Effect of limited-term schema therapy intervention program on panic disorder symptoms

Panic Disorder (PD) is a mental health problem that is very common in society, disrupts people's social and work lives, and often comorbid with other psychiatric disorders. Schema Therapy (ST) was developed as an integrated therapy model to treat mental disorders that are considered difficult to treat. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of a limited-term Schema Therapy intervention (SŞTM) program on PD symptoms. In the quasi-experimental research, 12 sessions of SŞTM were applied to 13 participants diagnosed with PD between the ages of 18-45. Young Schema Scale Short Form 3 (YŞS-KF3 (YSQ)) and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 (DSM-5) Panic Disorder Scale (DPDS) were used as data instruments. The participants were administered a pre-test (PT) before SŞTM, a post-test (ST) after SŞTM, and a follow-up test (IT) six months later. In the analyses, Friedman Test, Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test were used for the difference between measurements, and Spearman correlation test was used to determine the relationship between DPDS and YSQ subscales. There was a decrease in PD severity scores of the patients after SŞTM compared to before SŞTM (p=0.001). After SŞTM in patients diagnosed with PD, there was a decrease in schema scores in Failure (p=0.033), Pessimism (p<0.001), Social Isolation-Distrust (p=0.014), Approval Seeking (p=0.037), Self-Sacrifice (p=0.043) and Abandonment (p=0.015). These results continued at the six-month follow-up evaluation. These results suggest that SŞTM may be an alternative intervention option for PD patients