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Aim and Background: This study aimed to evaluate the spiritual experience and resilience of women with breast cancer undergoing radiation therapy and their healthy counterparts. Methods and Materials : The present study was a retrospective comparative study. The study population included all women with breast cancer undergoing radiation therapy and their healthy counterparts referring to Imam Khomeini Hospital from May to September 2013. The study subjects were selected through convenience sampling. Thus, 50 women with breast cancer and history of surgery and mastectomy who had completed chemotherapy treatments and were undergoing radiotherapy were compared with 50 healthy women who were matched in terms of age, education, and marital status with the experimental group. Data were collected using the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance and t-test in SPSS software . Findings: The results showed a statistically significant difference between the spiritual experiences of women with breast cancer and healthy women (P < 0.05). Women with breast cancer had more spiritual experiences than healthy women. A significant difference was observed between resilience of women with breast cancer and healthy women, (P < 0.05); healthy women had greater resilience than women with breast cancer. Conclusions: It can be concluded that spiritual experiences and resilience impact patients with breast cancer and undergoing radiation therapy. Therefore, it seems that finding ways to increase resilience and spiritual experience is necessary to improve and control their disease. Hence, it is recommended that future research, inspired by the results of this research, seek to enhance the resilience of women with cancer, and study its effects on mental health and quality of life (QOL) of these patients.

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Aim and Background: The number of previous studies on the subject of specific treatments for chronic depression disorders was limited and significantly incomplete. Identification of applied indicators in treatment approaches of chronic depression disorders extracted from previous work would result in the development of applied and plenary treatment of these disorders. Methods and Materials: In this narrative review, referring to the databases like Pubmed and ScienceDirect, and a review of 71 articles, the treatment approaches and the most important applied indicators related to the treatment of chronic depressive disorder were extracted. Findings: There are differences between acute and chronic depression of existing signs, and the aforementioned treatments often focus on major depression. The effective methods in the treatment of chronic depression include psychodynamic psychotherapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT), cognitive-behavioral analysis system of psychotherapy, schema therapy, behavioral activation therapy, group therapy and family-based treatment. However, in any of these ways, there are major weaknesses. According to the literature, some common elements in treatment of chronic depressive disorders are time-limited psychotherapy, explicit rationale for treatment, the active therapist position, focus on current problems, emphasis on changing current behavior and interpersonal interactions, self-monitoring of change and progress, regular homework assignments, continuation/maintenance therapy to extend gains, combined pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatment, family-based interventions. Conclusions: In comparison with research conducted in major depressive disorder, research support in psychotherapy for chronic depression is relatively young and further research is essential.

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Aim and Background: Rheumatoid arthritis is the most common inflammatory rheumatic disease. In most communities, its prevalence is approximately 3%. Anxiety has been reported as one of the most common displeasing psychological experiences in rheumatoid arthritis patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy (ISTDP) on reducing anxiety in rheumatoid patients.
Methods and Materials: This study was a quasi-experimental study with pre-test and post-test design along with a control group. The statistical population of the study included patients with rheumatoid arthritis who had visited rheumatology clinics in Kerman during the research. We purposefully selected 40 males and females patients with rheumatoid arthritis as a statistical sample‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌. Then the members of the sample group were randomly divided into two 20-memebr parts as experimental and control groups. For the experimental group, 15 one-and-a-half-hour sessions of intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy was performed once a week and individually. Research data was analyzed using analysis of covariance and SPSS 19 software.
Findings: After reviewing the pre-test scores between the experimental and control groups, the results of the study indicated that intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy is effective in reducing anxiety scores in rheumatoid patients (p<0.05).
Conclusions: The use of psychodynamic concepts and techniques in understanding anxiety disorders, seems to be very important. Intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy considerably helps to reduce anxiety as well as clinical symptoms in rheumatoid patients by affecting the discharge path of anxiety and careful control and moment-by-moment monitoring of anxiety, emotions, and defenses.

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Aim and Background: Rheumatoid arthritis is associated with an increased risk of various types of psychological afflictions. Indication of these disorders is added to the erosive factors of chronic disease and has many negative effects on the level of adaptation and mental and social health of these people. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy (ISTDP) on reducing alexithymia in rheumatoid patients.
Methods and Materials: The present research was a quasi-experimental study with pre-test, post-test design as well as control group. In order to select the sample, first of all, based on the criteria of the American Rheumatology Association and the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 40 male and female patients were purposefully selected from specialized rheumatology clinics in Kerman. This selection was made by rheumatologists. The members of the sample group were randomly divided into two 20-memeber groups of experimental and control. For the experimental group, 15 one-and-a-half-hour sessions of intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy were held. Data were collected through Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS). Research data were analyzed using Analysis of covariance.
Findings: The findings showed that intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy is effective in reducing the rate of alexithymia in rheumatoid patients (p <0.05).
Conclusions: Patients first performed better in recognizing emotions and then improved their ability to describe emotions and physical symptoms. Intensive short-term dynamic psychotherapy by affecting on anxiety discharge pathway and exact control and moment-by-moment monitoring of anxiety, feelings and defenses helps to reduce clinical symptoms in rheumatoid patients.