Yoga and Counselling in the treatment of Major Depression: Pilot study of counselling, and counselling and yoga combined in a student population.

To determine whether the benefits of the combined treatment of solution focused counselling and yoga is more effective than counselling treatment alone in the management of major depression within the university student population. A pilot study with a group having counselling on its own and then the same group having a combination of yoga and counselling treatment two months later. It needs to be noted that there is no control/comparison group in this study. Involved in the study were, students of both genders, aged 18-60 years with major depression, and who had a score of 13 or more on the 17 item Hamilton rating scale for depression (Polts, Daniels, Burnain, & Weils 1990) and a minimum duration of illness of four weeks. Nine participants were involved in the study and seven participants completed the full study. Students were recruited voluntarily from Charles Darwin University, Casuarina campus in February 2004. During the first stage the group received three solution focused counselling sessions (individually), provided fortnightly by student counsellor and then in the second stage which commenced two months later, a combination of three solution focused counselling plus six yoga sessions. Hamilton rating scale for depression (assessed four times, pre-study, post-first stage, pre-second stage and post-study) and CES-D depression self-rating scale (Radloff 1977) assessed at every counselling session and final closure session (Totalling 7 assessments per participant) was used to measure the results. Of the nine participants, seven completed the whole study. Two participants scores were seven and below on the Hamilton rating scale for depression, therefore meeting the criteria of being clinically recovered from major depression. Another three participants had score of twelve and below on the Hamilton rating scale for depression, meeting the criteria of being partially recovered from depression. The other two participants who completed the whole study hadscores of thirteen or above on the Hamilton rating scale and were deemed not to have recovered from clinical depression. All participants completing all or some of the study have recorded decreased scores in the Hamilton rating scale for depression.