YOGA FOR EMOTIONAL CONTROL IN CHILDREN WITH ADHD

ABSTRACT Introduction: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common childhood disorders, with several negative social and behavioral consequences. Yoga shows appropriate efficacy in different conditions but is poorly explored during childhood. Objective: Analyze the efficacy of yoga in regulating emotions and symptoms in children with ADHD. Methods: This experimental study followed up on a control group of 30 children with ADHD. They were randomly allocated group into control (N=15) and experimental (N=15) through the block randomization method. Participants completed the emotion regulation and Conner scale (CBRS) before, after, and 60 days after yoga exercise (20 sessions twice a week). Results: After 8 weeks of training, participants' emotion regulation and ADHD symptoms improved significantly. The improvement in emotion regulation and ADHD symptoms was maintained at follow-up. Conclusion: Yoga training proved to be an easy and inexpensive method to improve the mental and physical condition of children with ADHD. Level of evidence II; Therapeutic studies - investigating treatment outcomes.