A Qualitative Study Comparing the Experiences of the Meditation-Based Lifestyle Modification Program with Multi-professional Psychiatric Treatment for Female Outpatients with Mild to Moderate Depression

Abstract

Meditation-Based Lifestyle Modification (MBLM) is a complex eight-week mind-body intervention based on the traditional eight-fold path of classical yoga. MBLM was developed for mental health care, and it combines ethical living, physical yoga, and meditation. In this qualitative study, the subjectively perceived efficacy of MBLM was compared to the perceived efficacy of an individually tailored, multi-professional psychiatric treatment (MPT) in a psychiatric outpatient clinic. Twelve patients were interviewed for this study (six for each condition). All qualitative interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. In total, five main themes with associated subthemes emerged from the data: calmness, increased awareness, interpersonal relationships, depressive symptoms, and difficulties within the therapy. Moreover, our study showed significant differences between the two therapy groups. First, the groups differed regarding the frequency with which various topics were addressed by the patients. Second, the perceived effectiveness of both therapies (MBLM vs. MPT) varied according to descriptions of the perceived changes in each participant. The participants in the MBLM program generally appeared to experience a deeper emotional-experiential integration which contrasted with the more cognitive-behavioral processing of the MPT patients. These findings may guide further research and the implementation of similar complementary therapies in psychiatry.