Use of meditation by naturologists

a nationwide study

Abstract

Introduction: Meditation is a Complementary Integrative Practice that has been recognized as a useful tool in the treatment of organic and psychic diseases. In Naturology, a healthrelated profession, naturologists are only briefly introduced to this universe of meditation techniques. Objective: this article intended to quantify the use of meditation by naturologists as a therapeutic resource in self-promotion of health and clinical use. Materials and methods: consists in a descriptive observational study in a cross-sectional design, quantitative in nature and with a nationwide scope. The sample consisted of 129 naturologists graduated from the University of Sul de Santa Catarina e Anhembi Morumbi who work or not in the clinical field. Data were collected on the Google Forms platform in the second half of 2021, analyzing the use of meditation for personal, individual and group sessions; the meditative practices most often used and the frequency in which these professionals use these practices; the means by which the professional acquired knowledge of the techniques as well as the workload of the meditation courses taken by the professional. Results: the study has shown that 51.1% of naturologists almost always/always use meditative practices in the personal field as a therapeutic resource in self-promotion of health. In the clinical field, 29.5% of naturologists almost always/always use meditation in individual consultations and 37.2% in group consultations. Final considerations: the breathing technique was the most used meditation tech¬nique both for personal and clinical implementation in individual and group applications.