Facial Yoga in Menopausal Women (FacialYogaM)

February 3, 2026 updated by: Ayşe Eminoğlu, Marmara University

The Effect of Facial Yoga Practice on Perceived Stress, Cognitive Control, Cognitive Flexibility, and Cortisol Levels in Menopausal Women

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of a structured facial yoga-based behavioral intervention on perceived stress, cognitive control, cognitive flexibility, and salivary cortisol levels in women during the menopausal period. The study aims to determine whether a non-pharmacological and non-invasive behavioral intervention can support psychological and cognitive functioning and reduce biological stress responses in menopausal women.

Design: This study is designed as a randomized, controlled, pretest-posttest experimental trial with a post-intervention follow-up assessment. Eligible participants will be randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control (usual care) group. Outcomes will be assessed at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and at follow-up to evaluate both the immediate and sustained effects of the intervention.

Method: A total of 100 menopausal women aged 45-65 years will be recruited from a menopause outpatient clinic and randomly allocated to either the intervention group or the control group. The intervention group will participate in a 12-week online facial yoga program consisting of two 60-minute sessions per week.

In this study, facial yoga refers to a non-pharmacological and non-invasive behavioral intervention focusing on facial myofascial relaxation, breathing regulation, and body awareness for stress regulation and cognitive functioning. The program will include facial myofascial relaxation techniques, basic yoga postures suitable for all physical levels, and structured breathing exercises. All sessions will be conducted online in a group format, and no audio or video recordings will be taken.

The control group will continue to receive routine outpatient care during the study period and will be offered the facial yoga program after the completion of follow-up assessments, upon request.

Data will be collected at three time points: at baseline prior to the intervention, immediately after completion of the 12-week intervention, and at 8 weeks following the intervention as a follow-up assessment. Perceived stress, cognitive control, and cognitive flexibility will be assessed using validated self-report questionnaires. Salivary cortisol samples will be collected under standardized morning conditions at each assessment point to evaluate biological stress response.

Hypotheses:

H1: Menopausal women participating in the facial yoga intervention will demonstrate a significant reduction in perceived stress levels compared to the control group at post-intervention and follow-up assessments.

H2: Menopausal women participating in the facial yoga intervention will demonstrate a significant reduction in salivary cortisol levels compared to the control group at post-intervention and follow-up assessments.

H3: Menopausal women participating in the facial yoga intervention will demonstrate a significant improvement in cognitive control and cognitive flexibility compared to the control group at post-intervention and follow-up assessments.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

100

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact Backup

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Female participants aged 45-65 years
  • In the menopausal period, defined as at least 12 months since the last menstrual period
  • Able to read and understand Turkish and to complete self-report questionnaires

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Current or past diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder or ongoing psychiatric treatment
  • Regular use of antidepressant, anxiolytic, or corticosteroid medications
  • History of cancer or currently receiving active oncological treatment
  • Participation in facial yoga or similar yoga-based programs within the past 6 months
  • Any medical condition that may prevent safe participation in mild physical activity
  • Incomplete attendance to intervention sessions or incomplete outcome data during the study period

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: Usual Care
Experimental: Facial Yoga Intervention
Behavioral: Facial Yoga Program
A structured 12-week online facial yoga program consisting of two 60-minute sessions per week. The intervention focuses on facial myofascial relaxation, breathing regulation, and body awareness for stress regulation and cognitive functioning. Sessions will be conducted in a group format, and no audio or video recordings will be taken.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Perceived Stress Level
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately post-intervention (12 weeks), and 8 weeks post-intervention follow-up
Change in perceived stress levels measured using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14). The scale consists of 14 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale (0-4), with total scores ranging from 0 to 56. Higher scores indicate higher perceived stress levels.
Baseline, immediately post-intervention (12 weeks), and 8 weeks post-intervention follow-up
Salivary Cortisol Level
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately post-intervention (12 weeks), and 8 weeks post-intervention follow-up
Change in salivary cortisol levels measured from morning saliva samples collected under standardized conditions.
Baseline, immediately post-intervention (12 weeks), and 8 weeks post-intervention follow-up
Cognitive Control and Flexibility
Time Frame: Baseline, immediately post-intervention (12 weeks), and 8 weeks post-intervention follow-up
Change in cognitive control and cognitive flexibility levels measured using the Cognitive Control and Flexibility Questionnaire. The questionnaire consists of two subscales (cognitive control and cognitive flexibility), with items rated on a 7-point Likert scale. Higher scores indicate better cognitive control and greater cognitive flexibility.
Baseline, immediately post-intervention (12 weeks), and 8 weeks post-intervention follow-up

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Marmara University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

March 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

September 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 3, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 3, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

February 10, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

February 10, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 3, 2026

Last Verified

February 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • MU-SBF-ETIK-206

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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