Effect of Emotional Freedom Techniques on Fatigue, Hopelessness, and Perceived Stigma in Women With Unsuccessful IVF Experience

The Effect of Emotional Freedom Techniques Based on Levine's Conservation Model on Fatigue, Hopelessness, and Perceived Stigma in Women With Unsuccessful IVF Experience: A Randomized Controlled Trial

In this study, it is planned to provide nursing care to women with an experience of unsuccessful IVF treatment by combining Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) with the principles developed in line with the philosophy of Levine's Conservation Model. Women with an experience of unsuccessful IVF treatment will be evaluated according to the three conservation principles, and these principles will form the basis of the setup statements used in the EFT sessions. When evaluated within the scope of the model, infertility disrupts the individual's energy conservation, leading to increased fatigue; impairs personal integrity, causing feelings of hopelessness; and threatens social integrity, resulting in feelings of stigma and isolation. In line with the integrity principles emphasized in Levine's model, it is considered that EFT may reduce fatigue by regulating the disrupted energy balance, alleviate levels of hopelessness by supporting personal integrity, and reduce the effects of infertility-related stigma by strengthening social integrity.

In this context, this study will be conducted to examine the effects of Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT), structured in accordance with Levine's Conservation Model, on levels of fatigue, hopelessness, and perceived stigma in women with an experience of unsuccessful IVF treatment. This study will be conducted with 80 women who have experienced unsuccessful IVF treatment and meet the inclusion criteria of the study, including 40 women in the experimental group and 40 women in the control group, at Atatürk University Research Hospital In Vitro Fertilization Center. In the study, pre-test data of women in the experimental and control groups assigned through randomization will be collected using the Participant Information Form, the Visual Analog Scale for Fatigue, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, and the Infertility Stigma Scale. EFT structured in line with Levine's Conservation Model will be applied to the women in the experimental group, while no intervention will be applied to the control group. Post-test data will be collected from women in both the experimental and control groups after the completion of the 4-week EFT sessions. In order to test the effectiveness of EFT over time, repeated measurements will be conducted one month after the last application for each participant, and women in the experimental and control groups will complete the Visual Analog Scale for Fatigue, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, and the Infertility Stigma Scale again. The data of the experimental and control groups, coded as X and Y, will be transferred to a computer environment by an independent statistician, and the data will be analyzed and the findings will be reported.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Women aged between 18 and 45 years,
• Having experienced at least one unsuccessful IVF treatment,
• Able to read and write in Turkish,
• Having no hearing or visual impairment,
• Having no diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder,
• Not using any complementary and alternative therapy methods (such as Reiki, hypnofertility, or acupressure),
• Scoring 4 or higher on the Beck Hopelessness Scale,
• Residing in the province of Erzurum,
• Willing to participate in the study voluntarily.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Receiving any assisted reproductive treatment during the study period,
• Developing a healthy pregnancy after enrollment in the study,
• Being diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder after the start of the study,
• Initiating the use of any complementary and alternative therapy methods during the study period,
• Women who request to withdraw from the study will be excluded from the sample.