Purpose: To evaluate the level of sexual satisfaction and self-esteem of people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Additionally, the relationship between these two features and the acceptance of the disease was analysed. Methods : The following were used: Acceptance of...

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, mental health professionals were forced to find an appropriate way of working with patients that would ensure the continuity of therapy while considering the restrictions aimed at counteracting the spread of the virus. Online therapy has become an increasingly popular and common form of psychotherapeutic work. Emerging scientific studies have confirmed the positive effects of remote psychotherapeutic work. Nevertheless, modifying traditional and well-known forms of therapy or introducing completely new forms of remote therapy have been associated with several ethical concerns and challenges for psychotherapists. Objective: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the emerging epidemiological restrictions and recommendations, as well as new recommendations from psychotherapeutic associations, this study aimed to investigate the following: (1) Have psychotherapists experienced ethical dilemmas related to working online and face-to-face during the COVID-19 pandemic? (2) Was the occurrence of these dilemmas related to the therapists’ personal characteristics, such as age, sex, professional experience, or therapeutic approach? (3) What specific ethical dilemmas do psychotherapists point to in conducting online and face-to-face therapy during the COVID-19 pandemic? Methods: We conducted an international study with 177 psychotherapists from 4 European countries (Sweden, Poland, Germany, and Portugal) using a web-based survey. The psychotherapeutic approaches represented in the sample were cognitive-behavioral, integrative, psychodynamic-psychoanalytic, systemic, existential and gestalt, and Ericksonian therapy, among others. An interview comprising closed and open questions was used to collect data on psychotherapists’ personal characteristics, professional functioning, and ethical dilemmas encountered during online and face-to-face therapy. Results: Ethical dilemmas related to online therapy were reported by 58.7% (104/177) of therapists, while dilemmas related to face-to-face therapy were reported by 61% (108/177). The study showed that these dilemmas were independent of the personal and professional characteristics of therapists. Dilemmas related to online therapy were concern about online therapy, the issue of privacy and confidentiality of sessions, the effectiveness of online therapy, the issue of limitations that may hinder clinical work, and concerns related to the broader systemic and institutional context. In contrast, for the face-to-face form, ethical dilemmas mainly concerned health and safety, limitations in communication and quality of relationships due to wearing masks, and technical and logistical limitations. Conclusions: The issues considered here have not lost their relevance, because despite the lifting of restrictions related to the pandemic, some of the described dilemmas are similar to those related to coping with the risk and transmission of infection during face-to-face meetings. Moreover, the spread of online therapy means that the related ethical dilemmas are still relevant. The results indicate the direction of further consideration, the outcome of which should be specific ethical and legal guidelines that consider the concerns and dilemmas reported.

Introduction: In recent years, online psychotherapy has gained importance as a flexible, cost-effective and widely available alternative to face-to-face therapy. Existing research suggests that psychotherapists see both the advantages and potential limitations of this form of work. It can be assumed that the perceived advantages and disadvantages of online therapy constitute the primary direct factors influencing decisions to adopt this form. However, in the era of the pandemic, it seems important to assess to what extent emotional factors - such as fear of infection or pandemic-related fatigue - and institutional factors - such as perceived infection rates or trust in the official recommendations, mediate this relationship. Therefore, this study aimed to examine how cognitive evaluations, accompanying emotions, and institutional conditions influenced psychotherapists’ decisions to adopt remote practice during the COVID-19 pandemic. Material and methods: The study involved 283 psychotherapists from four European countries: Poland, Portugal, Germany and Sweden. An original interview created for the purposes of the study was used, to collect sociodemographic data related to the professional functioning of psychotherapists and aimed at learning about the advantages and disadvantages of online therapy in the opinion of psychotherapists. In addition, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Fear of Contracting COVID-19 Scale (FCS Covid-19), and the Pandemic Fatigue Scale (PFS) were used. Results: The results showed that the vast majority of therapists recognized both advantages (accessibility and convenience, health protection, flexibility, cost reduction and practicality, comfort and familiarity with the environment and functionality in online diagnosis and therapy) and disadvantages (problems with effectiveness, technical, safety and organizational difficulties) of online therapy. The analysis of the decision-making process showed no direct relationship between the perception of the advantages and disadvantages of online therapy and the decision to use it. Mediation analyses showed no indirect effects for advantages; for disadvantages, two institutional mediators operated in opposite directions (government recommendations: positive; society recommendations: negative), while emotional mediators were non-significant. This means that government recommendations and recommendations of psychotherapeutic societies mediate the relationship between perceived limitations and the decision to use online therapy. Discussion: The results obtained make a significant contribution to the understanding of the advantages and limitations of online therapy perceived by psychotherapists and the factors directly and indirectly related to the decision to use it.

