Research Center: Sinai Health
Location: This is a virtual Study only (no in-person visits) recruiting Nationally, across Canada
Lead Researcher: Dr. Abhimanyu Sud

Are you a veteran dealing with PTSD? 

Join this research study to evaluate the effectiveness of Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) delivered virtually.

SKY is a breathing-based meditation program that may help manage PTSD symptoms. By participating in this study, you’ll assist researchers from Sinai Health in assessing this therapy, which could improve care for veterans nationwide, so consider signing up today!

• Participants may experience improvements in symptoms associated with PTSD. 
• Participants will be contributing valuable information that may benefit those with PTSD in the future.
• Participants will be helping to advance Veteran care.

• If you decide to participate in the study and later feel that you no longer wish to be part of it, you can withdraw at any time.
• Any information that you provide will be kept strictly confidential, except as required by law.

• Individuals aged 18 years old and older 
• Must be a Canadian Armed Forces or Royal Canadian Mounted Police Veteran
• Must have experienced or been bothered by a potentially traumatic event
• Must not currently be participating in another clinical trial
• Must not be planning to begin behavioral therapy (e.g., Cognitive Behavioural Therapy including Prolonged Exposure or Cognitive Processing Therapy) during the study
• Must not have previously participated in virtual or in-person Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY)
• Must not have experienced schizophrenia, bipolar I, psychosis of any type, or a seizure disorder that is not well-controlled in the last 6 months
• Must not have moderate to severe substance use disorder in the last 30 days
• Must have access to the internet and Zoom for study assessments and interventions

The study team will explain the research in its entirety but some details are:

• This free six-week study, offered in English or French, will take place online through video calls at flexible times 
• In the first week of the study, participants will be expected to attend five sessions. Each session will last three hours. For the next five weeks, there will be one-hour follow-up sessions scheduled twice a week. 
• Participants will be asked to attend first a 60-minute appointment and to complete four (4) additional 45-minute surveys. These will occur right before the program begins and the 6 weeks, 12 weeks, and 30 weeks after the first appointment.

Sinai Health
The Science of Care Institute is located on the beautiful Hennick Bridgepoint Hospital campus of Sinai Health and is advancing new discoveries and innovations in how care is transformed, co-designed, implemented, and measured. Our Science of Care Research and Innovation Framework focuses on the integration of caring, symptom, and safety science using team, implementation, improvement, and innovation science to accelerate new models of complex, compassionate, fundamental care and work environment strategies into practice that are sustainable and scalable.

The Science of Care Institute is in a growth trajectory that builds on a strong foundation of interdisciplinary teams of researchers, clinician-scientists, trainees, and staff from the former Collaboratory for Research and Innovation affiliated with the Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute (LTRI) and our new Centre for Nursing Excellence. Collectively, our teams are working collaboratively to produce high-quality research to drive innovation and health system transformation. LTRI is a University of Toronto affiliated research centre and is one of the world’s leading centres in biomedical and health systems research.

Please note:

The study will be conducted remotely which means there will be no in-person visits, allowing you to participate in the comfort of your own home.