The Effect of Stress Management Therapy on Changes in Stress Levels in the Elderly in Aceh Besar, Indonesia

Abstract

Retirement is commonly considered a difficult time since it is a significant life adjustment that elderly people must make in their later years. To effectively handle stress in the senior population, it is crucial to develop effective techniques. Applying progressive muscle relaxation therapy to the elderly is one such method. This study aimed to identify changes in stress levels before and after progressive muscle relaxation therapy in the elderly. This type of research is quasi-experimental with a cross-sectional study design. The sampling technique in this research was a sampling capacity of 100 elderly people. The sample was divided into two groups: the intervention group, which consisted of 50 elderly people, and the control group, which consisted of 50 people. The measuring tool used in this research is the standard Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS 42) questionnaire data collection via Google Forms. Data analysis used the difference between two means t-test analysis. The results showed a significant difference in stress levels before and after participating in the therapy program in the experimental group (t=-4.173, p<0.05). This indicates that progressive muscle therapy in the elderly can reduce stress levels.

Keywords

• management
• stress
• elderly