Efficacy of Traditional Integrated Islamic Psychotherapy and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Migraine: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Chronic migraine is a disabling neurological condition that is frequently associated with psychological distress, reduced self-efficacy in headache management, and impaired quality of life. Although pharmacological treatment is commonly used to manage migraine, psychological interventions may provide additional benefits by addressing cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and coping-related factors associated with migraine. The present study is a three-arm, parallel-group randomized controlled trial designed to evaluate and compare the efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Traditional Integrated Islamic Psychotherapy (TIIP) among individuals with chronic migraine. A total of 45 participants meeting the study's eligibility criteria will be recruited and randomly allocated to one of three groups: (1) CBT, (2) TIIP, or (3) medication-only control group, with 15 participants in each group through Fish Bowl sampling, Participants assigned to the CBT group will receive six weekly individual sessions, with each session lasting approximately 45-60 minutes. The intervention will focus on psychological and behavioral factors relevant to migraine management, including identification and modification of maladaptive thoughts, coping strategies, stress management, behavioral techniques, and headache-related self-management. Participants assigned to the TIIP group will also receive six weekly individual sessions of approximately 45-60 minutes. TIIP will integrate Islamic psychological and spiritual principles with therapeutic techniques relevant to migraine management. The intervention will incorporate Qur'anic engagement, particularly Surah Al-Rahman, alongside concepts such as Tawheed, Fitrah, Qalb, Aql, Nafs, and Tazkiyah, with emphasis on spiritual coping, emotional regulation, cognitive reframing, gratitude, patience, and adaptive responses to illness. Participants in the medication-only control group will continue to receive their usual pharmacological management for chronic migraine and will not receive the structured psychological interventions provided in the CBT and TIIP groups. Outcomes will be assessed using standardized measures of migraine-related disability, headache management self-efficacy, depression, anxiety and stress, and quality of life. The primary purpose of the study is to determine whether CBT and TIIP produce improvements in these outcomes and whether TIIP demonstrates comparable or greater efficacy than CBT and medication-only treatment. The findings of this study may contribute to the development of culturally and spiritually appropriate psychological interventions for chronic migraine and provide evidence regarding the potential role of integrated Islamic psychotherapy as an adjunctive approach to migraine management.