The Effect of Laughter Yoga on the Anxiety and Stress Levels of Women in the Postpartum Period

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Laughter Yoga

• Registration Number: NCT05345067
• Lead Sponsor: Ataturk University

Brief Summary

This research is a randomized controlled study to evaluate the effect of Laughter yoga on the anxiety and stress levels of postpartum women. Randomization was provided in the sample included in the study, and it was divided into experimental and control groups. At the beginning of the study, the Postpartum anxiety scale and the perceived stress scale were applied to women in both groups to determine their anxiety and stress levels. Afterwards, 8 sessions of laughter yoga were applied to the experimental group for 4 weeks. No application was made to the control group. After 4 weeks, the Postpartum anxiety scale and the perceived stress scale were administered to the women in both groups to re-determine their anxiety and stress levels.

Detailed Description

This research is a randomized controlled study to evaluate the effect of Laughter yoga on the anxiety and stress levels of postpartum women. At the beginning of the study, necessary ethics committee permission and institutional permissions were obtained. Both of the researchers have a certificate of leadership in laughter yoga. As a result of the power analysis, it was determined that 128 women should be included in the study. Considering that there may be losses, it was decided to include 160 women in the study. By providing randomization, 160 women who met the sampling criteria and volunteered to participate in the study were divided into two groups as 80 experimental and 80 control. At the beginning of the study, the Postpartum anxiety scale and the perceived stress scale were applied to women in both groups to determine their anxiety and stress levels. Afterwards, 8 sessions of laughter yoga were applied to the experimental group for 4 weeks, two sessions a week. No application was made to the control group. After 4 weeks, the Postpartum anxiety scale and the perceived stress scale were administered to the women in both groups to re-determine their anxiety and stress levels. In the study, 7 women from the experimental group and 9 women from the control group were excluded for various reasons. The study was conducted with 73 experimental and 71 control groups. The process of making analyzes and writing the final report continues. This study is financially supported by Atatürk University Scientific Research Coordination Unit. In addition, this study is carried out as a master's thesis accepted by Atatürk University Health Sciences Institute.

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2022-01-01
• Study First Submitted: 2022-04-19
• Study First Submitted QC: 2022-04-19
• Study First Posted: 2022-04-25
• Primary Completion: 2022-05-15
• Study Completion: 2022-06-20
• Status Verified: 2022-07
• Last Update Submitted: 2022-07-20
• Last Update Posted: 2022-07-21

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: Female
• Target Recruitment: 144

Inclusion Criteria

• be between the ages of 19-45
• Giving birth by vaginal / Caesarean section
• 1 month after birth
• Having a healthy baby
• Not experiencing any complications during birth and postpartum
• At least primary school graduate
• Not having a diagnosed psychiatric disease

Exclusion Criteria

• Having a medical condition (hypertension, wound complication, etc.)
• Not regularly attending laughter yoga sessions (for the experimental group)
• Applying another alternative method to reduce anxiety and stress in the postpartum period

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Questionnaire Form	up to 2 weeks	Prepared by the researcher; There are introductory information such as age, education level, family type and 24 questions about the postpartum period. This form determines the introductory characteristics of the participants. therefore no points are taken.
Postpartum Specific Anxiety Scale	up to 2 weeks	This scale was developed by Fallon et al. to evaluate postpartum anxiety symptoms. The Turkish adaptation of the scale was made by Duran in 2019. Since it was determined that some items could be in different groups in the adaptation to Turkish, it was decided to be one-dimensional and some items not to be in the Turkish version. The Turkish form of the scale was evaluated as one-dimensional and 47 items. It can be said that those who score 73 and below on the scale have low postpartum anxiety levels, those who score between 74 and 100 have a medium level, and those who score 101 and above have a high level of anxiety.
Perceived Stress Scale	up to 2 weeks	It was developed by Cohen, Kamarck \& Mermelste in 1983 to measure the perceived stress of a person in any situation, and was adapted into Turkish by Eskin et al. It contains 14 items in total. Participants evaluated the items on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from "Never (0)" to "Very often (4)". 7 items containing positive statements are scored in reverse. Scoring ranges from 0 to 56, while a high score indicates that the person is highly stressed.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Postpartum Specific Anxiety Scale	up to 3 weeks	This scale was developed by Fallon et al. to evaluate postpartum anxiety symptoms. The Turkish adaptation of the scale was made by Duran in 2019. Since it was determined that some items could be in different groups in the adaptation to Turkish, it was decided to be one-dimensional and some items not to be in the Turkish version. The Turkish form of the scale was evaluated as one-dimensional and 47 items. It can be said that those who score 73 and below on the scale have low postpartum anxiety levels, those who score between 74 and 100 have a medium level, and those who score 101 and above have a high level of anxiety.
Perceived Stress Scale	up to 3 weeks	It was developed by Cohen, Kamarck \& Mermelste in 1983 to measure the perceived stress of a person in any situation, and was adapted into Turkish by Eskin et. It contains 14 items in total. Self-efficacy and perception of stress It consists of two sub-dimensions. Participants evaluated the items on a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from "Never (0)" to "Very often (4)". 7 items containing positive statements are scored in reverse. Scoring ranges from 0 to 56, while a high score indicates that the person is highly stressed.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Atatürk University; 🇹🇷 Erzurum, Yakutiye, Turkey