Clinical Research Directory

Effect of Emotional Freedom Techniques on Fatigue, Hopelessness, and Perceived Stigma in Women With Unsuccessful IVF Experience

In this study, it is planned to provide nursing care to women with an experience of unsuccessful IVF treatment by combining Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) with the principles developed in line with the philosophy of Levine's Conservation Model. Women with an experience of unsuccessful IVF treatment will be evaluated according to the three conservation principles, and these principles will form the basis of the setup statements used in the EFT sessions. When evaluated within the scope of the model, infertility disrupts the individual's energy conservation, leading to increased fatigue; impairs personal integrity, causing feelings of hopelessness; and threatens social integrity, resulting in feelings of stigma and isolation. In line with the integrity principles emphasized in Levine's model, it is considered that EFT may reduce fatigue by regulating the disrupted energy balance, alleviate levels of hopelessness by supporting personal integrity, and reduce the effects of infertility-related stigma by strengthening social integrity. In this context, this study will be conducted to examine the effects of Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), structured in accordance with Levine's Conservation Model, on levels of fatigue, hopelessness, and perceived stigma in women with an experience of unsuccessful IVF treatment. This study will be conducted with 80 women who have experienced unsuccessful IVF treatment and meet the inclusion criteria of the study, including 40 women in the experimental group and 40 women in the control group, at Atatürk University Research Hospital In Vitro Fertilization Center. In the study, pre-test data of women in the experimental and control groups assigned through randomization will be collected using the Participant Information Form, the Visual Analog Scale for Fatigue, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, and the Infertility Stigma Scale. EFT structured in line with Levine's Conservation Model will be applied to the women in the experimental group, while no intervention will be applied to the control group. Post-test data will be collected from women in both the experimental and control groups after the completion of the 4-week EFT sessions. In order to test the effectiveness of EFT over time, repeated measurements will be conducted one month after the last application for each participant, and women in the experimental and control groups will complete the Visual Analog Scale for Fatigue, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, and the Infertility Stigma Scale again. The data of the experimental and control groups, coded as X and Y, will be transferred to a computer environment by an independent statistician, and the data will be analyzed and the findings will be reported.

Effect of Emotional Freedom Technique on Nursing Students Exam Anxiety

Aim: This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) on the state exam anxiety levels of nursing students. Background: Exam anxiety is a common problem among nursing students. EFT has emerged as a complementary method to reduce exam anxiety. However, experimental studies on this subject are limited in the literature. Design: Randomized controlled trial design. Methods: This study was carried out with second-year students enrolled in the Surgical Nursing course at the Faculty of Nursing of a state university. Participants were assigned to intervention and control groups using simple random sampling. One hour before the exam, all students were present in the exam hall. While the intervention group received EFT, the control group was given free time. Data were collected using the State Test Anxiety Scale (STAS) and the Subjective Units of Distress Scale (SUD). Descriptive statistics, normality tests (Shapiro-Wilk/Kolmogorov-Smirnov), independent and paired samples t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, Wilcoxon test, and two-way mixed ANOVA were used for data analysis. The significance level was set at p\<0.05. Outcomes: There were no significant differences between the groups in the pre-test STAS total and subscale scores or SUD scores. However, post-test results revealed statistically significant differences between the intervention and control groups in all measurements (p\<0.05), with effect sizes ranging from medium to large. The time and group-time interaction effects for STAS total and subscale scores and SUD scores were also significant (p\<0.05), and the effect size of the change over time was determined to be large (η² \> 0.14). Conclusion: This study demonstrated that EFT is effective in reducing exam anxiety among nursing students. EFT should be considered a complementary intervention in managing exam anxiety. It is recommended that EFT be integrated into the support services provided to students prior to examinations.

Emotional Freedom Techniques and Virtual Reality Application for Fear of Childbirth

Fear of labour in primiparous pregnant women is an important factor that directly affects the mother-infant relationship and the mental health of the mother. In this process, it is common for expectant mothers to experience feelings of uncertainty and anxiety about labour. Such intense fear of birth may weaken maternal attachment and make it difficult for her to establish a healthy emotional relationship with her baby. In addition, this fear may negatively affect the mother's mental well-being and increase the risk of depression and anxiety. In this context, emotional liberation techniques (EFT) and virtual reality (VR) applications stand out as effective nonpharmacological methods used to reduce fear of childbirth in primiparous pregnant women. EFT is a technique that provides relaxation by touching the energy meridians that help the person to regulate negative emotions and cope with stress. SG, on the other hand, allows expectant mothers to interact with simulations similar to the real world in a virtual environment, providing therapeutic benefits through distraction, stress reduction and cognitive restructuring, allowing them to manage their fears about birth and enter the process more prepared. The use of SLT and SG, especially for primiparous pregnant women, can alleviate these women's anxiety about childbirth and enable them to approach the process in a safer and more conscious manner. Thus, it may also help to reduce the negative effects on the mother's postnatal attachment and mental health. This study aims to examine the effects of SLT and SG practices on fear of childbirth, attachment and mental well-being, and to reveal the effects of these two methods on primiparous pregnant women. In this context, this study will fill the gap in the literature by providing a new perspective in clinical practice and antenatal education programmes and will make important contributions to increase antenatal attachment and mental well-being in primiparous pregnancy.

The Effect of Emotional FreedomTechnique on Postoperative Pain, Pain Belief and Anxiety in Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Planned Patients

When the literature is examined, there is almost no application of EFT on surgical patients. In a quasi-experimental study conducted by Kalroozi et al. (2022) with 70 women who underwent breast cancer surgery and received complementary treatment, the effect of EFT on sleep quality and happiness level was investigated. Six sessions of EFT were applied to the control group. A statistically significant difference was found between the intervention and control groups in sleep quality and happiness scores before and after the intervention. In a randomised controlled study conducted by Menevşe et al. (2024) examining the effect of EFT applied to patients before laparoscopic cholecystectomy on surgical fear and anxiety, 56 patients were included in the control and 56 patients in the intervention group. While routine care and treatment practices were applied to the control group, EFT was applied to the intervention group. EFT application was continued for three rounds and approximately 25-30 minutes. As a result of the study, it was found that EFT was useful in clinical practice in the preoperative period and reduced surgical anxiety and surgical fear. In a quasi-experimental study involving 108 people in which the effects of EFT and music on anxiety and vital signs were examined before lumbar disc herniation surgery, it was found that both music and EFT reduced anxiety and regulated vital signs before surgery, and EFT was more effective than music in regulating anxiety and respiratory rate. In previous studies, pain, pain belief and anxiety in surgical patients have not been examined together. It is thought that the study will have a positive effect on the patient outcomes (anxiety, pain, pain belief) of patients undergoing CABG, thus increasing the holistic approach in the care of patients and having a positive effect on the quality of life of individuals.