Aims: Stress is one of the most important factors in aggravation and relapse of the symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The cognitive-behavioral approach is one of the most effective methods to cope with and prevent stress, as well as self-control, in patients with MS. The aim of the study was to determine the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral group therapy on the coping styles of the patients with MS.

Materials & Methods: In the controlled pretest-posttest quasi-experimental study, 80 patients with MS, who were members of Urmia MS Society, were studied in 2015. The subjects, selected via simple random sampling method, were randomly divided into two 40-person groups including experimental and control groups. Data was collected using the coping style questionnaire. Eight cognitive-behavioral group therapy sessions were conducted in experimental group, while control group received no intervention. Data was analyzed by SPSS 20 software using one-way ANOVA.

Findings: In experimental group, the cognitive-behavioral group therapy training significantly increased the mean problem-focused coping style score (p=0.04), while significantly reduced the mean scores of emotion-focused (p=0.05) and avoidance (p=0.02) coping styles compared to control group.

Conclusion: The intervention based on the cognitive-behavioral group therapy increases the problem-focused coping styles, while reduces the emotion-focused and avoidance coping styles in the patients with MS.