Comparison of the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Compassion-Focused Therapy on Quality of Life and Health-Promoting Behaviors of Mothers with Gestational Diabetes

Introduction: Gestational diabetes is the most common metabolic complication of pregnancy, affecting 10%-15% of all pregnancies, depending on diagnostic criteria. This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy and compassion-focused therapy on the quality of life and health-promoting behaviors of mothers with gestational diabetes. Method: The research method was a quasi-experimental study with pre-test, post-test, and follow up. The statistical population of this study was all pregnant women referred to Milad Hospital in Tehran in 2019. 45 participants were randomly selected and placed in three groups of acceptance and commitment therapy, compassion-focused therapy, and control group. The follow-up phase was performed on all three groups three months after the post-test. The research tools included the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale and the Walker Health-Promoting Lifestyle Questionnaire. The data were analyzed using univariate and multivariate covariance analysis by spss.22. Result: The results showed that acceptance and commitment therapy and compassion-focused therapy had a significant effect on improving the quality of life and health-promoting behaviors in women with gestational diabetes (P 0.001). Conclusion: It can be concluded that acceptance and commitment therapy has a greater impact on the quality of life and health-promoting behaviors of women with gestational diabetes than compassion-focused therapy. It encourages individuals to communicate their experiences fully and without resistance as they move towards their worthy goals and to accept them without judgment.