Short report

Effect of juggling therapy on anxiety disorders in female patients

Toshihiro Nakahara¹ , Kazuhiko Nakahara² , Miho Uehara¹ , Ken-ichiro Koyama¹ , Kouha Li¹ , Toshiro Harada¹ , Daisuke Yasuhara¹ , Hikaru Taguchi¹ , Sinya Kojima¹ , Ken-ichiro Sagiyama¹ and Akio Inui¹

¹  Department of Behavioral Medicine, Kagoshima University Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, and Department Psychosomatic Medicine, Respiratory and Stress care Center, Kagoshima University Hospital, Kagoshima City, Japan

²  Health Art Clinic Kumamoto, Kumamoto City, Japan

author email corresponding author email

BioPsychoSocial Medicine 2007, 1:10doi:10.1186/1751-0759-1-10

Published:	1 May 2007

Abstract

Aims

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of juggling therapy for anxiety disorder patients.

Design and Method

Subjects were 17 female outpatients who met the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for anxiety disorders. Subjects were treated with standard psychotherapy, medication and counseling for 6 months. For the last 3 months of treatment, subjects were randomized into either a non-juggling group (n = 9) or a juggling therapy group (juggling group: n = 8). The juggling group gradually acquired juggling skills by practicing juggling beanbags (otedama in Japan) with both hands. The therapeutic effect was evaluated using scores of psychological testing (STAI: State and Trate Anxiety Inventry, POMS: Profile of Mood Status) and of ADL (FAI: Franchay Activity Index) collected before treatment, 3 months after treatment (before juggling therapy), and at the end of both treatments.

Results

After 6 months, an analysis of variance revealed that scores on the state anxiety, trait anxiety subscales of STAI and tension-anxiety (T-A) score of POMS were significantly lower in the juggling group than in the non-juggling group (p < 0.01). Depression, anger-hostility scores of POMS were improved more than non-jugglers. In the juggling group, activity scores on the vigor subscale of POMS and FAI score were significantly higher than those in the non juggling group (p < 0.01). Other mood scores of POMS did not differ between the two groups.

Conclusion

These findings suggest that juggling therapy may be effective for the treatment of anxiety disorders.