomic nervous system in people with epilepsy.
- •Experiences of patients with regard to benefits, motives, barriers, and recommendations of yoga were explored.
- •Perceived benefits of yoga included improvements in management of seizures, psychological, physical, and social well-being.
- •The interviewees recommended tailoring yoga sessions to the needs of people with epilepsy.
Abstract
Objectives
Yoga is believed to play a role in stabilizing the electroencephalogram and the autonomic
nervous system, thus might help control seizures in people with epilepsy (PWE). This
qualitative study was conducted to explore experiences of Palestinian PWE with regard
to benefits, motives, barriers, and recommendations of prescribing yoga exercises
as a nonpharmacological intervention.
Methods
Purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used to recruit PWE who practiced
yoga. Semi-structured in-depth interviews (n = 18) were conducted with the study participants. The interpretive description method
was used to qualitatively analyze the data collected during the interviews.
Results
Following the thematic analysis adopted for this study, four major themes emerged.
These themes were as follows: perceived benefits of yoga, motives to practice yoga,
barriers to practice yoga, and recommendations on effective yoga practice for PWE.
The perceived benefits included improvements in management of seizures, psychological,
physical, and social well-being. People with epilepsy were motivated by the health
benefits of yoga. Barriers of adherence to practice included personal and logistic
factors. The interviewees recommended tailoring yoga sessions to the needs of PWE.
Conclusion
This explorative qualitative study reported perceived benefits, motives, barriers,
and recommendations of yoga as a nonpharmacological intervention for PWE. People with
epilepsy used yoga as a beneficial nonpharmacological intervention to improve their
health and reduce the negative effects of epilepsy on their physical and psychosocial
well-being. Future studies are needed to investigate the health benefits of yoga when
sessions are tailored to the needs of PWE.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: April 01, 2020
Accepted:
March 12,
2020
Received in revised form:
March 9,
2020
Received:
February 23,
2020
Identification
Copyright
© 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
