Association between resilience and self-compassion in patients with fibromyalgia

Abstract

Fibromyalgia is a chronic, non-inflammatory syndrome characterized by diffuse musculoskeletal pain and tender points in some body areas. Thus, studies based on fibromyalgia patients' experience are critical, as they end up having a loss in their personal relationships over time, personal chores, self-esteem, security, and motivation to life. The general objective of this study is to investigate the association between resilience and self-compassion in patients with Fibromyalgia. The present research has a quantitative, descriptive, and transversal design. This study will consist of Fibromyalgia patients from the Metropolitan Region of Rio Grande do Sul/Brazil. The sample was composed of 30 participants, over 25 years old, of both sexes, selected for convenience. These participants were invited based on contacts acquired in a social network of Fibromyalgia patients and care services for patients with the syndrome. The instruments used in data collection, all self-reported, were: Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ), the Resilience Scale, and the Self-Compassion Scale. Descriptive analyzes were performed, showing the absolute value, the mean, and standard deviation. Association analyzes were also performed using the Spearman test and Linear Regression tests, with a significance level ≤0.05. There was no significant difference between resilience and self-compassion over the study period. The participants presented the resilience variable with values that were found in the expected average. The present study showed a moderate correlation between resilience and self-compassion. The decrease in the impact of fibromyalgia is associated with less use of the problem-solving strategy and an increase in the Mindfulness strategy. Mindfulness is the most apparent component of self-compassion in the study. Therefore, it is possible to identify in this research the low level of the variable resilience in patients with the syndrome.