Effectiveness of Spiritual Therapy on Pain Catastrophizing and Perceived Pain Intensity in Individuals with Migraine

Abstract

This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of spiritual therapy combined with pharmacotherapy in reducing pain catastrophizing and perceived pain intensity among individuals with migraine. This randomized clinical trial employed a pretest–posttest design with a one-month follow-up. The study population comprised patients with migraine attending neurology and psychological counseling centers in Bam, Iran. Forty-four eligible patients were selected through cluster sampling and randomly allocated in equal numbers to an intervention group and a control group, with 22 participants in each group. In addition to routine pharmacotherapy, the intervention group received 10 weekly 90-minute sessions of group-based spiritual therapy, whereas the control group continued routine pharmacotherapy alone. Data were collected at pretest, posttest, and one-month follow-up using the Visual Analog Scale and the Pain Catastrophizing Scale. The data were analyzed in SPSS version 20 using t-tests, chi-square tests, mixed repeated-measures analysis of variance, and the least significant difference post hoc test. No statistically significant between-group differences in pain catastrophizing or perceived pain intensity were found at pretest. Repeated-measures analysis demonstrated significant group-by-time interaction effects for both outcomes. Pain catastrophizing scores in the intervention group decreased significantly at posttest and follow-up compared with pretest and the control group (p = 0.001). Perceived pain intensity also decreased significantly at posttest and follow-up (p < 0.001). Although both outcomes showed a slight increase at follow-up compared with posttest, their scores remained significantly lower than the corresponding pretest scores. No significant changes were observed in the control group throughout the study. The intervention produced large effect sizes for pain catastrophizing (0.911) and perceived pain intensity (0.659). Group-based spiritual therapy administered alongside pharmacotherapy may effectively reduce pain catastrophizing and perceived pain intensity among individuals with migraine in the short term. Nevertheless, studies with larger samples and longer follow-up periods are required to establish the stability and durability of these therapeutic effects.