Examination of the Relationship Between Alexithymia and Satisfaction with Life in Patients with Epilepsy: A Cross-sectional Study

Objective: Patients with epilepsy (PWE) may experience emotional difficulties and distress if they cannot cope consistently with the emotional and physical challenges of having a seizure.This study was conducted to examine the relationship between alexithymia and life satisfaction in PWE.Methods: This study was conducted with 207 PWE in a hospital in eastern Trkiye.Data were collected using the "Individual information forms", "Toronto Alexithymia Scale", and "Satisfaction with Life Scale".Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, correlation, and regression analyses, and post-hoc LSD analyses were employed for data evaluation.Results: In the present study, the alexithymia total mean score of the PWE was 58.019.07, the total mean score of "difficulty identifying feelings" was 19.845.82, the total mean score of "difficulty describing feelings" was 14.423.30,and the total mean score of "externally oriented thinking" was 23.752.88.The total mean satisfaction with life score was 13.824.23.A significant negative correlation was found between total alexithymia and life satisfaction scores of PWE, who participated in the study (F=11.87;p<0.05).Conclusion: It was found that PWE had high alexithymia levels and lower life satisfaction levels.As the total alexithymia score increased, the total life satisfaction score decreased.