EFFICACY OF COGNITIVE BEHAVIOR THERAPY (CBT) IN MANAGING CHRONIC PAIN (CP) IN PATIENTS OF FIBROMYALGIA

Abstract

Objective: Pain is a crucial part of biological mechanism that points out the disruption or impairment in body. It evades further harm by avoiding overuse of the suffering area, and finally promotes physiological homeostasis. Fibromyalgia, a form of chronic pain, does not give signals of damage to the body rather it becomes a potential hazard to the physical and psychological well-being of the person. There is an increased need for management tactics to chronic pain, other than chronic medical illnesses. The present study was aimed to find out the efficacy of CBT in managing chronic pain in patients of fibromyalgia. Method: A total number of 45 participants were approached form different government and private hospitals of Lahore. Initially the participants were assessed on pain intensity and functioning on daily routine activities. After screening total ten participants were further recruited for second phase of this study. The second phase of this study was comprised of two groups; one is control group which received the treatment as usual and the second group was treatment group which received the cognitive behavior therapy to reduce their pain intensity. All the 10 participants were women with the age range of 20-40 years (M=34.60, SD=3.84). Total 9 sessions of CBT with the average of 45 minutes were conducted following the treatment protocol given by Craig and Austin. Results: The results showed that two group (treatment and control) were significantly differ on their pre-post pain ratings and their pre-post daily routine functioning. Hence it can be concluded that CBT based treatment protocol works efficiently in reducing pain in patients. ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry, Vol. 24 (1) January, 2023; 1-8.