Often I think back to Ghana and in my mind I'm with my beloved family. I have terrible homesickness. I want to see the faces of my children and husband and hold them in my arms. In Ghana, I have studied for becoming a nurse and that's a wonderful profession. I worked with heart and soul and this job gave me great pleasure. In Ghana, I had a wonderful life and I could help my family and other relatives. I'm strong, young and more than willing to work but nobody wants to give me a job in the Netherlands because I have no residence permit. All day I have nothing to do and that is so frustrating. This is a terrible situation. When I wake up in the morning I am already tired before the day will begin. People told me that Europe is a paradise but that is not true at all. 

Lonely
Especially when I am sick I feel very lonely. The doctors or hospitals will not help me because I'm not insured. In the Netherlands you need a residence permit in order to obtain a health insurance. And without this insurance the hospital will refuse to treat you. I heard from other Ghanaian women a sad story about a pregnant woman. She was feeling very sick and was also bleeding. They went to the hospital with her but they send her away because she had no insurance. The other Ghanaian women wanted to pay cash for her treatment but the hospital refused. If this had happened in Ghana than the pregnant woman would have been certainly helped by the doctors. They would not have asked for an insurance number. And if there was offered to pay in cash then that would be accepted at all times. The important thing would be to get the pregnant woman better.

Great disappointment
In the meantime I've met this pregnant woman and I do not know whether she will survive. She was very ill and I have tried what I could as a nurse. But I do not have the right equipment and medication. It broke my heart but I could not do anything more. I want to warn anyone who thinks that Europe is a paradise. There are so many rules and laws and nobody told me about this. It is extremely difficult to build an existence or obtain a job. I'm desperate and I cry all day long. I can still return to Ghana but I am afraid that my family and relatives will be greatly disappointed in me. That is why I stay here, but I do not know if I can live like this any longer.