Endometriosis & savasana : exploring pain management for endometriosis through the practice of yoga : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand

Abstract

Endometriosis is an illness impacting approximately 10-15% of women globally (Goncalves et al., 2017). A debilitating disease, endometriosis can affect females of reproductive age. Common symptoms of endometriosis can include chronic pain, dysmenorrhea, painful intercourse, abnormal menstrual bleeding, and infertility (Endometriosis New Zealand, 2023). Currently, there are no definitively effective treatments for endometriosis and therefore it is imperative to explore different methods of pain management. Pain can be a burden to not only physical health, but also have adverse implications on other elements in an individual’s life such as their mental health, interpersonal relationships and work, ultimately affecting self-perceived QOL. The purpose of this research was to investigate the efficacy of yoga, a non-medical practice that values the balance between the mind and body, in reducing perceived pain caused by endometriosis. Three women with confirmed diagnosis of endometriosis participated in the research. Single semi-structured interviews were conducted prior to the research starting and at the end of the research, and participants also completed a 25-question endometriosis health questionnaire at these times. A shortened 5-question version of this questionnaire was also given to the participants 6 weeks into the research. Participants answered a daily pain scale and wrote in their journals every day for 12 weeks. Participants started to attend the yoga class four weeks into the research for the next 8 weeks. Six key themes were found within the participants’ datasets of their journal entries and their initial and closing interviews: (1) experiencing endometriosis pain, (2) treating endometriosis pain, (3) yoga and QOL, (4) benefits of yoga on the body, (5) benefits of yoga on mental health, and (6) yoga and perception of pain. Overall, yoga was found not to be effective for perception of pain associated with endometriosis but the participants’ perceived QOL improved in certain mental and physical health domains including social support, mindfulness and body awareness, physicality (e.g. flexibility, toning) and confidence. The implications of the research suggest that QOL and pain for women with endometriosis is complex so pain management for endometriosis ideally should be grounded in the person’s world and holistic (considering all domains). More research is needed on both yoga for endometriosis in Aotearoa New Zealand and on pain management for chronic health conditions.