Recently, laughter yoga (LY) has been introduced for managing depression and anxiety. This study aimed to investigate the impact of LY on depression and anxiety among retired women in city of Bojnurd, Iran, 2018. Sixty-six retired women were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Intervention group received LY twice weekly for 8 weeks; control group had their routine daily activities. Depression and anxiety levels were measured at study initiation, week 4, and week 8 in both groups. Results showed significant difference in the pattern of depression (p <.001) and anxiety (p <.001) scores within and between groups. LY could be an effective intervention in reducing depression and anxiety among retired women.
Keywords: Laughter yoga; anxiety; depression; retirement; women.