Women in need

After our son was born, my husband became emotionally abusive and cruel. A few months ago, when our son was nine months old, I left him because I could no longer tolerate his treatment of me, the constant arguments, and his drinking. He constantly intimidated me and threatened me, saying that beating me would be no trouble for him if I refused to obey him. He told me I needed to learn how to respect my husband. I was restricted in every aspect of my life and had to provide for my son’s needs on my own. I had to take out a loan because my husband did not consider it his responsibility to contribute financially to the needs of our family or child. I could no longer endure the situation, so I left. I now live in a village with my son and cannot go to work because there is no one to look after him. He is just one year and two months old. My ex-husband provides no financial support, and the decision regarding child support was only issued on October 7. Despite this, my ex-husband continues to say that he will not give me a single penny. I have run out of ways to find money to cover even our basic needs: buying food, paying utility bills, and purchasing clothes and toys for my son. My husband refuses to return our belongings. I do not know how to move forward or how to manage everything on my own. I am desperately asking for any help people can offer.

My ex-husband forced me to beg for money outside a church and take out loans in my own name while I was on maternity leave caring for our little daughter. He did not work, drank heavily, and subjected me to emotional and physical abuse. I endured it because I was afraid of being left alone with my child. In my first relationship, I spent many years with a tyrant. I lived as if in a cage, where I was not allowed to do anything outside the home without my husband’s permission. He stripped me of my identity and destroyed the person I used to be. As a result of that relationship, I was granted a Group 3 disability due to a psychiatric condition. Now, all of that is behind me. I have paid off my debts and loans, and I live with my five-year-old daughter. I have filed for divorce and child support, stabilized my condition, and am undergoing treatment. I also work as a caregiver for elderly people. I am not complaining about life. I am building a new, peaceful life for myself and my daughter, but I would be grateful for help with medication and clothing for my little girl. It would mean a lot to know that someone is there to support me.

I fled my home in the middle of the night with my two children, aged 8 and 10, because of my husband’s abuse. We were left without a home, belongings, or work after moving to another region, where we have acquaintances who gave us shelter. My husband became disabled and lost his eyesight after serving in combat. I cared for him and stayed by his side, but recently he began insulting and beating me more and more often and would not even let me leave the house to go to work. The last time, he ran around the apartment with a grenade and threatened to blow us up. I called the police, took the children, and fled. I am now adapting to a new place and looking for work, but this will take time. I cannot cope with everything on my own right now, so I am asking for support.

I am from the city of Toretsk, Donetsk region. During the evacuation from the city, my husband was killed, and I was miraculously left alive. I now live in a dormitory with my daughter, whose husband went missing in the same city a year ago. We lost everything we had, and both of us are seriously ill. I have progressive vascular encephalopathy, cerebral atherosclerosis with arterial hypertension, an ischemic stroke, pyelonephritis, pancreatitis, hepatitis, cataracts in both eyes, gastroduodenitis, and right-sided grade 3 scoliosis. My daughter is 49 years old and has a group 3 disability. She also suffers from varicose veins, osteochondrosis of the joints, thrombophlebitis, stage 2 chronic cerebrovascular insufficiency, mastopathy, and encephalopathy. We need to take many medications every day. We purchase some of them ourselves, but our only income is our pensions and internally displaced person (IDP) payments, which are far from enough to cover all our expenses. We are asking for help.

I am a widow and a mother of three children, aged 4, 9, and 10. I have been seriously ill for the past two years. I am living with HIV, have recovered from tuberculosis, and six months ago my kidneys began to fail, so I am still undergoing treatment. My children also had tuberculosis and underwent treatment for more than 10 months. We spent all the money we had on treatment, and now we are surviving on a survivor’s pension of 4,000 UAH and whatever I can earn from temporary jobs when my health allows me to work. I do cleaning jobs in apartments and gardens. I take my youngest son with me because there is no one to leave him with. Before my husband passed away, we were self-employed and sold vegetables, which allowed us to support our family. Now, unfortunately, I am in a very difficult situation and am asking for help.

I have a serious condition — aseptic necrosis, which is destroying my bones. I have to use crutches to get around. The disease puts me at risk of losing my leg, but there is still a chance to slow its progression through reconstructive bone surgery and bone grafting using plates, screws, and bone fragments from my pelvis. I will be my own donor: part of my thigh bone will be taken and used for the reconstruction, with the bone secured using pins. The state does not cover this type of surgery through the NHSU program because I am the only person in Ukraine with this condition, and there are no medical provisions for my case. I am asking for help raising the funds I need for my treatment.