This project explores whether heated yoga, sauna, and a mindfulness app reduce depressive symptoms
adults (18-65 years old)
Ability to provide informed consent
English language proficiency
PHQ-9 score > 10, indicating at least moderate depressive symptoms 21
Pregnant or planning to become pregnant
Breast feeding
Active suicidal thinking (i.e., PHQ-9 item 9 ≥1 and a positive response to C-SSRS screener items 3, 4, 5, or 6)
Active eating disorders or substance use disorders within the past 12 months, as per the MINI
Parallel
heated yoga
Behavioral12-weeks of twice weekly 90-min heated yoga classes in the community
sauna
Behavioral12-weeks of twice weekly 40-min sauna sessions in the community
mindfulness app
Behavioral12-weeks of 80-mins a week of a mindfulness app
Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9)
The PHQ- 9 is a 9-item self-report questionnaire that is widely used to assess depression symptom severity. Score range from 0 to 27, with a high score (20-27) indicating severe depression.
The Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ-15)
A 15-item self-report instrument that measures mindfulness; derived from factor analytic study of five independent mindfulness questionnaires. Total scores range from 15 to 75, with higher scores indicating greater utilization of mindfulness techniques.
Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS)
A 22-item questionnaire that assess rumination, with scores range from 22 to 88. Lower scores reflect less frequent engagement in ruminative thought patterns.
The World Health Organization-5 Well-Being Index (WHO-5)
A 5-item self-report questionnaire with positively-worded statements related to general mood over the prior two weeks. WHO-5 has shown strong construct validity as a measure of general quality of life, and is sensitive to change. Scores range from 0 to 25, with higher scores reflecting overall well-being.
Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS-29)
PROMIS-29 is used to assess psychometric properties under the domains of physical function, fatigue, pain interference, depressive symptoms, anxiety, social functioning, sleep disturbance using four items per domain. This measure uses a T-score metric for scoring, typically ranging from 20 to 80, with a lower T-score (below 50) indicating less severity of symptoms.
Acceptability Interview
Used to evaluate participants' thoughts about the study and collect information on their experience. The data collected is qualitative.
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