27-year-old Chigoziem Emereuwa lost her entire family to a car crash that claimed all her siblings and both parents on the 17th of August 2001, but she is now prepped to graduate with a PhD in pure mathematics from the University of Pretoria, South Africa.
In an interview with Flourish Africa, she recounted how the tragic incident occurred. According to her, “I only remember being in the back seat, playing a travel game with my sister and then waking up in hospital.I don’t recall any form of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as my paternal family made sure I wasn’t alone, I didn’t even get a chance to mourn properly. It seemed like the loss hit my aunts more than it did me so I had to be strong.
However, my grades did go down and my mom was no longer there to push me. I felt no urge to work hard since I had learnt that you could lose everything in a second so, why bother?”
As she gets older, Chigo has found support in good friends, cousins that have become siblings and a constant reassurance that no matter what happens, everything works out in the end.
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