DOI: 10.36347/sasjm.2023.v09i08.013

Pages: 873-879

Although not completely understood, fibromyalgia is characterized by intense physical complaints with psychiatric factors involved in its etiopathogenesis. The present study aimed to investigate alexithymia, type D personality, and childhood traumas that might accompany fibromyalgia in those patients. The study enrolled 44 healthy controls and 44 patients with fibromyalgia. Sociodemographic and Clinical Data Form, Type D Personality Scale (DS-14), Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS), and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ-28) were used for the purposes of collecting data from all the participants. The group including patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia had significantly higher type D personality traits compared to the control group (p=.015). Furthermore, there was a significant intergroup difference by the TAS scale (p<0.05). CTQ-28 total and emotional, physical neglect, and emotional abuse subscales were higher in the patient group compared to the control group (p<0.05). Upon intragroup comparison of DS-14 subscale and CTQ-28 subscale scores in the patient group, patients with negative affection were significantly more emotionally neglected (p=.009). There was a moderate positive correlation between the CTQ-28 total scores and the TTS total score of patients with fibromyalgia (r=.54, p=.01). Individuals with fibromyalgia have a history of childhood trauma, difficulty in expressing their emotions, and distressed personality structures. Psychological assessment and psychosocial support therapies would prove to be beneficial in the treatment of fibromyalgia, a psychosomatic disease.