“Our Lives Have Gone” Experiences in and After Kahramanmaraş\Türkiye Earthquake: A Qualitative Research

Abstract

AIM: This study aimed to examine the experiences and emotions of individuals who experienced the Kahramanmaraş earthquake. METHODS: This study’s data, which were collected using qualitative research methods, were collected through face-to-face individual interviews between March 20 and March 21, 2023, after the earthquake in Hatay and Diyarbakır. The purposive sample method, one of the purposeful random sampling methods, was used in the research. A total of 35 individuals formed the study’s sample. Colaizzi’s phenomenological interpretation method was used in the analysis of the data. RESULTS: The data obtained from the individual interviews with the participants were gathered under three main themes: earthquake moment, emotions, and after the earthquake. In the study, it was determined that the participants stated that they were terrified by the noise and shaking at the time of the earthquake; they could not go out immediately, it was cold when they went out, and they witnessed that everywhere was dark and destroyed. It was determined that the emotions experienced by the participants were anger, helplessness, guilt, hope, and hopelessness, and they expressed their needs after the earthquake, the difficulties in getting help, and the losses they experienced. CONCLUSION: Remarkably, the study results are often parallel to acute stress, loss, and grief reactions, and the needs of individuals are the basic principles of psychological first aid. © 2025, Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing. All rights reserved.