Effects of a self-care-based education and laughter yoga on chronic stress, menopausal symptoms, and salivary cortisol: A randomized controlled trial

Menopause and its symptoms significantly affect women's physical, psychological, and social well-being, often resulting in chronic stress. Education based on the self-care model's three components-maintenance, monitoring, and management-combined with laughter yoga, a proven stress-reducing practice, may effectively aid in managing menopausal symptoms and stress. This randomized controlled trial investigated the impact of a menopause education program grounded in the self-care model and integrated with laughter yoga on menopausal symptoms, perceived stress, coping styles, and salivary cortisol among postmenopausal women. Sixty-four participants were randomly assigned to either an intervention group (n=32) or a control group (n=32). Data were collected using a Descriptive Information Form, the Perceived Stress Scale, the Menopause Symptoms Assessment Scale, the Coping Styles Inventory, and salivary cortisol measurements. After the intervention, significant improvements were observed in the intervention group's scale scores and salivary cortisol levels compared to the control group (p=0.001). The program successfully alleviated menopausal symptoms and reduced stress, with lower cortisol levels indicating positive physiological adaptation. Primary healthcare nurses are encouraged to integrate self-care-based education and affordable stress-reduction methods, such as laughter yoga, into menopausal counseling. Future studies with larger samples and extended follow-up periods are recommended to confirm these results.