Middle East and North Africa prayer tree

‘My children had been greatly affected by the war, so I decided to bring them to Jordan so that they could see better days,’ she says.

For years, she had pretended to her young children that the explosions they heard were fireworks. There was nothing to worry about.

‘The straw that broke the camel’s back was when they bombed the house next door and I couldn’t pretend anymore,’ she says.

Alone in Jordan, she found herself ‘broken and aggressive’. Now, she says, she’s able to cope better thanks to the trauma healing course. ‘It affected me greatly, just knowing how to deal with my anger.

‘At first we used to ask God, “Why are you leaving us? Why are you putting us through this?” But I’ve learned that God will get us through this in the end. He cares for us.’

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‘It was emotionally exhausting,’ she says. ‘We got to the point where we didn’t have food and my littlest child had a rash on her arms because she was so afraid of the bombing.’

Once in the town of Madaba in Jordan, the family began attending the local church, and the children took part in a special trauma healing course.

‘The pastor did the trauma healing with them and drew the feelings out of the children,’ says Wedad. ‘As soon as he helped the children I felt a lot better.

‘The best thing is that they have love now. Now, they also sleep. I’m thrilled to see the children doing as well as they are now, playing and singing. I’m very grateful.’

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‘It took a terrible toll,’ says Zubaida. ‘I used to sleep sitting up and my children slept wearing their jackets, with their bags ready next to the door because as soon as we would hear any shotguns, we would be ready to move. It was emotionally exhausting.’

The war traumatised her children, particularly 13-year-old Abdul, who says he loves football, particularly Cristiano Ronaldo.

But he’s not like other young boys. He has been paralysed by fear. ‘I used to be very scared of the shotguns,’ he says, crying. ‘My legs used to hurt a lot and I felt like I would fall down on the floor.

‘My dad used to carry me and my mother used to run away with the rest of the kids.’

The family now lives in Irbid in northern Jordan. They are among 10,000 who have received trauma healing.

‘The trauma healing was of great benefit for me,’ says Zubaida. ‘I used to be very aggressive with my children and with everyone around me. But as soon as I started the sessions I started having more patience.

‘I learned that I should forgive,’ she adds. ‘God is forgiving, so I should forgive.

‘Yes, I can forgive the people who caused the war because I know that God has my back.’

Pray for Zubaida by adding a prayer leaf to our tree