Changes in mindfulness facets across yoga, CBT and stress education in individuals with generalized anxiety disorder.
Danielle Moskow Diamond, David Rosenfield, Nikki Kaiser, Amanda W Baker, Elizabeth A Hoge, Sat Bir S Khalsa, Stefan G Hofmann, Naomi M Simon
Journal of mood and anxiety disorders June 1, 2024 DOI: 10.1016/j.xjmad.2024.100058
Summary
Kundalini Yoga significantly enhances mindfulness in individuals with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), outperforming cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). In a clinical trial involving 226 participants, those practicing Kundalini Yoga showed a remarkable increase in the "Acting with Awareness" facet of mindfulness compared to CBT. While facets like "Non-judge" and "Non-react" also improved, "Observe" and "Describe" did not change notably. These findings underscore the importance of tailoring treatments, such as yoga and therapy, to effectively address specific mindfulness components in anxiety management.
Abstract
Improving mindfulness is an important treatment target for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). However, less is known about how different treatments impact specific aspects of mindfulness. In a clinical trial (Simon et al., 2021), 226 individuals with GAD were randomized to 12 weeks of Kundalini Yoga (KY), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or stress education (SE). To examine whether specific facets of mindfulness, as measured by the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) change more than others across treatment and between treatments, we ran a multi-variate multilevel growth curve model (MMLM). Results indicated that while the Non-judge, Act with Awareness, and Non-react facets increased significantly during treatment, the Observe and Describe facets did not. Improvement in the Acting with Awareness facet during treatment was significantly greater for KY than CBT. These findings reveal the need to better understand how behavioral treatments can influence specific components of mindfulness for those with anxiety.