Comparison of the Effects of Massage Therapy and Guided Imagery on Anxiety of Nulliparous Women during Pregnancy

摘要

Pregnant women are anxious about birth, the health of the fetus, and changes in their appearance during pregnancy. This study aimed to compare the effects of massage therapy and guided imagery on the anxiety of nulliparous women during pregnancy. This clinical trial recruited 75 nulliparous pregnant women presenting to health centers in Zahedan who were placed in three groups of Massage Therapy, Guided Imagery, and Control. Data collection tool was the Pregnancy-related Anxiety Questionnaire - revised. Questionnaires were completed by groups before and six weeks after the intervention. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics in SPSS software. The mean anxiety scores were significantly different among the three groups after the intervention (P0.000). In addition, post-hoc test demonstrated significant differences between the control and massage therapy groups, and control and guided imagery groups (P0.000), but there was no significant relationship betweenmassage therapy and guided imagery groups (p=0.928). Although no significant relationship was found between education level and maternal anxiety, people with higher education applied more for the guided imagery. The use of these techniques in pregnancy reduced anxiety during pregnancy. However, we did not observe a significant difference between the two methods while the use of massage techniques was more acceptable to all nulliparous women and the use of guided imagery techniques was more welcomed by subjects with higher education. Hence it is recommended that level of education be considered for choosing the method for reducing anxiety in pregnant mothers.