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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Neurol.

Sec. Headache and Neurogenic Pain

Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fneur.2025.1566423

This article is part of the Research TopicInnovative Approaches to Neuralgia: Mechanisms and Treatment DevelopmentView all 17 articles

Self-esteem and Self-compassion Status of Migraine Patients in Turkey: A Multi-center Study by Turkish Headache Study Group

Provisionally accepted
Basak  Karakurum-GokselBasak Karakurum-Goksel1Ruhsen  OcalRuhsen Ocal2,3*Mert  VanMert Van4Ozlem  CoskunOzlem Coskun5Cihad  KaraaslanCihad Karaaslan5Serap  UclerSerap Ucler6Figen  GokcayFigen Gokcay7Nese  CelebisoyNese Celebisoy7Hadiye  SirinHadiye Sirin7Aysin  Kisabay-AkAysin Kisabay-Ak8Aysegul  Seyma SaritasAysegul Seyma Saritas8Tuba  Cerrahoglu-SirinTuba Cerrahoglu-Sirin9Buse  Rahime Hasirci-BayirBuse Rahime Hasirci-Bayir10Esme  EkizogluEsme Ekizoglu11Elif  Kocasoy-OrhanElif Kocasoy-Orhan11Derya  BayramDerya Bayram12Nermin  TanikNermin Tanik13Sebnem  BicakciSebnem Bicakci14Vesile  OzturkVesile Ozturk15Levent  Ertugrul InanLevent Ertugrul Inan16Kubra  Mehel-MetinKubra Mehel-Metin16Yasemin  ErenYasemin Eren17Babur  DoraBabur Dora18Emel  Oguz-AkarsuEmel Oguz-Akarsu19Necdet  KarliNecdet Karli19Emel  Ur-OzcelikEmel Ur-Ozcelik20Arife  Cimen AtalarArife Cimen Atalar21Rabia  Gokcen Gozubatik-CelikRabia Gokcen Gozubatik-Celik22Belgin  MutluayBelgin Mutluay22Elif  Ilgaz-AydinlarElif Ilgaz-Aydinlar23Pinar  Yalınay-DikmenPinar Yalınay-Dikmen23Cemile  Sencer SemerciogluCemile Sencer Semercioglu16Ufuk  EmreUfuk Emre24Osman  Cagin BuldukogluOsman Cagin Buldukoglu4Busra  ErBusra Er6Bekir  Burak KilbozBekir Burak Kilboz6Seray  IbisSeray Ibis7Sibgetullah  YagizSibgetullah Yagiz25Huzeyfe  KokluHuzeyfe Koklu10İbrahim  Kamaciİbrahim Kamaci11Gulsan  AliyevaGulsan Aliyeva11Basak  Elcin AtesBasak Elcin Ates26Muge  Mercan KaraMuge Mercan Kara15Fatma  Zehra AltuncFatma Zehra Altunc17Ilgin  KayaIlgin Kaya18Cagla  SismanCagla Sisman24
  • 1Başkent University, Ankara, Ankara, Türkiye
  • 2University of Health Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan
  • 3Hamidiye International Faculty of Medicine,University of Health Sciences, Istanbul, Ankara, Türkiye
  • 4Antalya Training and Research Hospital, Antalya, Antalya, Türkiye
  • 5Gazi University, Ankara, Ankara, Türkiye
  • 6Prof. Dr. Cemil Tascioglu City Hospital, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 7Ege University, Bornova, İzmir, Türkiye
  • 8Manisa Celal Bayar University, Manisa, Manisa, Türkiye
  • 9Şişli Hamidiye Etfal Education and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 10Haydarpasa Numune Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 11Istanbul University, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 12Adana City Training and Research Hospital, Ministry of Health (Turkey), Adana, Adana, Türkiye
  • 13Bozok University, Yozgat, Yozgat, Türkiye
  • 14Faculty of Medicine, Cukurova University, Adana, Adana, Türkiye
  • 15Dokuz Eylül University, Alsancak, İzmir, Türkiye
  • 16Ankara Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Ankara, Türkiye
  • 17Dışkapı Yildirim Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Ankara, Türkiye
  • 18Akdeniz University, Antalya, Antalya, Türkiye
  • 19Bursa Uludağ University, Bursa, Bursa, Türkiye
  • 20İstanbul Kanuni Sultan Süleyman Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 21Istanbul Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Training and Research Hospital, Instanbul, Türkiye
  • 22Bakırköy Dr.Sadi Konuk Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 23Istanbul Aydın University, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 24İstanbul Training Research Hospital, İstanbul, Türkiye
  • 25Şişli Etfal Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • 26Çukurova University, Adana, Adana, Türkiye

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Migraine, characterized by recurrent attacks, often necessitates a holistic approach for effective management. Treatment strategies aimed at enhancing self-esteem and self-compassion have been shown to reduce pain intensity in patients with chronic pain. This study aimed to investigate self-esteem and self-compassion in individuals with migraine. This multicentre, cross-sectional, case-control study included migraine patients evaluated at headache-specialized outpatient clinics across 22 centers in different regions of Turkey. 901 migraine patients and 901 healthy, matched controls were included. Neurologists specializing in headache disorders administered the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Self-Compassion Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, and Beck Anxiety Inventory to all participants. Data were compiled at a central site and subjected to statistical analysis.Migraine patients exhibited significantly lower self-esteem scores compared to healthy controls (p=0.001 for both). Additionally, Beck Depression Inventory and Beck Anxiety Inventory scores were significantly higher in migraine patients (p=0.001for both). Although the mean self-compassion scores of migraine patients and healthy controls were comparable, a significant decline in self-compassion was observed among patients with higher migraine attack frequency.In conclusion, our findings indicate that migraine patients exhibit significantly higher levels of anxiety and depression compared to healthy controls. Self-esteem scores were also found to be lower in the migraine group. Although self-compassion scores were similar between the two groups, a noteworthy decline in self-compassion was observed in patients with higher migraine attack frequency. These results suggest that increased migraine severity may negatively impact patients' emotional resilience, highlighting the potential value of integrating psychological support into migraine management, particularly for those with frequent attacks.

Keywords: Migraine, self-esteem, self-compassion, Depression, Anxiety

Received: 24 Jan 2025; Accepted: 07 Jul 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Karakurum-Goksel, Ocal, Van, Coskun, Karaaslan, Ucler, Gokcay, Celebisoy, Sirin, Kisabay-Ak, Saritas, Cerrahoglu-Sirin, Hasirci-Bayir, Ekizoglu, Kocasoy-Orhan, Bayram, Tanik, Bicakci, Ozturk, Inan, Mehel-Metin, Eren, Dora, Oguz-Akarsu, Karli, Ur-Ozcelik, Atalar, Gozubatik-Celik, Mutluay, Ilgaz-Aydinlar, Yalınay-Dikmen, Semercioglu, Emre, Buldukoglu, Er, Kilboz, Ibis, Yagiz, Koklu, Kamaci, Aliyeva, Ates, Kara, Altunc, Kaya and Sisman. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Ruhsen Ocal, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan

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