Yevgeny was diagnosed with vasomotor rhinitis more than 10 years ago, but his condition has only worsened. He now needs surgery, but he has to pay for it himself.
Yevgeny’s story began, as he describes it himself, when he took to the streets to protest in Minsk in the summer of 2020, after Viktar Babaryka was not registered to participate in the election. Yevgeny was detained then, and a few days later at Okrestina he was fined. The protests continued after the election, and Yevgeny decided to leave:
– I couldn’t just sit and keep silent, and I understood that in Belarus I would end up either in prison or dead. I gathered all my belongings and left for Odesa by bus. Every Sunday, I took part in Belarusians’ protests, and I worked. When the war started, I stayed in Ukraine and did some volunteering, especially at the beginning. I didn’t want to leave, and I didn’t really have the opportunity to.
In 2022, a criminal case was opened against me and I was put on a wanted list. Then I was left without a passport — my old one expired, and I cannot get a new one. I remain in Ukraine and live as best I can.
Without proper documents, it is harder to deal with my old health problem. I have had chronic vasomotor rhinitis for more than ten years. Back in Vitebsk in 2011, I underwent surgery, but it had no effect.
You can live with this diagnosis. But I have now developed sleep apnea (a complete, brief cessation of breathing), which causes severe headaches up to five days a week. And it starts first thing in the morning: you wake up and your head feels like it’s made of “cast iron.” Sometimes I take 4–6 pills to make it go away, and I try to alternate painkillers so as not to harm my liver as much. But this cannot go on indefinitely.
I consulted an ENT specialist in Odesa, and he recommends surgery. The apnea is progressing, and sometimes I can go for hours without breathing at all during the night. This is very risky.
But given my situation with expired documents, I can only have the surgery if I pay for it entirely myself. Everything has to be paid for, from anaesthesia to recovery. I cannot afford the cost on my own; I live on odd jobs, because with an expired passport there are few places that will hire me.
I would be very grateful for your help.
Fundraising goal
€900 – surgery, hospital stay, and recovery