The extended unconscious group field and metabolization of pandemic experience: dreaming together to keep cohesion alive.

Working with dreams in groups allows an understanding of phenomena that characterise the unconscious as a total unity. The dreamer becomes the vehicle of emotions, fantasies, and anxieties that dominate the group at a given moment, allowing them to be understood and processed. The analysis of shared dreams can further our understanding of emotional concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic and its psychological repercussions. Six sessions of social dreaming were conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic period. Our aim was not to investigate differences between and within groups: the analysis was performed by identifying the core themes encompassing the contents of dreaming sessions, as products constructed by and within groups that are informative of society's collective unconscious more broadly. The narratives were transcribed and thematic analysis was performed with the support of Atlas.ti software. Three main themes were identified: i) nightmares' descriptions and the links with the COVID-19 pandemic; ii) loss of control within the unexpected outbreak: the pandemic as a learned helplessness context and environmental mastery as an emergent psychological issue; and iii) recalls of the child-past as continuity-makers within the continuity-breaking pandemic present. Through the qualitative analysis of dream narratives, we identified the links between individuals and the shared field. It is arguable that, by sharing dreams, the members of the group develop meanings useful to process the painful experience that unites them, as the three main themes show.

Evaluation of Symptoms and Alexithymia in Psychiatric Patients: A Naturalistic Longitudinal Study in a Day Hospital.

This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of a time-limited (10 months), combined individual and group treatment in a Day Hospital (DH) setting. Participants (N = 73) completed measures of general symptoms and alexithymia. We hypothesized improvements in these symptoms at the end of the overall therapeutic treatment. Results showed significant improvement in ability to identify and describe emotions and feelings, and in general symptoms. Differences in age and personality disorders were found at the end of the treatment: younger patients had less difficulty in identifying emotions, and psychotic patients have higher difficulty to describe feelings compared to patients with personality disorders. Furthermore, patients with schizophrenia had lower pathological symptoms compared to patients with mood disorders. This naturalistic longitudinal study demonstrates that DH treatments in group setting increase the patient's ability to symbolize and to connect their symptoms to thought and emotions.

The measure of effectiveness of a short-term 2-week intensive Cardiac Rehabilitation program in decreasing levels of anxiety and depression.

Research on heart disease have found a strong and consistent evidence of association between some psychosocial risk factors, including depression, anxiety, self-efficacy, lack of social support and outcome of disease. Depression increases the risk of cardiac death and is highly predictive of reduced adherence to recommended treatments; anxiety appears to be linked to adverse cardiac outcomes. It was demonstrated that Cardiac Rehabilitation (CR) leads to substantial improvements and positive outcomes because combines the prescription of physical activity with the modification of risk factors and aims to reduce symptoms related to the disease and the risk of new cardiovascular events. The main objective of this study is to determine if a short and intense CR program can produce a positive impact on anxious and depressive symptoms revealed in cardiac patients, confirming results of previous researches. The protocol was proposed to all patients referred for an outpatient CR after an acute event who attended the short 2-week intensive rehabilitation program. A total of 157 patients recruited at the operating unit of Cardiology, in the Hospital of Cittadella (Italy), was included in the analysis. The Beck Depression Inventory-II and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Y were administered to the patients. SPSS 17.0 was used for statistical analysis. T-tests for paired samples were used to evaluate differences between the beginning and the end of the CR program. There was a statistically significant difference between the beginning and the end of the CR program. Results for paired samples showed significant differences in all factors of the BDI-II and in the total score. In addition, a statistically significant difference was found even in the state - anxiety subscale. No significant difference was detected for the trait anxiety. According to recent studies, this research shows that the CR program has a significant impact on levels of anxiety and depression, because all activities focus their commitment on changing the patient's personal beliefs and perception of illness, promoting the exchange of information and sharing of concerns and fears, increasing the patient's resilience with the aim of enabling him/her to reorganize positively his/her personal, family and professional sphere.

The perception of the illness and the self-efficacy in the management of emotions in cardiac patients.

Cardiac rehabilitation is the sum of psychological, physical and social treatments that are offered to cardiac patients to maintain or regain an active position in society. This study wants to evaluate changes in the perception of the illness and in the self-efficacy of the management of positive and negative emotions in patients who went through cardiac rehabilitation. Sixty-seven patients (20 females, 47 males) were selected within the cardiac rehabilitation unit in the Hospital of Cittadella (Italy). Illness Perception Questionnaire - revised version and the Scale for the self-efficacy of the management of positive and negative emotions were submitted at the beginning and at the end of the rehabilitation program. One-way analyses-of-variance were performed to evaluate different answers in questionnaires between pre- and post-evaluation, and to explore gender differences. A significant change was found in the perception of duration of illness, perceived as permanent and longer after the cardiac rehabilitation program. Furthermore, at the end of the cardiac rehabilitation program men perceived the illness more chronic than women, even if they are less worried and anxious. Intensive cardiac rehabilitation has a great emotional impact on cardiac patients, influencing their perception and management of the illness. Working on emotions, through psychological groups, helps patients change their beliefs by offering them a different perspective to approach the illness.

[Evaluation of burnout and alexithymia in a group of nurses in palliative care: a pilot study.] / La valutazione del burnout e dell'alessitimia in un gruppo di operatori in cure palliative: uno studio pilota.

OBJECTIVES: Health workers, particularly those working in palliative care, are confronted daily with situations that increase stress and emotional fatigue, since constantly exposed to the disease and the death of patients. The proximity to the pain and the feelings of psychological suffering of patients submits them to a very intense emotional charge, making them susceptible to burnout. The skills required for those involved in this type of assistance are very specific and it is therefore necessary training that is aimed at providing the healthcare professional knowledge and basic skills, both professional and empathic, because the service is of good quality. Psychological support for nursing staff is a key factor in giving voice to the anxieties that inevitably rise in palliative care. METHODS: The paper reports the evaluation of a psychological intervention for health workers (doctors and nurses) of a Hospice of Central Italy. It was measured the level of burnout and alexithymia of the workers in order to investigate possible relationships between the two constructs and assess the change in scores after the psychological intervention. RESULTS: The results showed a positive correlation between the total score of alexithymia and emotional exhaustion subscale (r = .44, p = .023) and an inverse correlation between the total score of alexithymia and Personal fulfilment subscale (r = - 0:55, p = .003). In addition, there is a reduction of the scores in both alexithymia dimensions and emotional exhaustion subscale. CONCLUSIONS: The results show the effectiveness of the intervention and invite us to continue to search for further relations between the construct of burnout and alexithymia and other variables.

Validation of the Italian version of the Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES-I) in institutionalized geriatric patients.

OBJECTIVES: Apathy is a very common symptom in the institutionalized elderly and represents a condition of both clinical and public health importance. The Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES) has been shown to be a valid and reliable tool for characterizing, quantifying and differentiating apathy in various health conditions. The aims of this study were to establish the validity and reliability of the Italian version of the AES, and to assess the severity of apathy in a sample of Italian institutionalized geriatric patients. METHOD: Data were collected from clinical interviews using the AES informant version (AES-I). Associations between measures of apathy and depression, cognitive functioning and perceived quality of life were evaluated, as well as the effects of the living environment on apathetic symptoms. RESULTS: Multiple forms of reliability and validity (i.e. test-retest, internal consistency, discriminability of apathy rating from a standard measure of depression) were satisfied. Our results also show that the characteristics of the care setting may affect the severity of apathetic symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The AES-I Italian version is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring apathy in Italian patients, also allowing a direct comparison with data gathered in other countries.