Aim of the study: To assess how the therapeutic relationship is perceived by therapists both in online and face-to-face therapy during the Covid-19 pandemic and if the therapist's personal, professional, and psychological characteristics, as well as their experience of the COVID-19 pandemic influence their perception of the therapeutic relationship.Subject or material and methods: Recruited 327 psychotherapists from four European countries: Sweden (Northern Europe), Poland (Eastern Europe), Portugal (Southern Europe) and Germany (Central Europe). Used original questionnaire and the Scale to Assess Therapeutic Relationship (STAR), the Fear of Contracting COVID-19 Scale (FCS Covid-19), the Pandemic Fatigue Scale (PFS), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Social Support Questionnaire (F-SozU K-14) and the Sense of Efficacy Test (SET).Results: The therapeutic relationship is perceived as more effective and productive in face-to-face therapy, although therapists noticed more emotional difficulties in this form than in online therapy. The predictor of the assessment of the overall quality and strength of the therapeutic relationship in online therapy is the therapist's self-efficacy, whereas in face-to-face therapy are the therapist's depression, age and cognitive / behavioral approach.Discussion: Variables related with therapist’s personal, occupational, psychological characteristics, and their experience with COVID-19 pandemic are related to the perception of the therapeutic relationship and these relationships, although in different configurations, apply to both online and face-to-face therapy.Conclusions: The obtained results broaden the scope of knowledge about the therapeutic relationship, and also encouraged therapists to reflect on the factors that are important for its assessment.

Background/Objectives: An excessive focus on the consumption of “healthy” or “clean” foods may develop into an obsessive pattern of eating behavior. Orthorexia, a relatively recent construct within the field of eating and feeding disorders, reflects this maladaptive preoccupation with dietary purity. Although orthorexia has received increasing empirical attention, its etiological pathways and maintaining mechanisms remain insufficiently understood. Previous research has identified perfectionism as a potential risk factor contributing to the development and persistence of orthorexic tendencies. Accordingly, the present study aimed to examine the association between perfectionism and orthorexic behaviors and to explore the mediating role of self-compassion, conceptualized as the capacity to respond to personal suffering with kindness, mindfulness, and a sense of shared humanity, in this relationship. Methods: The study sample consisted of 227 participants aged 18 to 55 years. Measures included a self-designed sociodemographic questionnaire, the Bratman Orthorexia Test (BOT), the ORTO-15, the Adaptive and Maladaptive Perfectionism Questionnaire (AMPQ), and the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS-PL). Results: Findings confirmed a positive association between maladaptive perfectionism and orthorexic behaviors, as well as relationships between both adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism and various dimensions of self-compassion. Self-compassion and its dimensions were also found to mediate the relationship between perfectionism and orthorexic behaviors. Conclusions: The study highlights the importance of both perfectionism and self-compassion as factors associated with orthorexic behaviors. Given that self-compassion is linked to mental health and may serve as a buffer against self-critical cognitive processes, its assessment is particularly relevant, especially as research suggests it is a skill that can be cultivated.