Journal Article

Perceptions and experiences of a multicomponent traditional Chinese medicine lifestyle medicine program for depression: a qualitative study

Luo, Dan, Chak, Kin Yeung, Chen, Xi, Ho, Janice Yuen Shan, Qing, Wan Yi, Hu, Lu, Mak, Yim Wah, Chen, Jun Ya, Wu, Lin Ye, Ruan, Jia Yin, Cheng, Hui Lin, Chen, Hai Yong, Lu, Chao, Yeung, Wing Fai

2026

Overview

Background Depression, a debilitating mental disorder, has become the leading cause of disability worldwide. A growing body of evidence supports the feasibility and effectiveness of multicomponent lifestyle medicine programs for the treatment of depression, including the recent novel multicomponent Traditional Chinese Medicine Lifestyle Medicine (TCMLM) program (Registered at ClinicalTrials.Gov with registration number: NCT05799586). However, little is known about participants’ experiences and perceptions of the program and the aspects that require improvement. This study aimed to explore the experiences and perceptions of participants attending the multicomponent TCMLM program and practicing the related lifestyle behaviors. Methods In this descriptive qualitative study, purposeful sampling was used to recruit Hong Kong Chinese adults who had participated in the multicomponent TCMLM program between August 2023 and January 2024. Face-to-face focus-group interviews and semi-structured interviews were conducted with audio recording, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using conventional content analysis. All interviews were performed in classrooms in a university in Hong Kong. Results A total of 31 multicomponent TCMLM program attendees aged 20 to 65 years participated in the qualitative interviews. The content analysis identified three themes and 12 subthemes, namely, Theme 1: multicomponent TCMLM program originally being comprehensive and special (e.g., TCMLM program content originally being not unitary, increasing the number of methods for dealing with depressive symptoms); Theme 2: multicomponent TCMLM program being far more beneficial than expected (e.g., promoting diet, exercises, daily routine and sleep management based on TCMLM, improving physical functional status, improving one’s personality); and Theme 3: practicing multicomponent TCMLM program having challenges (e.g., unsuitable conditions hindering some TCMLM practices in community). Conclusions This study provides fresh in-depth insights into the perceptions and experiences of Hong Kong Chinese adults with depression who attended the multicomponent TCMLM program and engaged in the related lifestyle behaviors. Meanwhile, the challenges encountered while attending the program and practicing the related behaviors offer valuable information for further optimization of the program and expanding its application in Hong Kong or other regions.

• Publisher: BioMed Central,BioMed Central Ltd,Springer Nature B.V,BMC
• Subject: Adult / Adults / Aged / behavior disorders / Care and treatment / China / Chiropractic Medicine / complement / Complementary & Alternative Medicine / Content analysis / Depression / Depression - therapy / Depression, Mental / diet / Emotions / Experiences / Female / functional status / Health aspects / Heart / Herbal medicine / Hong Kong / Humans / Insomnia / Internal Medicine / Interviews / Life Style / Lifestyle / Lifestyles / Male / Medicine / Medicine & Public Health / Medicine, Chinese / Medicine, Chinese Traditional - methods / Mental depression / Mental disorders / Middle Aged / Oriental traditional medicine / Perceptions / personality / Psychological aspects / Qualitative analysis / Qualitative Research / sleep / Social aspects / Surveys / Traditional Chinese medicine / Young Adult