Ruslan (name changed) is 22 years old. Behind him are the early death of his mother, a difficult heart surgery, and several years of drug use.
“My mom died when I was seven. After that, I lived with a foster family,” — Ruslan recalls.
From birth, he had heart problems. As a teenager, doctors gave him a devastating diagnosis, saying he had only about a month to live. His foster family did everything possible to get him a life-saving surgery.
“When I turned 14, I decided I was the master of my own life and would live however I wanted. That’s when I started using drugs,” — he says. — “At that time, I didn’t understand all the risks. I just wanted to look cool.”
When Ruslan turned 19, he realized it was time to stop.
“I went to a rehabilitation center. I haven’t used drugs for two years and six months now,” — he shares proudly.
Today, Ruslan regularly meets with project psychologist Ivan Lobchuk as part of the “Integrated Humanitarian Response in War and Post-War Recovery” initiative. He admits that for people struggling with addiction, every single day is a fight.
As a reminder, within this project, clients of the Rivne Regional Charitable Foundation “Our Future”, internally displaced persons, and people in difficult life circumstances can receive free consultations from a psychologist, a lawyer, and a family doctor.
In Ukraine, the project “Integrated Humanitarian Response in War and Post-War Recovery” is implemented by the Alliance for Public Health with financial support from the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC, UK) and technical support from the Christian Aid charity organization.
The project aims to support communities by meeting urgent humanitarian, social, and medical needs and helping people live with dignity amid crisis.
#OurFuture
Alliance for Public Health