As we lead up to Refugee Week 2020, we want to create an online space for refugees to share their stories of living in the UK and dealing with COVID-19. If you would like to share your story please click here.
*All names are changed in order to stay in line with our confidentiality policy.
Strange! I never thought I will have this lifestyle or this kind of experience during the 9 years of living in the UK! Meeting new people with different backgrounds can be interesting at the beginning,but even something new and challenging. Especially, during the lock down period of COVID-19, it seems like a real challenge for all of us.
Being all day inside can be really stressful and depressing. Knowing you have nothing to do, but on the other hand you can’t do anything or anything you do you must do inside your area at home. The only line of communication has been through social media or by phone with our friends.
My personal experience had been a little stressful, first because of my sleeping problems in this period of lock down, but the worst thing is when your friends are touched by COVID-19. This was my experience, being close to my best friend by phone on a period of 1 month or more when she was battling COVID-19. Luckily she’s better now, and has become healthy as a winner against this unknown killer virus.
Helping her to feel good and giving her hope by phone that she can win the battle with COVID has become my day job from home. A humanity duty for a friend to be there in difficult days. Giving a hand to people in need, even when you may be struggling by yourself with your own problems, I think is a great form of my strength to give them hope and telling that they are not alone. I helped some people in the community by interpreting for them if they needed it in different areas.
This period of life, where you get time to think and reflect is an example for us that teaches us to be more positive, more human, more patient with everyone and anything. Life is just a journey and in this journey we could and should help each other, sometimes by giving a hand or simply by being a friend.
We are so grateful to hear all stories of people coping with lockdown or COVID-19. If you would like to share your story please click here.