EFFECT OF COGNITIVE RESTRUCTURING ON BODY IMAGE DISTURBANCE AMONG BURN SURVIVORS

ABSTRACTBackground: Burn injuries often lead to long-term psychological challenges, including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder due to visible scarring and disfigurement. Effective psychological strategies are vital to improve psychological well-being.Objectives: This study evaluates the effect of cognitive restructuring techniques on reducing body image disturbance among burn survivors compared to conventional therapy.Materials and methods: A true experimental study was conducted with 30 participants who were adults with burn injuries. They were split into two groups, the control and experimental groups’ participants. The study was carried out for 36 sessions, and the participants in the experimental group received cognitive restructuring, followed by conventional therapy for the control group. Both the groups were assessed using the satisfaction with appearance scale. Statistical analysis was done to conclude the results of the pre- and post-tests within and between groups.Results: the control group had a mean score of 55.67 in the pre-test and 57.00 in the post-test, showing a statistically significant improvement (P=0.014*). The experimental group had a mean score of 56.40 in the pre-test and 61.20 in the post-test, showing a statistically significant improvement (P=0.000*). The p-value of 0.004 is less than 0.01 and is highly significant at the 1% level, and hence we can say that there is a high significant difference in post-test level SWA scores between the control and experimental groups.Conclusion: The study concluded that cognitive restructuring is an effective intervention for reducing body image disturbances in burn survivors, demonstrating a notable improvement in their satisfaction with appearance.