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Housing Services Testimonies
In their own words..
"When my husband and I married everything was going well and I was very happy, but then he left his job to open a café, his family started to live with us and he started to change.
At first the way he was towards me, the way he treated me and spoke to me changed, soon afterwards he became verbally abusive and then he started physically abusing me.
It was a very difficult time for me. I was very unhappy and felt really alone with nowhere to turn to for any support. I couldn’t sleep properly or eat, I lost so much weight. I would end up sleeping on the café table for days because regularly he would beat me up and throw me out onto the streets in the cold and rain. Whilst working at the café, I met a woman who I used to talk to. She was staying at the nia project and gave me their tel. number and said that they help me.
Although I kept the number, I was too scared to call it until one day after my husband sold the café; he beat me up and through me out on the street again. I had nowhere to go; I stayed at a friend’s house discreetly whilst her partner was away. Whilst there I found out I was pregnant and knew I had to do something because I didn’t want my baby to grow up in that kind of environment, so I called the nia project.
I spoke to a woman on the tel. who was very encouraging and helpful. She found me a refuge space with the nia project and I went there. I met the refuge worker there who was warm and friendly. That night, for the first time in years I felt safe and slept comfortably. In the morning when I woke I met the refuge worker again. She was my key worker. She gave me lots of information and re-assured me of all the support I would receive.
I cried for a long time whilst at the Refuge, especially during key work sessions, I felt like I had years of anger, pain and frustration inside that I had to let out. I would feel so drained after crying. I started to feel good about myself again, I started to feel less guilty and more confident and I didn’t feel alone anymore. I received lots of emotional and practical support from the nia project, they also got me re-housed.
I am now living happily with my new born baby in a safe place. I feel that I am where I am today because of everything the nia project did for me and I am thankful to its existence and its staff. I think it is the place where women should be because it is safe, warm and friendly"