Directed Imagery Technique Applied to Patients Undergoing Lumbar Disc Herniation Surgery

The Effect of Directed Imagery Technique Applied to Patients Who Have Had Lumbar Disc Herniation Surgery on Patients' Pain, Anxiety, and Sleep Levels: A Randomized Controlled Study

The Directed Imagery technique (YIT) is a set of stories that people create by first giving relaxation exercises and then visualizing the symbols given by the practitioner. Guided imagery is based on the understanding that the body and mind are interconnected and that the mind can affect the body. In directed imagery, the person's thoughts and imagination are focused and directed to a specific goal by the practitioner, usually through a sound recording. The directed imagery technique can be effective in solving problems such as pain, stress, fatigue, and anxiety in nursing care.

1. Patients in the control group; Nursing care will be applied according to the routine care protocol of the clinic where the research was conducted.
2. Patients in the experimental group; In addition to the nursing care given according to the routine care protocol of the clinic where the research was conducted, the "imagery method" will be applied four times in total, once before the operation, once on the 1st day, 2nd day and 3rd day after the operation. It will be ensured that the patients to be imaged are in the supine or semifawler position in a comfortable way and listen to the audio recording with headphones.

Before the application, the patient will be told to listen to the audio recording with headphones at the most convenient time of the day for him, in an environment where he will not be disturbed by others, by putting his phone in airplane mode, after giving advance notice to avoid disturbing family members. Headphones will be provided for each patient by the researcher. In the first meeting, the voice recordings will be transferred to the phones of the individuals via the phone in the Neurosurgery Service. Communication with the patient will be provided in accordance with the pandemic rules. In the preoperative period, "Descriptive Information Form", "Operation-Specific Anxiety Scale", "Richard-Campbell Sleep Scale", "Visual Analog Scale (VAS)", "State Anxiety Scale" will be applied to the experimental and control groups before imagery is performed. After the interventions applied to the experimental group are completed, the scales will be re-administered to the individuals in the experimental and control groups.

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Those who will undergo lumbar disc hernia surgery
2. Compliant with ASA 1 and 2 classification
3. Preoperative hospitalizations
4. Patients without cognitive clouding
5. Patients who can speak Turkish
6. Patients without hearing and vision problems will be included in the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Those over the age of eighty or under the age of 18
2. Having a psychiatric disease and using medication
3. Having trouble sleeping and taking medication
4. Those who are classified as ASA 3 and above,
5. Those who have laparoscopic surgery,
6. Those with chronic pain, alcohol, drug and substance addiction,
7. Oncological cases,
8. Those with hearing, vision, speech and cognitive dysfunction,
9. Those who do not speak Turkish,
10. People with high anxiety who use anxiolytics
11. Patients who do not accept the procedure will not be included in the study.