As part of our work, we speak with people who work daily with vulnerable groups, support women and children, and help them overcome discrimination and trauma. Our interviewee, Inna Nehoda, is a psychologist, human rights advocate, and anti-discrimination trainer. Since 2009, she has worked in Ukraine’s civil society sector; for more than ten years, her primary place of work was with the NGO «100% LIFE» (Kyiv Region).” She also served as a regional representative of “VOLNa” (the All-Ukrainian Association of People with Drug Addiction) and collaborated with “Free Zone,” engaging for years in advocacy and projects focused on people in places of detention. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, she has been living and working in Germany, where she supports the Ukrainian community — from women to teenagers.
When russia launched its full-scale invasion, Inna was eight months pregnant. She left Kyiv with her two children, hoping to give birth in safety. She assumed she would return soon — but life unfolded differently. In the small town of Schwarmstedt near Hanover, where Inna settled, she noticed that Ukrainians were completely disoriented: people struggled with paperwork, didn’t know the language, and had nowhere to gather. “I saw Ukrainians just wandering around the streets. Nowhere to meet, no one to ask for advice. Complete chaos.” She decided to act: she found partners, wrote a small project, and founded the Ukrainian club “Offene Herzen” in Schwarmstedt. “My husband and I went to the migration office, took the forms, and asked them to show us how to fill everything out. We said: we’re going to help people.” The club quickly became a space for connection, mutual support, and integration for both adults and children. It has now been operating for more than two and a half years.
At the same time, Inna began working as a trainer at the Ukrainischen Verein in Niedersachsen e. V in Hanover. Over the course of a year, nearly 500 Ukrainian women attended her trainings on discrimination and bullying. The issues they bring most often involve psychological and emotional violence. “Mobbing is very widespread here — both among adults and teens. And often it’s not coming from Germans, but from other migrant groups.”
Teenagers’ stories are the ones that affect her the most. She recalls a girl who became afraid to leave her home: “She was scared to walk down the street. It was no longer just about a few boys — it was fear of all people. She felt like everyone was watching, everyone was following her.” The police did not help in that case — but psychological support, trauma-informed work and time eventually made a difference: “We got through it, and she grew past it.”
When asked why women are often afraid to seek help when facing violence or discrimination, Inna identifies three main reasons: lack of language skills, lack of knowledge of the law, and a lost belief that anyone will help them. “Ninety-nine percent of people never planned to leave. They’re traumatized. They don’t believe they can prove anything or that anyone will defend them.” Some have even experienced the police refusing help — which reinforces fear of institutions.
Inna’s message is always the same: “To say ‘I won’t achieve anything,’ you at least need to try. If every woman stays silent — nothing will ever change.” But she adds that before entering long legal processes, people need to regain inner strength. “Sometimes psychological support has to come first. Because writing reports, learning the laws, making calls, going to offices — it all takes enormous resources.”
She notes an increase in divorces among Ukrainian women abroad, many of whom are raising children alone — a situation that adds stress, isolation, and vulnerability. At the same time, Inna leads support groups for women in Hanover and works with teenagers and adults who have lived through difficult, sometimes traumatic events. “I work with people who have gone through challenging or traumatic experiences and are now looking for ways to regain stability, resources, and trust in life,” she explains. “When I’m in motion — I live. When I stop — I don’t feel well.” She is sustained by her work, learning, community, and the support of her husband. “When you see that someone truly needs your help… it’s incredibly motivating.”
At the end of our conversation, we asked if she fears burnout. Her response perfectly captures her worldview: “The more I do, the easier it becomes.”
It is especially important to hear stories like Inna’s — not only about dramatic cases of physical violence, but about the quiet, everyday forms of exclusion, isolation, and bullying; about how these experiences shape the lives of women and children who have survived war and forced migration. And, at the same time, about the strength of community, the importance of knowing one’s rights, and the fact that support exists, even where it may be least expected.
Inna says: “If you have even a little bit of strength — try to reach out for help. It might save not only your life but someone else’s as well.” And these words underline the central truth: in the fight against any form of violence, the first step is to stop being silent.
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This publication was prepared within the framework of the project “From heart to heart” in partnership with Zjednoczenie Pozytywni w Tęczy and Step by Step Fundacja, with financial support from the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
