"If you don't talk the problem just continues"

It is 2023 when 24-year-old Fatma contacts Amaryllis. She has not been paying rent for several months. Through Amaryllis, she gets in touch with social worker Tina. After a while, Fatma becomes pregnant and moves in with her then-boyfriend. "When I started living together, I was very happy with the house. 'Life will be easy,' I thought. But it didn't go as easy as thought," Fatma says.

The first month in the new house, everything was stable. There may have been debts, but agreements had been made with those organisations about repayments. Everything seemed to be going well. Unfortunately, this was not long-lasting. Fatma lost her job and there were a lot of bills she couldn't pay. Her boyfriend helps to pay the bills, but after a while they split up.

Fatma tells how she came to Amaryllis: "Through Google I was looking for help with money, that's how I came across Amaryllis and called the number. Everything was difficult and I didn't know where to start."

"Fatma was very closed when I first met her," Tina recounts. "I kept everything inside and couldn't talk about the debts. Thanks to Tina, I gained more confidence, because of this I started sharing more and more things about my situation. She really helped me," Fatma explains. Tina noticed from everything that Fatma really wanted to change, but she just didn't know how. That was where Tina could successfully help. For instance, she researched the amount of debt. Together, debt arrangements were made and the two made many phone calls to help Fatma become more independent.

Tina found out about Fatma's eligibility for visits to the Meeting Centre for Young Parents (OJO). "I used to just be at home all week, since I discovered OJO I have been there every Tuesday and Thursday. I have met many new people and I look forward to it every week." The basis for Fatma was financial assistance, but this way she got help for different areas of life.

Tina looks back on the past period: "At first I saw that Fatma was very shy. Her boyfriend arranged a lot for her. Now I really see before me a confident woman who arranges everything herself and wants to have her own life in order." Fatma herself completely agrees: "I take action right away now if there is something wrong with me, I didn't before."

How Fatma envisions the future? "In the future, I want to be debt-free and take up studies again. I want to do nursing, because I want to help people."

Are you in a similar situation to Fatma? If so, she has some advice. "You have to talk, you don't have to be quiet. If you don't talk, the problem just continues."