TY - JOUR

T1 - ‘I never thought exercise could help improve my sleep’

T2 - experiences of people with rheumatoid arthritis on the impact of an 8-week walking-based exercise intervention in improving their sleep

AU - McKenna, Seán G.

AU - Larkin, Louise

AU - Donnelly, Alan

AU - Esbensen, Bente Appel

AU - Ng, Wan Lin

AU - Anjum, Aqeel Maqsood

AU - Fraser, Alexander

AU - Kennedy, Norelee

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2024.

PY - 2024

Y1 - 2024

N2 - Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of people with RA of participating in an exercise intervention to improve their sleep. Methods: Using a qualitative descriptive design, semi-structured face-to-face interviews were conducted with 12 people with RA who had completed an 8-week walking-based exercise intervention to improve their total sleep time, sleep quality and sleep disturbance. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Four themes were generated: positive impact of exercise on participants’ sleep (‘I really didn’t think any type of exercise would help me sleep better, if I’m honest’); positive experiences of the exercise intervention (‘I learnt so much regarding walking that I didn’t even think about’); clear mental health benefits (‘If you don’t sleep well then it will have a knock-on effect to your mental health’); and achieving empowerment and ownership when exercising (‘I feel empowered now and confident that I’m not doing harm to myself’). Conclusion: The findings demonstrated that participants had not expected exercise to improve their sleep. Although there is a growing consensus that exercise will benefit sleep and mitigate some disease symptoms, research is severely lacking in people with RA.

AB - Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of people with RA of participating in an exercise intervention to improve their sleep. Methods: Using a qualitative descriptive design, semi-structured face-to-face interviews were conducted with 12 people with RA who had completed an 8-week walking-based exercise intervention to improve their total sleep time, sleep quality and sleep disturbance. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Four themes were generated: positive impact of exercise on participants’ sleep (‘I really didn’t think any type of exercise would help me sleep better, if I’m honest’); positive experiences of the exercise intervention (‘I learnt so much regarding walking that I didn’t even think about’); clear mental health benefits (‘If you don’t sleep well then it will have a knock-on effect to your mental health’); and achieving empowerment and ownership when exercising (‘I feel empowered now and confident that I’m not doing harm to myself’). Conclusion: The findings demonstrated that participants had not expected exercise to improve their sleep. Although there is a growing consensus that exercise will benefit sleep and mitigate some disease symptoms, research is severely lacking in people with RA.

KW - inflammatory arthritis

KW - mental health

KW - physical activity

KW - physiotherapy

KW - qualitative

KW - sleep

U2 - 10.1093/rap/rkae008

DO - 10.1093/rap/rkae008

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 38293633

AN - SCOPUS:85183941462

VL - 8

JO - Rheumatology Advances in Practice

JF - Rheumatology Advances in Practice

SN - 2514-1775

IS - 1

M1 - rkae008

ER -