Psychological intervention in an athlete with atrial fibrillation: A unique case study

Abstract

An intervention is presenteda case about an athlete whose diagnosis was atrial flutter who subsequently develops an anxiety disorder with hypochondriacal features. The central axis of the disorder in this case is the presence of heart palpitations and their feedback through avoidance and checking behaviors typical of the anxiety picture.

For this reason, the procedure was made integrating techniques from sports psychology, brief therapy approaches and cognitive psychotherapy. A single case research methodology was applied with pre and post intervention measures (test - retest).

In addition, employing Ryff´s psychological well-being questionnaires and an ISRA abbreviated version which were used to measure the results, as well as self-records and other qualitative gauges characteristics of the application model.

Finally, the results reveal an improvement in all the scores achieved after the intervention and qualitative criteria used, demonstrating the effectiveness of the scheduled procedure and the achievement of the initial goals.