Effect of Mindfulness-Based Therapy on Perceived Stressand Resilience in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the third leading cause of neurological disabilities. It can profoundly affect daily activities of patients. People with chronic illnesses have different physiological, psychological, and emotional needs, and satisfying such needs is part of their treatment. This study aimed to assess the effect of mindfulness-based therapy on perceived stress and resilience in patients with MS.

This quasi-experimental study had a pre-test/post-test design with a control group. The study population comprised of MS patients referred to the Iranian MS Association in 2020. Thirty eligible patients were selected and randomly allocated to the intervention and control groups. The intervention group received mindfulness therapy through eight 1-hour sessions according to the protocol by Segal et al (1995). Before and after the intervention, both groups filled out the Perceived Stress Cohen and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale. The obtained data were analyzed by SPSS 23 (P<0.05).

Mindfulness-based therapy positively and significantly affected the perceived stress and resilience of MS patients (P=0.001).

According to the present results and the difference between the mean pre-test/post-test scores of perceived stress and resilience of MS patients, mindfulness-based stress reduction methods significantly improved the resilience and perceived stress in MS patients. Therefore, this treatment may be recommended to reduce the psychological problems of MS patients.