Abstract

The presence of a child with ADHD reduces the distress tolerance and increases anxiety in mothers. This study was done to determining the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy. Based on mindfulness on distress tolerance and anxiety in the mothers of children with ADHD. The research method was semi-experimental with a pre-test, post-test design and a control group with a follow-up period, which was carried out on mothers of children with ADHD in Kermanshah city, Iran in 2021. In this study, 30 mothers were included as convenience sampling and then were randomly replaced in two experimental and control groups. Simons and Gaher anxiety scale and Beck depression scale were used. The experimental group received CBT during 8 two-hour sessions (one session per week). Data were analyzed through variance analysis. The findings showed that there was a significant difference between two experimental and control groups in the post-test in the variables of distress tolerance and anxiety (P=0.001). Moreover, the results were stable during the follow-up period (P<0.05). According to the results, the application of cognitive behavioral therapy based on mindfulness can help to increase the distress tolerance and reduce anxiety in mothers of children with ADHD.

Keywords: ADHD; Anxiety; Cognitive behavioral therapy; Distress tolerance