During the full-scale invasion, Iryna lived in Slovenia. Her mother was in Mariupol. But she refused her daughter's offer to leave the city.

“On March 1, my mother congratulated me on my birthday. And then the connection was lost. In June, I received information that my mother was seen alive. At the end of June, she called me. The house was damaged. During the summer, I persuaded my mother to leave. Only in September she agree.

Long filtration in Tahanroh. 11 days to Slovenia. My mother arrived very thin. She looked 10 years older. But she held on. She asked me to cook borsch. I didn't ask her about it. It was a traumatic experience. After 3 months, in December 2022, my mother returned to Mariupol. They were scared that they would take away the apartment. I was crying, I didn't want to let her go. The square meters were not worth going back there.

In December 2023, she developed lung problems. My mother was hospitalized. In January 2024, they found ulcers in her stomach. They tried to operate. But they failed. Her hemoglobin dropped. On January 20, my mother died. She was 66 years old. This is not the right age to die. On January 13, she called for the last time. We were planning to move her here. In February.

They couldn't bury my mother for a long time. The mortality rate is high. Services do not have time to dig graves. There are many elderly people there. Without proper medical care. It's terrible,” said Iryna.