Applied psychophysiology and biofeedbackFeb 15, 2005

Using Yoga to Help People with Long-Term Insomnia: An Early Study with Sleep Records

Circadian Biology Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Apr 2, 2026

Abstract

In a preliminary study of 20 participants with chronic insomnia, statistically significant improvements were observed in sleep efficiency, total sleep time, total wake time, sleep onset latency, and wake time after sleep onset.

Cognitive and physiological arousal is associated with chronic insomnia.
Positive results have been reported for treatments aimed at reducing arousal, such as relaxation and meditation.
Yoga has not been well evaluated specifically for insomnia despite its known effectiveness in reducing arousal.
Participants followed a simple daily yoga treatment after a single training session.
Improvements in sleep measures were observed at the end of the 8-week intervention compared to the 2-week baseline.

Simplified

There is good evidence for cognitive and physiological arousal in chronic insomnia. Accordingly, clinical trial studies of insomnia treatments aimed at reducing arousal, including relaxation and meditation, have reported positive results. Yoga is a multicomponent practice that is also known to be effective in reducing arousal, although it has not been well evaluated as a treatment for insomnia. In this preliminary study, a simple daily yoga treatment was evaluated in a chronic insomnia population consisting of sleep-onset and/or sleep-maintenance insomnia and primary or secondary insomnia. Participants maintained sleep-wake diaries during a pretreatment 2-week baseline and a subsequent 8-week intervention, in which they practiced the treatment on their own following a single in-person training session with subsequent brief in-person and telephone follow-ups. Sleep efficiency (SE), total sleep time (TST), total wake time (TWT), sleep onset latency (SOL), wake time after sleep onset (WASO), number of awakenings, and sleep quality measures were derived from sleep-wake diary entries and were averaged in 2-week intervals. For 20 participants completing the protocol, statistically significant improvements were observed in SE, TST, TWT, SOL, and WASO at end-treatment as compared with pretreatment values.

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Using Yoga to Help People with Long-Term Insomnia: An Early Study with Sleep Records

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