Comparison of the effectiveness of drug therapy and cognitive-behavioral stress management on cognitive avoidance and alexithymia in patients with tension headaches.

Subject Areas : Tectonostratigraphy

seyed abdollah amiri arjmand ¹ (Ph.D. Student in General Psychology, Department of psychology, Sari Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sari, Iran)
BAHRAM mirzaiean ² (Associated Professor, Department of Psychology, Sari Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sari, Iran)
Seyed Mohammad Baghbanian ³ (Associated Professor, Department of Medical Sciences, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, , Iran)

Received: 2021-05-04 Accepted : 2021-10-27 Published : 2021-10-23

Keywords: 'cognitive avoidance', 'alexithymia', 'cognitive behavioral stress management',

Abstract :

Introduction: The aim of this study was to compare drug therapy and cognitive-behavioral management of stress on reducing cognitive avoidance and alexithymia (as two inefficient coping styles against stress) in patients with tension headaches. Method: In this clinical trial study, 40 people with tension headache in Sari city were divided into four groups of 10 by convenience sampling. The first group received only cognitive-behavioral stress management, the second group received only medication, the third group received the two treatments together, and the fourth group received no treatment. They completed cognitive avoidance and alexithymia questionnaires before and after the intervention. Results: The results were analyzed by SPSS software and nonparametric tests. The results showed that the first group (stress management) and the third group (stress management and medication) had the highest rank in reducing cognitive avoidance and emotional distress during Kruskal-Wallis test. The second group (drug therapy) and the fourth group (without treatment) had the lowest rank. According to Mann-Whitney test, the difference between the scores of the two groups at the top of the table and the groups at the bottom of the table is significant. Conclusion: The presence of stress management in the top groups of the table shows its positive effect on reducing cognitive avoidance and emotional dysphoria. This result is important for psychologists because the method of cognitive-behavioral stress management can correct some inefficient coping styles against stress and through it to treat tension headaches.

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