Short-term group therapy for patients with chronic fatigue syndrome
Abstract
BACKGROUND: This study presents experiences of focused short-term group therapy for patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). METHODS: Fourteen women diagnosed as CFS patients were randomly placed into two groups. The control group received group therapy 5 months after the first group. The project consisted of 10 group sessions of 1.5 h per week. Sense of coherence (SOC) was used for measuring coping resources, and self-rating scales of quality of life and of fatigue were compared before and after group therapy. RESULTS: The most valuable aspect was the sharing of experiences. More than half of the patients also felt that the sessions had improved psychological well-being through adjustment of ambitions and improved coping with symptoms. CONCLUSION: The study encourages further research. If group therapy is chosen as treatment for these patients, a longer period is recommended. A possible alternative is individualized short-term therapy adapted to each patient's needs, problems and circumstances.
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Acceptance is associated with better mental health-related quality of life (MQoL) in chronic illnesses including CFS.
“cross-sectional studies indicate that acceptance plays a role in adjustment to chronic illnesses, amongst which CFS and that acceptance has been found to be associated with a better mental health-related quality of life (MQoL) [17, 27, 29-31].”
From Cognitive behavior therapy in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome: The role of illness acceptance and neuroticism. (2013) · cites this paper as [29]
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- Authors
- Söderberg, S., & Evengård, B.
- ORCID
- Evengård, Birgitta
- Venue
- Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics
- Publisher
- S. Karger AG
- Published
- 2001
- Volume
- 70
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 108-111
- ISSN
- 0033-3190 (ISSN-L)
- 1423-0348
- OpenAlex
- W2014678745
- Cited by
- 32
- References
- 13
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 1.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Research
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer survivorship and care
- Keywords
- chronic fatigue syndrome, short-term group therapy, sense of coherence, coping resources, quality of life, fatigue, psychological well-being, women, experience sharing, treatment duration
- MeSH terms
- Adaptation, Psychological, Adult, Female, Humans, Middle Aged, Psychotherapy, Group, Quality of Life, Surveys and Questionnaires, Time Factors, Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic
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