It's complicated living in Ukraine but danger isn't imminent – Vladyslav

“To be honest it's very complicated living here but the danger is not imminent. You have to learn how to live with the danger because of the air strikes, you just develop,” these are the words of Vladyslav, who despite having the thought of moving to another country stayed in Ukraine.

A lawyer by profession, he says that while the thought crossed his mind, he did not take any action because he realized that Kyiv would not fall in one day after he saw the efforts of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Speaking to the Star, he said that staying in his home country also gives him a sense of belonging.

He, however, notes that together with his wife, they left Kyiv for about a month before they returned.

The lawyer says that the president did not escape the country and this is almost mythological, the Military was fighting and the government was still in Kyiv, and this also played a part in him wanting to stay in Ukraine.

“There was only a very brief period when I considered leaving and it was the end of the first day, the beginning of the second day (February 25, 2022) I considered that I might want to get out illegally and it just slipped in my mind I did not take any actions I just thought about it,” he said.

Vladyslav adds that he also thought if everyone left, what would their soldiers be fighting for?

He was also quick to note that he does not judge those who choose to move to peaceful countries.

“People do what they have to. I wanted to send my wife across the border but she refused to leave… she said no I'm going to live in Ukraine. She's a very strong person who motivates and inspires me because she could leave this evening and go to whatever place she wants because as a woman she's allowed to but she chose to stay because this is her home. We started a family here and I think that's such a great commitment that she also transfers to me. I have no wish to leave now after seeing my wife doesn't want to either,” he says.

He says that before the full-scale invasion, he was considering getting a better-paying job outside of Ukraine but that is no longer the case.

Vladyslav adds that he prefers to be with the crowd that is fighting rather than the crowd that is running away and that despite not carrying a gun to defend his country, he is doing all that is within his powers to support those who are on the frontlines doing it.

“It takes 5 to 6 tax-paying civilians to support 1 soldier and even though it's hard and you feel like you don't do enough many times a day, there's a sense of belonging and contribution to this,” Vladyslav says.

Saturday (February 24) will mark two years since the beginning of Russia’s full invasion of Ukraine.

While the Russo-Ukrainian war officially began in 2014 when Russia annexed the Crimea region and Ukraine responded with military power, the full invasion (February 24, 2022) followed years of what allies of Ukraine including the European Union, NATO and the United States among others thought was just a bluff.

While many hoped that by now the war should have toned down and a way found to stop the fighting, that is still not the case.

Ukraine has been persistent in defending their country and the Russian Federation has also been persistent in their offensive against Ukraine. 

Vladyslav says with the war on, each month, as a Kyiv resident and because of the missile, rocket and drone strikes, they averagely spend 4-5 nights in shelters every month. He, however, notes that it also depends mostly on how the attacks come in.

“There are some days for three days straight you go to the shelter and there's one day they break then you go through this so it's very different. It depends on how Russia how Russia targets you,” he says.

On whether life will ever be the same for Ukrainians, he says that it will not. He reiterates that this will be the case even for those who left the country at the beginning of the war.

He adds that for anyone who has ever heard at least one explosion, he does not think it will be the same.

The lawyer, however, notes that people have different coping mechanisms and different stress levels they can tolerate.

He admits that while the war has taken a toll on the mental health of many Ukrainians, he is glad that the people and soldiers are still hanging on, 730 days later.

He notes that for him, it is like his feelings have gone numb and he can’t feel strong positive and negative emotions.

“I think I have some mild form of Post-traumatic stress disorder that I'm managing. I'm probably going to see a therapist about this but for me, it's just because of waking up in the night to the explosions. I cannot fall asleep deeply. I need to see a therapist earlier than the war ends. I can't sleep through the night it's a bit harder now that we have the baby,” Vladyslav says.

“Even in the military the PTSD with soldiers is so bad. Civilians in cities like Odesa or Kharkiv are closer, there are towns and villages closer to the frontline, I don't think those people will ever be the same, to be honest. In the West of Ukraine, I think it's the same even where the missiles are not landing that much there are just so many families that have lost their loved ones.”

The lawyer also tells the Star that he has full confidence in the leadership of President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, General Oleksandr Syrskyi.

He says that he believes Zelensky is 99 per cent of the time doing what is right for the people of Ukraine but admits that he is human and managing people can sometimes be difficult, which is why questions on things like corruption have to come up and changes made.

He said that while people from different parts of the world forced Ukraine to consider a truce with Russia and essentially to give away part of its territories for a ceasefire, President Zelensky has strongly held them since day one and he keeps holding it.

“Any person who has had to manage a team of at least two other people would know how hard it is to manage people and you know. People are people they do stuff on their own you know it's hard and he manages the whole country, he manages to hold the presidential branch of the government or the executive branch,” he says.

One of the biggest fears he has now is if his child will be able to grow up in his home country. Vladyslav says that they initially planned to have a child after the war was over but it took too long.

He said that there was no sight of a civil end to the war and they didn’t know for how long they would have to wait and decided to have the kid despite all the things.

“Life should go on and at this point, I think we can relatively care for our safety but what happens next year I don’t know. Our horizon of planning is like a month from now. We don't plan for eight years, just trying to get by, day by day,” he tells The Star.

To keep memories of what they have gone through the last two years, Vladyslav says he tries to take as many pictures as he can to keep the memories for his child and the coming generations.

He also notes that sometimes it is hard to do it, “It's hard to document at the moment because you don't want to take pictures of you struggling or other people struggling but I try to do it sometimes.”

I asked him if he would volunteer to join the Ukrainian Army to help defend his country should the need come, Vladyslav responded saying that if that day comes he hopes that he can use his skills to help the army instead of just fighting in the trenches.

“I hope that I will be able to do my best if that call comes.”