[The state of professional psychological guidance for patients with multiple sclerosis]

Over a period of two years, a total of 847 patients with multiple sclerosis (283 male and 564 female aged 18 to 79 years) were interviewed relative to the psychological care provided. Two patients currently participated in regular client-centered group therapy, 11 patients had regularly attended individual or group psychotherapy in previous years, and one patient had undergone family therapy several years ago. Another 26 patients reported occasional supportive counselling by their neurologist or family doctor in the framework of outpatient care. Ten patients used relaxation techniques such as autogenic training, and 42 patients reported emotional benefit from contacts within an MS self-help group. The findings of our study show that professional psychological care of persons with MS is extremely sparse, substantiating the call for better psychological services in coping with MS.