The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy on Sexual Desire and Sexual Arousal of Women with Drug Abuse

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on sexual desire and sexual arousal in women with drug abuse. Method: This present study is a quasi-experimental with pretest-posttest and follow up design with a control group. The statistical population consisted of all women with drug abuse referred to addiction treatment centers for women in Tehran in 2015. Among which, 28 individuals were selected by convenience sampling method and were randomly placed into experimental (n=14) and control (n=14) groups. The instruments used in this study included the demographic questionnaire, the femaleschr('39') sexual function inventory, and the women’s sexual interest diagnostic interview. The mindfulness-based cognitive therapy package was taught to the experimental group for one month in eight 90-minute sessions (twice a week). Data were analyzed using analysis of variance with repeated measures. Results: The results showed that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy had significant effects on improving sexual desire and sexual arousal in women with drug abuse and these effects were stable in the follow-up phase. Conclusion: It seems that mindfulness along with other interventions such as medication and medical interventions can be effective in improving sexual desire and arousal in women with drug abuse.