The efficacy of training of stress-coping strategies on marital satisfaction of spouses of veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder

INTRODUCTION: Marital satisfaction is an important factor in people’s quality of life. It has become increasingly crucial in healthcare and health research and is dependent on coping styles of people exposed to traumatic events. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of coping-style training on increasing the marital satisfaction of wives of veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). METHODS: In this experimental study, 60 subjects were selected from the spouses of veterans with PTSD. The veterans were chosen from the Veterans Foundation of Northern Khorasan Province (Iran) in 2014. In this study, we used the Enrich questionnaire to determine the marital satisfaction of the aforementioned spouses. Subjects were assigned randomly to study and control groups. We used the training package of a Practical Guide for Stress Management according to cognitive behavioral approaches. Cognitive-behavioral group therapy was administered in 90-minute sessions over a 12-week period. We used the paired-samples t-test and ANCOVA to determine the effect of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) between the two groups. RESULTS: The mean and the standard deviation of age in the study and control groups were 36.8 ± 4.33 years and 35.3 ± 4.7 years, respectively. According to p < 0.005, a significant difference was observed between the subjects in the two groups. Therefore, treatment with cognitive behavioral group therapy showed evidence of clinical improvements in marital satisfaction of the study group. CONCLUSION: The results of our study showed that methods of coping with stress based on CBT are effective in increasing the marital satisfaction of wives of veterans with PTSD.