The relationship of posttraumatic growth with psychosocial adjustment in multiple sclerosis patients

This descriptive study was conducted to examine the relationship of posttraumatic growth with psychosocial adjustment in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients. The sample of the study consisted of 100 patients diagnosed with MS who applied to the Neurology Department of a university hospital for treatment. The data were collected using Introductory Information Form, 'Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale-Self Report (PAIS-SR)' to determine the psychosocial adjustment of patients, and 'Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI)' to determine their posttraumatic growth. The data of the study were analyzed using percentage, mean, standard deviation and correlation analysis. The age average of the patients was 33.41±10.74 years, 65% were women, and 51% were single. Average duration of illness of the patients was 6.05±5.79 years. It was determined that 77% of the patients had advanced illness attacks and 66% went through at least one attack within the past year. Among the patients, 65% were unemployed, 49% faced financial troubles due to their illness, and 46% needed someone's support due to their illness. Mean score of the patients was found to be 51.38±19.14 for the PAIS-SR and 3.18±0.79 for the PTGI. When examining the relationship between psychosocial adjustment levels and posttraumatic growth levels of the patients, it was determined that there was significant correlation between total score of the PTGI and total score of the PAIS-SR (p<0.01). It was determined that the MS patients who participated in the study had a bad psychosocial adaptation, whereas their posttraumatic growth was higher than the average. it was seen that as the posttraumatic growth level of patients increased, the psychosocial adaptation level increased.