Jordan: Putting the Pieces Back Together
2'
When Tuka was 29, she walked to Jordan from Syria with her two children. She had given birth just 10 days earlier. She was still suffering from a difficult delivery, bleeding and feverish.
She walked through the night to reach Zaatari camp in Jordan. She gave cough medicine to her children so they would keep quiet. She was scared of getting caught.
Her husband had fled Syria months before. Malek left because he was being targeted, and they feared his life was in danger. He wanted to find a job in Jordan so that his family would have good living conditions when they arrived. Yet Malek, an accountant, was unable to find work. With no income, the only apartment he could afford was small, dark, and cold.
A year later, Malek was granted a work permit, which enabled him as a Syrian refugee to be employed for manual or other non-professional labour only. He began selling pastries in a pastry shop for a meagre salary, but at least it was enough to afford an apartment with two rooms.
Refugee life was difficult for Tuka and Malek. They found themselves fighting all the time. They worried about their family members back in Syria, and about not being able to provide for everyone’s needs. They felt depressed, grieving the loss of their home and country and the life they thought they would live.
“We had no idea that there were programmes to help people like us talk about our situation and experience,” said Tuka. “Medair was the first one to come to us and offer me a spot in one of their programmes. Back then, my relationship with Malek had become very bad. I didn’t know what to do. I was very happy that Medair gave me a chance to talk and share about the stresses and trauma I experienced.”
Malek immediately noticed a difference in Tuka. “After the first session, she looked different,” said Malek, smiling broadly.
I hadn’t expected to find people who cared about my psychological well-being. I felt my life had become a jangled puzzle, but Medair helped me put the pieces of my life back together.
CHECK OUR LATEST STORIES
Featured StoriesStoriesSyriaHealth and Nutrition
A new life for a clinic in Syria
"The clinic is ready!" The news was music to Dr Eyad's,(the director of Tal Salhab clinic), ears. Medair had just completed the rehabilitation of Tal Salhab's only primary health centre, providing it with much-needed medical equipment – offering a lifeline to over...
StoriesSudanWater, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
The Sudan crisis: how Medair is stepping in
Sudan crisis: how Medair is stepping in Twelve months into the armed conflict in Sudan, it has become the largest displacement crisis in the world. To date, 8.4 million people have been forced to flee their homes, and the number is growing every day. Families have...
StoriesUkraineHealth and NutritionMental Health
The Need for mental health support in Ukraine
“I really enjoyed the organization of these trainings. I’ve already gained a lot of interesting knowledge, which, it seems, I was already familiar with, but had never thought about it deeply. Learning new things, I understand how I can apply them in my work to...
StoriesMadagascarWater, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)
Medair’s innovative response to drought
In southern Madagascar, Medair aims to play a key role in improving access to water, sanitation, and hygiene for vulnerable communities affected by drought and 'kere' (famine). Normally, people living in remote villages in southern Madagascar need to walk 10 to 40...
StoriesUkraineShelter and Infrastructure
Surviving Adversity
“Sometime around 6 a.m., my nephew called me and said, ‘Are you still sleeping? THE conflict has started.’ I shouted at my children to turn on the television to watch the news. I never thought I would experience something like this at my age. It was a terrifying...
StoriesJordanHealth and Nutrition
Health Improvement Journey
"We lost everything, our home and farm, therefore I left everything behind me. I carry hope to have a better place for me and for my family," Fozeh said, her voice heavy with the weight of displacement but her spirit resilient with the promise of a brighter future....
StoriesMadagascarWater, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)Women & Children
Fetching water, a burden for women
In the struggle of finding clean water, women bear the heaviest load "In addition to my duties as a single mother, I have to fetch water three hours away every day," shares Farasoa, a 38-year-old divorcee raising seven children in the Fokontany of Ambory...
StoriesYemenHealth and Nutrition
From a shack to a health unit
Following nearly a decade of conflict in Yemen, the country has experienced a partial collapse of an already fragile public infrastructure, leaving approximately 66 percent of the population in dire need of humanitarian assistance. Yemen’s healthcare system has...