Abstract

The present study aimed to explore the approach used by Iranians chronically affected by mustard gas in the disaster of war to cope with their chronic illness complications. A qualitative approach was adopted using content analysis of unstructured interviews carried out with 20 patients in a medical center in Tehran and an outpatient clinic in the North West of Iran. Two main themes that emerged from the study were "religious sentiment" and "patriotism". The subthemes that emerged were "divine will", "illness as a means of absolving sin", "saying prayers in the anticipation of divine rewards", "defending the motherland" and "self-sacrifice as a source of pride". To sum up, spirituality was recognized as a key factor among the participants in accepting and coping with their chronic illness complications.