After my father tried to bury me, I was terrified. I knew I couldn’t return to my husband, but I was afraid my father would kill me. I escaped to a shelter in my province, but even though I felt safe at the shelter, my mind wouldn’t rest. I had terrible dreams and depression. I woke up every night with the taste of dirt, from being buried, in my mouth.
The shelter was a physically safe place, but it couldn’t help me with the problems in my mind, and they were driving me mad. I tried to join the police, but I wasn’t accepted. After that, I decided to come to Kabul. I didn’t have anywhere else to go.
In Kabul, I was introduced to Hagar. I still struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anger, and other mental health issues, but Hagar has helped me to diagnose and control these problems, with counselling and medication. I am enrolled in a beautician vocational training course at Hagar, which I love. I am always the first student ready for my courses in the morning. I hope to enrol in literacy classes in the future, to learn to read and write. I am still working to come to terms with my past and control my mental health issues, but at Hagar I feel something that I’ve never felt before: hope for my future.
Narrative provided by Hagar International
