Foot Hydrotherapy: Non-pharmacology Treatment for Reducing Anxiety in Third Trimester Pregnancy

Abstract

AIM: This research aims to examine the effect of foot hydrotherapy as a non-pharmacological therapy for reducing anxiety during pregnancy. METHODS: This study applied the Quasi-Experimental method using two Group pretest-posttest designs with a comparative group. It involved 57 respondents who were recruited using a consecutive sampling technique. The Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale questionnaire was used to measure the respondents’ anxiety. The data were tested using Paired samples t-test and independent t-test. RESULTS: The results of data analysis indicated that before the treatment, the anxiety values in the two groups were almost the same (21 ± 2.3 dan 22.07 ± 1.99). After the treatment in the intervention group, the anxiety value decreased. Meanwhile, the anxiety score was increased on the 3rd day after the pretest measurement in the control group. Data analysis conducted with an Independent Sample t-test revealed that foot hydrotherapy using warm water reduced the anxiety level of pregnant women in the third trimester (p = 0.000). CONCLUSION: Giving foot hydrotherapy is effective for reducing anxiety in pregnant women. Therefore, non-pharmacological therapy can be socialized and applied to the public (society), especially pregnant women.