The Effect of Self-Compassion Training on Sexual Life Quality and Marital Adjustment in Women With Sexual Dysfunction

Condition(s) studied

Investigational drug(s) / intervention(s)

Sexual Dysfunction in the Postpartum Period: The experimental group will receive mindfulness-based self-compassion training. The control group will not receive any intervention.

Study summary

Sexual function in the postpartum period, the gateway to newness and change, can be affected by problems such as caring for a new baby, breastfeeding, fatigue, anxiety about pain during sexual intercourse, postpartum depression, pelvic floor dysfunction, urinary symptoms and body image. Changes in sexual function are common in the postpartum period. Pregnancy and childbirth is a period in a woman's life that causes hormonal and physical changes and has an impact on the parents' quality of life.

Postpartum sexual function is an important issue for couples, as the first sexual intercourse after childbirth is an important step for couples to establish intimate relationships. Many factors affect postpartum sexual dysfunction, including number of births, breastfeeding, mode of delivery, episiotomy, physical and psychological dysfunction, including fatigue and postpartum depression. Without adequate information and counseling on sexual life by health professionals in the postpartum period, most women may remain silent about their sexual concerns and anxieties, preferring instead to share their problems with friends. More holistic and multidisciplinary approaches are needed to treat female sexual dysfunctions. The use of mindfulness-based therapies has recently become widespread in the treatment of women diagnosed with sexual dysfunction.Thanks to mindfulness practices, it has been observed that women perceive stimuli better and are able to notice clues that they did not notice before. The Compassion Focused Therapy program is one of these practices. It is known to integrate well with existing approaches to therapy and offers some useful ways of reducing sexual problems to provide a coherent rationale for treatment strategies.

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• Arizona Sexual Experiences Scale- Female (ASES-F) — ten weeks
  The female form includes questions investigating sexual drive, psychological arousal, physiological arousal (vaginal lubrication), the capacity to reach orgasm and the feeling of satisfaction after orgasm. Each question in the scale is scored from 1 to 6, and the minimum score that can be obtained from the total score is 5 and the maximum is 30. A total score of 19 and above from the scale, a score of 5 or 6 for any item or a score of 4 for three or more items indicates the presence of sexual dysfunction. While low scores represent that the sexual response is effective, comfortable and satisfying, high scores indicate the presence of sexual dysfunction. The total internal consistency coefficient of the scale is 0.89 and the Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient is 0.90.

Trial sites (1)

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