Different attachment styles correlate with mood disorders in adults with epilepsy or migraine

Abstract

Purpose: Interpersonal relationships are viewed as important contexts within which psychopathology emerges and persists or desists. Attachment theory describes the dynamics of longterm relationships between humans especially as in families and life-long friendships. The present study is aimed at investigating attachment styles in adult patients with epilepsy as compared to subjects with migraine and their potential correlates with a history of mood disorders.Methods: A consecutive sample of 219 adult outpatients with epilepsy (117) or migraine (102) has been assessed with the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ). Results:Patients with epilepsy and a lifetime history of mood disorders presented elevated scores for Need for approval (p<0.001) and Preoccupation with relationships (p<0.001). Age correlated with Relationships as secondary (r= 0.322; p<0.001) and Need for approval (r=0.217; p=0.019) subscales while age at onset correlated only with Relationships as secondary (r=0.225; p=0.015). Seizure free patients presented lower scores for Need for approval (p=0.003). Patients with migraine and a lifetime history of mood disorders presented lower scores in Confidence (p=0.002) and higher scores in Discomfort with closeness (p=0.026).Conclusions: An anxious-preoccupied attachment correlates with mood disorders in epilepsy while an avoidant pattern in migraine. Our results bring further data on the role of psychological variables for mood disorders in epilepsy. Further studies will allow early identification of patients at risk and the development of preventive strategies.

Evaluation of Attachment Style and Social Support in Patients With Severe Migraine. Applications in Doctor-Patient Relationships and Treatment Adherence

“…Several studies have demonstrated that attachment style influences the level of disability in migraine patients ( 6 , 12 ). Rossi et al showed that insecure attachment is the most significant predictor of higher levels of disability in patients suffering from episodic migraine ( 13 ).…”

“…In their statistical analysis, they found that attachment style influenced the MIDAS score by 20%. These studies used the three-category model and compared heterogeneous populations such as patients with migraine and patients with epilepsy ( 12 ) or different types of headaches ( 6 , 13 ). However, none of these comparisons provided information that was precise enough to identify the psychological factors that lead to difficulties in treating these patients.…”

Attachment style and perceived discrimination: Associations with depression among young lesbian, gay, and bisexual Romanian adults

“…This topic seemed worthy of investigation, given the current literature data, which illustrate intercorrelations between insecure attachment style, perceived discrimination, depression, and being a member of the LGB community (Bifulco, Moran, Ball, & Bernazzani, 2002; Conradi & DeJonge, 2009; Cook & Calebs, 2016; Erozkan, 2011; Gattis, Woodford, & Han, 2014; Murphy & Bates, 1997; Pascoe & Richman, 2009; Wang, Schale, & Broz, 2010). Part of these relationships are more documented, especially regarding the higher levels of depression at LGB individuals (Cochran et al, 2003; Scott, Lasiuk, & Norris, 2016) or the positive association between insecure attachment style and depression (Irons & Gilbert, 2005; Jinyao et al, 2012; Marganska, Gallagher, & Miranda, 2013; Mula et al, 2017). Still, their comparative importance remains unclear, with authors identifying other variables, such as the sense of belonging to the community (McLaren et al, 2007) and loneliness (Bostwick et al, 2014; Westefeld, Maples, Buford, & Taylor, 2001) acting as mediators, or claiming that discrimination may play a secondary role (Herek, 2009; Morrison, 2011).…”

The Role of Attachment Styles on Quality of Life and Distress Among Early-Stage Female Breast Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review

“…Nevertheless, it seems likely that more negative outcomes, such as persistent distress, anxiety and depression, are more often associated with attachment avoidance. Individuals characterized as highly avoidant, tend to have higher and more persistent distress levels over time (Brédart et al, 2015b ; Lee et al, 2018 ); other researchers have also demonstrated that attachment avoidance can relate to negative emotional reactions to various health conditions (Gick & Sirois, 2010 ; Mula et al, 2016 ). Mikulincer and Shaver ( 2017 , p. 206) proposed that “…under chronic, demanding stressful conditions, avoidant deactivating strategies seem to collapse, causing avoidant people to have even higher levels of distress than anxious people.”…”