The Effect of Hypnotherapy on Postpartum Pain and Depression in Women with Post Caesarean Delivery

Mahandaru, Araafi Hariza
Respati, Supriyadi Hari
Sulistyowati, Sri
Laqif, Abdurahman
Prasetya, Hanung

Indonesian Journal of Medicine
Vol. 6 No. 2 (2021)

Background: Postoperative pain is one of the most common problems in women after cesarean section. Caesarean section is also associated with post-partum depression. Hypno­therapy is one of the complementary therapy options that are effective and efficient in reducing pain symptoms and post-partum depression. This study aimed to analyze the effect of hypnotherapy on the level of pain and post-partum depression in post-cesarean section patients.Subjects and Method: This was an expe­rimental single-blind randomized controlled trial with a post-test group design, which was conducted from January to April 2021, at the Dr. Moewardi and Universitas Sebelas Maret Hospitals, Surakarta. A sample of 80 patients with cesarean section was divided into two groups, namely 40 pati­ents in the hypno­therapy group and 40 patients in the control group. The indepen­dent variable was hypno­therapy. The depen­dent variables were pain and depression. Hypnotherapy was carried out by self-hypnosis using audio recordings of hypnotherapy in 2 sessions before and after the cesarean section procedure. The pain was measured by the Numeric Rating Scale. Post-partum depression was measured by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. The data were analyzed by an independent t-test.Results: Post-cesarean section pain in the group of hypnotherapy (Mean= 4.58; SD= 1.20) was lower than without hypnotherapy (Mean= 6.48; SD= 1.01), and it was statis­tically significant (p<0.001). Postpartum de-pression in the group of hypnothera­py (Mean= 6.08; SD= 1.60) was lower than non-hypnotherapy group (Mean= 8.48; SD= 3.78), and it was statis­tically significant (p <0.001).Conclusion: Hypnotherapy has a significant effect on reducing pain and post-partum depression in post-cesarean section patients.Keywords: Hypnotherapy, pain levels, post-partum depression, post-cesarean sectionCorrespondence: Araafi Hariza Mahandaru. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medi­cine, Universitas Sebelas Maret/ Dr. Moe­wardi Hospital, Surakarta, Jl. Kolonel Sutar­to, Jebres, Surakarta 57126, Central Java. Email: [e-mail] Journal of Medicine (2021), 06(02): 194-205https://doi.org/10.26911/theijmed.2021.06.02.08