This study serves as a follow-up to the groundbreaking work of van der Kolk et. al., (2014), conducted at the Trauma Center at Justice Resource Institute, which established the efficacy of trauma-sensitive yoga as an adjunctive treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). As the sole randomized controlled trial in this domain, our research delves into the nuanced factors moderating treatment outcomes.

Sixty-four women, each with a history of childhood interpersonal trauma and diagnosed with PTSD, engaged in either Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY) or an active control intervention focused on women’s health education. Our analyses aimed to elucidate whether the onset of adult interpersonal trauma and various baseline psychological measures (including clinician-rated and self-reported PTSD, dissociation, depression, and psychological functioning) moderated changes in PTSD severity.

Among the six measures considered, three exhibited modest effects in moderating the relationship between adult-onset interpersonal trauma and TCTSY efficacy. Notably, TCTSY demonstrated greater efficacy for individuals with fewer instances of adult-onset interpersonal traumas within this subgroup. Within this specific cohort, participants displayed varying levels across all baseline measures, except for depression, indicating that TCTSY was notably more effective in reducing PTSD compared to the active control condition.

This study underscores the importance of identifying specific client characteristics associated with improvements in PTSD outcomes through trauma-sensitive yoga interventions. By delineating these moderating factors, practitioners can refine their approach, tailoring yoga interventions to maximize effectiveness for individuals with distinct trauma histories. This research contributes to the ongoing discourse on trauma treatment modalities, offering valuable insights for optimizing therapeutic strategies in the context of PTSD.

Reference: Nguyen-Feng, V. N., Hodgdon, H., Emerson, D., Silverberg, R., & Clark, C. J. (2020). Moderators of treatment efficacy in a randomized controlled trial of trauma-sensitive yoga as an adjunctive treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder. Psychological trauma: theory, research, practice, and policy, 12(8), 836.