The main purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of relaxation-oriented cognitive-behavioral group psychotherapy in FMS patients. It was aimed to improve the pain management, functional coping strategies, self-efficacy, and psychological well-being of the patients at the end of the intervention. Furthermore, relaxation exercise was used as a motivational and complementary technique.
The study was conducted with 25 women who were diagnosed with FMS and had the characteristics to carry out the group psychotherapy process. Mixed method including both quantitative and qualitative research methods was used in the data collection and analysis process of the study. Qualitative data were obtained through written records kept by the observers in the sessions and the observations of the therapists. In collecting quantitative data, Sociodemographic and Clinical Information Form, Visual Analog Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire-Somatic Anxiety and Depression Symptoms, Pain Self-Efficacy Questionaire-2, and Pain Coping Inventory were used. Thematic Analysis methods were used in the qualitative analysis of the interview contents. The analysis of the data obtained from the scales was carried out with the Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks Test.
According to the qualitative analysis results, the group therapy process was considered three themes as 'pain related problems,' 'emotional and social problems,' and 'adherence with the group therapy process.' It was seen that the participants made improvements in the subcodes of the themes.
Results indicate the importance of using quantitative and qualitative patterns together in demonstrating the effectiveness of the intervention.