Barriers to Yoga as an Add-On Treatment for Common Mental Health Disorders in India

Yoga has increasingly been recognized as a beneficial adjunctive therapy for mental health disorders in India. However, participation barriers persist. This study examines the factors influencing participation in yoga as an add-on treatment for Common Mental Disorders (CMDs) in India.

As the part of a larger open-label comparative study assessing in-person versus virtual yoga, 1147 patients with CMDs were screened at a tertiary care center in Southern India. Of these, 968 were eligible and 130 consented to participate (13.43%). Reasons for refusal were recorded and analyzed.

The overall refusal rate was 86.57%. The most common barriers were lack of time (30.78%), disinterest in yoga (21.12%), and distance to the yoga center (19.09%). Additional factors included ongoing psychotherapy (11.57%), preference for virtual sessions (10.26%), and unwillingness to randomization (7.04%). Participants who consented were significantly more educated and more females than males refused participation. The preference for virtual sessions reflected growing demand for accessible, technology-assisted interventions post-COVID-19.

Despite increased awareness of yoga, participation remains low because of logistical barriers. These findings underscore the need to develop and validate virtual yoga programs tailored to patient convenience and contemporary healthcare delivery models.