Sylvia

I'm excited to share with you a brief summary of my thesis research findings, exploring processes that nurture resilience of young refugees living in the UK. I interviewed 12 participants on what they have found most supportive to them, and these are the findings we came up with:

Silence on Palestinian atrocities is troubling & alienating for myself/other MENA clinicians. Makes efforts to recognise privilege & decolonise the field empty. Crucial to recognise global events' mental health impact. Disheartening psy theories taught aren't being applied :(

People in Gaza City relied on animal fodder mixed with wheat to make bread in the past few weeks as Israel continues to collectively punish them for not having a place to evacuate to outside of the city Today, colleagues there say they can’t even find animal fodder to make bread

Mental ill health prevention alongside intervention please...

So disappointed in the world

What is happening in Gaza Is way worse than you could ever imagine.

My wish for this year was to finish my house and live in it, Today, all I want is a tent for my children. CEASEFIRE NOW | GAZA

I was looking forward to celebrate new year’s eve with my friends, instead I am mourning them. #Gaza

I’m so tired, devastated, and my energy is drained.. and I’m sure everyone is tired not just me.. for how many more days we have to keep showing the world what’s happening until it stops?? How many more people should die for this to stop? What’s more left of Gaza to be destroyed?

People in Gaza are starving to death. Literally. People died because they had no food to eat. 72 days of israel’s aggression on #Gaza. 72 days of endless massacres.

There’s nothing left. Nothing left for us.

There are people are dying from starvation in #Gaza

Please do get us a ceasefire now. Please organize the largest protests ever and get us a ceasefire now. Please put more and more pressure (especially on the US) to get us a ceasefire now. The situation is too bleak. Too dire. We need a ceasefire now!

People are evacuating from death to death.

Being a journalist in #Gaza means you’re both; the one who reports on the attack & the victim who witnesses it You’re the reporter writing about the forcible displacement & the displaced whose home was bombed. You’re part of the numbers of victims you include in your reports

The internet on my e-sim is not enough for much but whenever I get the chance I check tweets of normal life. Some celebrity wearing Dior. Poster of a new movie. Short clip of a wedding. Family having a picnic. And I feel happy that people are not going through what we are going through. Peace exists on the other side of the world. It’s so close we could touch it. Life seemed so promising to me and I worked really hard to make something of my kids. I raised them with love and care. Their father was coming in December, this month, after finishing his MA studies. For two years, Faisal, Jawad and Rita had nothing to wait for but the idea of meeting their father in December. One small family of 5. We made jokes about how we’re meeting him and that Jawad will curse him for leaving us because this middle child’s mouth has always been uncontrollable. I am not writing my final words, no!I just want you to know Palestinians here wanted to live and have normal lives. They wanted nothing but peace. And the story goes way beyond the 7th of October. Way way beyond!

@SatbinderBhogal Thank you so much for reading and sharing! Much appreciated 💛

@sylv_mich Really important piece of research. Thanks for sharing and well done 👏🏽 xx

I'm excited to share with you a brief summary of my thesis research findings, exploring processes that nurture resilience of young refugees living in the UK. I interviewed 12 participants on what they have found most supportive to them, and these are the findings we came up with:

@viktoria_st16 Hi, thank you so much! Yes absolutely you can read the full thesis here: uhra.herts.ac.uk/handle/2299/25…

@sylv_mich Thank you this is brilliant! Is there anywhere I can read the whole thesis? Super interested!!

Very cold & rainy day in #Gaza while tens of thousands of families are displaced & homeless (incl. myself) but I'm lucky to have a little roof over my head while most others don't. They don't even have food or blankets or tents or warm clothes. Only Trauma is lingering here.

Today I talked to Hala (my cousin’s daughter) who’s the only survivor of her family. Hala is 8 years old, she doesn’t talk about what happened and she doesn’t speak with anyone since. I haven’t been able to speak with her since they were killed over a month ago. Hala lost both her parents, her 3 sisters, her grandparents, her two aunts, three uncles and all of her cousins that were in that house. I have thought many times about what I would tell her when I call her for the first time. I haven’t spoken to my remaining family who are still alive for over two weeks until today. Because of the “fake truce” I managed to video call them today as they had internet connection for the first time. Hala was next to my uncle and saw my picture on the phone. I kept asking for her multiple times. She then took the phone and went into a dark room to talk with me alone. I froze. I just kept saying Habibti Hala I miss you so much I love you so much. I couldn’t mention her family, and I genuinely didn’t know what to say to an 8 year old who just lost her whole family. I just talked to her about how I want to visit her soon and how much I miss her and all the toys I bought for her and I asked her if she wants anything in particular and she told me “I just want to see you and come live with you far away.” It broke me so much. I held my tears inside my chest and wondered what on earth did this little girl do to deserve all of this pain. I kept trying to think of things that will excite her but she was very quiet, not the Hala I once knew. Not the happy Hala who gets excited at the most simple things. Not the Hala that laughs with her whole heart, but a new Hala who’s barely able to smile. I told her I’ll take you to the best amusement park and she was shocked and said “oh you have that there?” Her little brain cannot comprehend that life is normal outside her home. All she can picture is destruction, bombs and dead parents and sisters. I wish I can hide this little girl in my heart from this cruel world forever. Hala is one story only, there’s more than 1 million children in Gaza who’ll grow up with so much trauma and unimaginable losses. Our hearts cannot bear all of this pain.