Yoga in the NICU for parents (YIN): A pilot study on reducing stress in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
American journal of perinatology June 6, 2025 Sara Neches, Alanna Feltner, Mihai Puia-Dumitrescu et al. 1 citation
A 6-week online program of yogic breathing, meditation, and gentle postures reduced stress for parents of infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). In a pilot study with 51 parents (71% mothers), those assigned to yoga classes showed a significant decrease in NICU-related stress between enrollment and the study's midpoint, as measured by the Parental Stressor Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (PSS: NICU). Parents in the yoga group averaged 3 hours 45 minutes of participation. Neither yoga nor usual care parents approached thresholds for disorders of the parent-infant relationship on the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire. The findings suggest that an online, asynchronous yoga intervention started early may reduce NICU parent stress.