Fibromyalgia, as a chronic pain disorder, imposes a heavy psychological burden on patients; therefore, this study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program on rumination and alexithymia in women with fibromyalgia. The design of this study was semi-experimental, featuring a pre-test, post-test, and a 2-month follow-up with a control group. The statistical population consisted of all women with fibromyalgia who were members of the Fibromyalgia Association, from whom 30 patients were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the control group. The experimental group received the MBSR intervention in eight weekly sessions, while the control group received no intervention during this period. The assessment tools included the Toronto Alexithymia Scale and the Ruminative Responses Scale, and the gathered data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA). The statistical results indicated that the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program led to a significant decrease in the scores of ruminations and alexithymia in the experimental group compared to the control group. Furthermore, post-hoc analysis confirmed the sustainability and durability of these psychological outcomes during the 2-month follow-up stage. In conclusion, the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program is an efficient and sustainable tool for emotional regulation and mitigating psychological distress in women with fibromyalgia by modifying cognitive infrastructures and enhancing non-judgmental emotional awareness; thus, its application as a complementary therapy is highly recommended.
