The Implications of Yoga as a Coping Mechanism for Stress During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic has been extremely devastating across the globe. In the United States specifically, Covid-19 has taken over 545,000 lives and climbing. Over the past year of the pandemic, the rate of mental health concerns has grown significantly. Yoga has been paralleled in growth throughout the course of pandemic with countless new yoga students and advanced students who have dove deeper into the yoga practice.

The study examined the perceived stress levels of yogis and using yoga as a leisure coping strategy for stress reduction during the Covid-19 pandemic. A survey was sent via email to yoga instructors known by the researcher. The survey was also posted on five different yogi Facebook pages. 67 completed surveys were received and analyzed using various statistical tests.

The quantitative results were analyzed by descriptive statistics, single sample, and independent sample t-test, cohen’s d, and correlations. The tests were conducted to compare the results of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the Leisure Stress Coping Scale (LCSS) with days practiced weekly, level of practice, and years of practice.

The results showed a benefit to using yoga to reduce stress in yogis during the Covid-19 pandemic. Yoga was also found to be beneficial for coping with stress and stress related symptoms during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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