Do yoga and meditation moderate the relationship between negative life events and depressive symptoms? Analysis of a national cross-sectional survey of Australian women.
Frontiers in psychology January 1, 2023 Romy Lauche, Dennis Anheyer, Lisa A Uebelacker et al.
Among 7,186 Australian women aged 36-43, 27.5% practiced yoga or meditation. Perceived stress partially explained the link between negative life events and depressive symptoms, but yoga/meditation did not reduce that stress. Instead, yoga/meditation directly weakened the connection between negative life events and depression, acting as a buffer. Social support and optimism also moderated the stress-depression link. The findings suggest yoga/meditation may help protect against depression after negative events, though the mechanism remains unclear.