Dissertation Defence: Cannabis Under the Influence of Yoga: The Impact of Mindful Movement on Well-Being Outcomes after Cannabis Use

Sarah Daniels, supervised by Dr. Zach Walsh, will defend their dissertation titled “Cannabis Under the Influence of Yoga: The Impact of Mindful Movement on Well-Being Outcomes after Cannabis Use” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology – Clinical.

An abstract for Sarah Daniels’ dissertation is included below.

Examinations are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public. Please email zachary.walsh@ubc.ca to receive the zoom link for this defence.

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ABSTRACT

The prevalence of cannabis use in Canada is high, and there is increasing discussion around the therapeutic use of cannabis to enhance well-being and address mental health concerns. Clinical research and anecdotal reports are equivocal and inconsistent, with both positive and negative impacts on mental health reported. In studies of other psychoactive drugs used therapeutically (i.e., psychedelics) there is considerable attendance to extra-pharmacological factors during the drug experience, as it is well-known that such contextual factors can significantly impact clinical outcomes. This study contributes to the discussion by being the first to examine the impact of contextual factors on well-being outcomes following cannabis use. In this study, 47 participants self-administered cannabis via the Naturalistic Cannabis Administration Protocol (NCAP) under two conditions that took place one week apart. After consuming cannabis, participants completed a 45-minute yoga practice, and in the control condition participated in activities as usual for 45 minutes (e.g., what they would normally do when high). Within-subjects assessment of well-being outcomes indicated significant improvements in mysticality of experience (F(1,46) = 19.82, p <.001, ηp = .30) and state mindfulness (F(1,46) = 34.08, p <.001, ηp = .43) following the yoga condition, and no difference in state affect. Results demonstrated that contextual factors can impact well-being outcomes following cannabis administration. These findings suggest that paying attention to contextual factors and providing guidelines for therapeutic cannabis users may improve clinical outcomes when using cannabis to support mental health and well-being.