Effectiveness of compassion-enriched acceptance and commitment therapy on depression, stress, and anxiety in opioid addicts receiving methadone maintenance compared to Venlafaxine combination therapy

Psychological problems can reduce the effectiveness of opioid withdrawal, so complementary therapies are used to increase the effectiveness of treatment in these patients. In this study, the addition of the "compassion-enriched acceptance and commitment" psychotherapy method to Venlafaxine to control depression, stress, and anxiety in opioid addicts receiving methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) was investigated.

This study is a clinical trial with pre-test and post-test design. Forty opioid addicts treated with MMT were selected by voluntary sampling method and after matching were divided into two groups (n=20), including Venlafaxine alone and Venlafaxine in combination with compassion-enriched acceptance and commitment. Patients were evaluated on the DASS21 anxiety-stress-depression questionnaire. Data were analyzed using chi-square, paired and independent t-tests, and analysis of covariance with a 95% confidence interval.

Findings showed that both intervention methods were effective on depression, anxiety and stress (P<0.05). However, combination therapy of compassion-enriched acceptance and commitment therapy with Venlafaxine had a greater effect on depression, anxiety, and stress in patients undergoing methadone maintenance treatment (P<0.05).

Adding compassion-enriched acceptance and commitment Psychotherapy to Venlafaxine improves the control of depression, anxiety, and stress in opioid addicts under MMT and can be used as an effective method in the treatment of mental disorders in these patients.