Finding Meaning in Life, Divine Blessing from Birth of a Premature Infant: A Qualitative Study

Divine trial is one of the most central themes of the Qur'an with the philosophy of man's evolution, divine blessing and return of man to God. The birth of a premature infant is a special experience for mothers and they arefaced with numerous care challenges. The purpose of this study was to explain the experiences of mothers in managing the premature infant's birth. The present qualitative study was conducted with a content analysis approach. The data collection process included 18 semi-structured and in-depth interviews with the mothers of infants born prematurely during 2012-2013 in four neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) affiliated with academic centers in Iran. All interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim and finally analyzed using a conventional content analysis. Robustness of data analysis was evaluated by participants and external control. Data analysis led to the extraction of the "finding meaning in life" category. This category has been revealed in mothers with subcategories of "change in understanding of spirituality, change in understanding of the philosophy of life and change in self-perception". Mothers of premature infants attained a certain degree of spiritual growth at different times of premature infant growth. They believed that the birth of a premature baby was worthy of divine favor and an indication of the blessing of Allah. These beliefs became the basis of acceptance of difficulties and challenges.