Self-compassion and pain experience in migraine patients

Purpose: The aim of this study was to compare self-compassion levels between migraine patients and healthy controls and to evaluate the relationship of self-compassion with pain perception, migraine-related functional disability, depression and anxiety symptoms. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study conducted in Hatay included 68 adults diagnosed with migraine according to ICHD-3 criteria and 58 healthy controls. Self-compassion was measured with Self-Compassion Scale (SCS), pain intensity with Numeric Rating Scale (NRS), depression with Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), anxiety with Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and functional disability with Migraine Disability Assessment Scale (MIDAS). Results: Self-compassion levels were similar between migraine patients (mean 2.65±0.42) and healthy controls (mean 2.64±0.57), with a negligible effect size (Cohen's d=0.023). Depression and anxiety levels were notably elevated in migraine patients: 48.5% of migraine patients were in moderate-to-severe depression categories compared to 25.8% of controls, and no migraine patient reported minimal anxiety whereas 20.7% of controls did. In the migraine group, self-compassion showed a strong negative correlation with depression (r=-0.501) and moderate negative correlation with anxiety (r=-0.295), while these correlations were weaker and non-significant in controls. Self-compassion was highest in the moderate pain group (2.80±0.43), compared to mild (2.41±0.23) and severe (2.52±0.37) pain groups. Conclusion: Migraine patients have similar self-compassion levels to healthy individuals. However, self-compassion is strongly associated with psychological comorbidity in migraine patients. Self-compassion-based interventions may be beneficial for managing depression and anxiety in this population.