Investigating the Effect of Benson’s Relaxation Technique on Anxiety Before Cesarean Section of Primiparous Pregnant Mothers

Anxiety is a common problem in caesarean section patients that can have adverse consequences. Benson relaxation can be useful as a complementary medicine method to reduce anxiety. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of Benson's relaxation on the anxiety level of primiparous pregnant women applying for cesarean section.

This semi-experimental interventional study was conducted among 132 primiparous pregnant women who had beeb referred to the Shahada Qain Medical Training Center for elective cesarean section in 2021. The participants in the study were selected by available sampling method and were randomly divided into two intervention and control groups. In the intervention group, the samples were given relaxation training through headphones. The Spielberger questionnaire was used to determine anxiety. Data were analyzed using SPSS software (version 16) and paired t-test, independent t-test and chi-square . The significance level of P<0.05 was considered.

Before the intervention, there was no significant difference between the demographic and background variables, the mean variables, overt, hidden, and total anxiety in the two groups (P>0.05). After the intervention, the comparison of the two groups showed that the mean scores of overt, hidden and total anxiety in the intervention group significantly decreased compared to the control group (P<0.05).

Despite the reduction of anxiety in the intervention group, the results indicated that the total and obvious anxiety in the control group also decreased significantly after the intervention. It seems that factors other than Benson's relaxation technique in this research, such as studying mothers, participating in pregnancy classes have been able to reduce anxiety among the research samples.