‘Whatever happens, I am okay’: A qualitative study exploring yoga practitioners’ experiences with integrative medicine

Integrative medicine (IM) has not advanced in healthcare to its full potential. To gain a deeper understanding of IM, a study was conducted to explore experiences with its use. Interviews were held with 15 long-term yoga therapy practitioners, using yoga as an example of a complementary therapy (CT). Reflexive thematic analysis led to the construction of two themes: (1) conventional medicine (CM) protects life, while yoga enhances the power to live and (2) CM and yoga are used according to individual needs. Experience with IM using yoga as a CT suggests it can encourage proactive health behaviours and support overall health improvement.