A qualitative research on religious/spiritual life during pregnancy

The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate the feelings, experiences, and desires of the pregnant woman in the context of her religious/spiritual life and to reveal the activities related to her religious/spiritual life during the period of pregnancy. The study focused on whether religious-spiritual motivations, experiences and the description of Allah of the woman are influenced or not in the period of pregnancy. The case study design was adopted in the study which is a qualitative research. The snowball sampling method among the purposeful sampling methods was carried out and the study group consisted of twenty woman whose ages are between 21 and 42 (Mean=29,8) and are in different trimester of their pregnancy living in Kocaeli and İstanbul. The data were collected in a semi-structured interview form in accordance with the interview method and the interviews were conducted by face to face. The data were analyzed through descriptive analysis, the findings were interpreted, and the necessary evaluations were made. According to the results of the study, the factors affecting people's process to have a baby are indicated as reproduction desire for continuity of generation, desire to feel of motherhood, to grow helpful generation, to be producer/transmitter, to extend their small family, the pressure coming from society to have a child to married people. With the pregnancy it was seen that communication with her environment was affected with choice of life of a woman, her expectations, experiences. Based on the trimester, mother and baby relationship was directly proportional. For example; sense of motherhood of woman became clearer with change in body image. Moreover; it was seen that the pregnancy adds responsibility and maturity and increases spiritual tendency. The relationship between the pregnancy and social environment was directly proportional and the favorable effect to psychologic and spiritual situations of participant woman was seen with positive feedback from partner, family, friend and environment. Besides, it was seen that woman are not disturbed by warnings and suggestions about nutritional, health and religious/spiritual content received from their environment. Feeling another life in a life increased density of emotions like resignation and contemplation and this experience increased effects in religious or spiritual lives such as reading Qur'an, praying, and performing salaat of pregnant woman. In addition; when the sense of Allah of pregnant woman was observed, they put forward their relationship with Allah by compassion of Allah's and associated the belief in Allah with the baby they carry, the baby increased their loyalty and closeness to Allah more. Key Words: Pregnancy, religious/spiritual life and changes, faith, worship, religiosity, descriptions of Allah, sense of motherhood, pray