Yoga Nidra for Insomnia and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms

Summary

This randomized feasibility study is designed to investigate the feasibility of recruitment and delivery of two variations (brief; full) of a virtual Integrative Restoration (iRest) yoga nidra meditation intervention in stressor- or trauma-exposed participants with insomnia and posttraumatic stress symptoms, compared to a waitlist control group. Feasibility will also be examined for data collection (daily sleep diaries and PTSD symptom surveys) and at-home polysomnography (PSG) study completion prior to and following the intervention. Feasibility measures will include study retention and-for the two yoga nidra groups-adherence to study protocol, and acceptability of the intervention will be assessed qualitatively, in semi-structured interviews, and quantitatively, with the Client Satisfaction Questionnaire, following the intervention. Acceptability of the daily surveys will also be assessed quantitatively.

Preliminary efficacy of the interventions on the primary treatment outcomes of insomnia and PTSD symptoms and symptom clusters will be assessed. Secondary outcomes include changes in specific sleep architecture assessed in an at-home polysomnogram (sleep stages, including stage N3 percentage, sleep spindles, rapid eye movement (REM) theta, total sleep time, wake after sleep onset time, sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency), daily sleep characteristics (total sleep time, sleep onset latency, wake after sleep onset time, sleep quality), daily PTSD symptoms, and mindfulness. Exploratory outcomes include sleep quality, experiential avoidance, emotion regulation, self-compassion, depression, anxiety, and nightmares.

Conditions

• Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Insomnia
• Stressor, Psychological
• Psychological Trauma

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Yoga nidra (full)

The intervention consists of remotely delivered audio recordings (\~30 minute length) of iRest yoga nidra meditation instructions that participants will be asked to listen to daily for 8 weeks, for a total listening time of about 3.5 hours each week. The yoga nidra practices will be in the tradition of iRest. They will include the following sections: intention setting, articulating a heartfelt desire, inner resource, body sensing, breath sensing, emotion and cognition sensing and opposites, welcoming joy, witnessing awareness, and integration. Each week includes an additional brief (\~2-5 minute) introduction to one of the iRest yoga nidra sections. Participants will be asked to lie on a lightly cushioned surface when listening to the practices. Participants are informed that they may opt to listen to the recordings more often but are instructed to listen to the recordings at least once per day.

BEHAVIORAL

Yoga nidra (brief)

The intervention will consist of remotely delivered audio recordings of yoga nidra meditation instructions. Participants will be asked to listen to one \~30-minute practice and six \~10-minute practices per week (total listening time of \~1.5 hours each week) for 8 weeks. The yoga nidra practices will be in the tradition of iRest. They will include the following sections: intention setting, articulating a heartfelt desire, inner resource, body sensing, breath sensing, emotion and cognition sensing and opposites, welcoming joy, witnessing awareness, and integration. Each week includes an additional brief (2-5 minute) introduction to one of the iRest yoga nidra sections. Participants will be asked to lie on a lightly cushioned surface when listening to the practices. Participants are informed that they may opt to listen to the recordings more than once a day but are instructed to listen to the 30-minute recording once per week and the 10-minute meditations the other 6 days of the week.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

  collaborator NIH

• University College, London

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Sunjeev Kamboj, PhD · University College, London

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

35 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2025-03-03

Primary Completion

2026-03-17

Completion

2026-03-17

Countries

• United Kingdom

Study Locations