The effect of therapeutic touch and music listening on sleep quality, menopausal symptoms and quality of life in menopausal women

Aim: It was conducted to examine the effects of therapeutic touch and music listening on sleep quality, menopausal symptoms and quality of life in menopausal women. Material and Method: The research was carried out in an experimental model with a pre-test and post-test control group. The study was completed with a total 108 menopausal women in the therapeutic touch (TT), music listening and control groups. Data were collected using the Participant Identification Form, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Menopausal Symptoms Rating Scale (MRS), and Menopause-Specific Quality of Life Scale (MENQOL). Therapeutic touch was applied to the TT group once a week for four weeks, and the music listening group was asked to listen to music for 30 minutes before bedtime every day for four weeks. Post-test data were collected one month after the interventions were completed. Chi-Square, Fisher's Exact Test, one-way ANOVA, Paired-Sample T test, Cohen's d and Eta Square were used to analyze the data. Results: In the comparison between groups; It was determined that there was a significant difference in the post-test scores of PSQI, MRS and MENQOL originating from the control group (p<0.05). In the pre-test and post-test comparison of the women in the TT and music listening groups; It was determined that there was a significant decrease in the mean scores of PSQI, MSDS and MENQOL (p<0.05). Conclusion: It has been determined that therapeutic touch and listening to music increase sleep and quality of life and reduce menopausal symptoms, but the positive effect of TT is more than music listening.