Ukrainian outlet publishes refugee's personal account of four years in the US
Ukrainska Pravda has published a Ukrainian woman's personal testimony about four years as a war refugee in the US, alongside data showing 5.6 million Ukrainian war refugees currently live abroad. The account describes the psychological toll of adapting abroad before she eventually returned to Ukraine.
Ukrainian outlet Ukrainska Pravda has published an extensive personal testimony from a Ukrainian woman describing her experience as a war refugee, from fleeing in April 2022 to returning to Ukraine after four years in the United States.
The piece cites data from the Center for Economic Strategy showing that as of early 2026, 5.6 million Ukrainian war refugees were living abroad. Most found shelter in Europe, while only about 5% settled in the United States.
Fleeing after Bucha
The author says she left Odesa on the 45th day of the war, on April 8, 2022, after learning of the atrocities in Bucha. She describes the decision as conflicted — a necessary escape on one hand, and a source of guilt on the other, toward those who stayed behind in Ukraine.
Life abroad and the return
The testimony details a difficult adaptation process in the new host country — a sense of lost identity, guilt toward those who remained under shelling in Ukraine, and the struggle of adjusting to an unfamiliar culture. Part of the account also reflects on daily life in New York, specifically the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn, where she lived with her family.
After four years in the US, the author decided to return to Ukraine. The outlet notes that similar feelings — of not fully belonging either in the host country or back home — are shared by many of the millions of Ukrainians scattered around the world since February 24, 2022.
