effectiveness of solution-focused counseling therapy on pregnancy anxiety and fear of childbirth: a randomized clinical trial

Background & aim: fear of childbirth and pregnancy anxiety may affect the desire for normal delivery. no study has investigated the effectiveness of solution-focused counseling on either pregnancy anxiety or all factors comprising fear of childbirth. we aimed to investigate the effects of solution-focused counseling in reducing pregnancy anxiety and fear of childbirth. methods & materials: this randomized clinical trial study was conducted on 132 nulliparous women in 2019. participants with moderate to a severe fear of childbirth were randomly divided into the intervention and control groups. the intervention group participated in five solution-focused counseling sessions. before and after the intervention, women filled the anxiety scale for pregnancy and the wijma delivery expectancy questionnaire (w-deq). data were analyzed using t-test, paired t-test, and analysis of covariance (ancova). results: the two groups did not differ in terms of demographic and obstetric variables and pregnancy anxiety pre-test scores (p>0.05). the means of the post-test total scores and the means of scores for all five factors of the asp were significantly lower in the intervention group than in the control group (p<0.001). the adjusted means of total scores and the adjusted means of scores for all six factors of the wde-q were significantly lower in the intervention group than the control group (p<0.001). conclusion: the solution-focused counseling reduced pregnancy anxiety and fear of childbirth in women participating in counseling sessions compared to the controls. solution-focused counseling therapy sessions should be held for women with pregnancy anxiety and fear of childbirth.