Living with Loss in Wartime Ukraine Raises Complex Emotional Resilience Issues

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A Grave Reality: Ukraine’s War-Weary Population Copes with Loss and Uncertainty

In western Ukraine, a 20-year-old student named Anastasiya Buchkouska tends to her father’s grave at Lychakiv Cemetery. The photograph on his gravestone bears a striking resemblance to hers. Buchkouska’s father was a military veteran who served during the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. He was called up immediately and sent to the front line, with sporadic contact with his family until September 2022, when he was officially listed as missing.

When confirmation of his death came, Buchkouska experienced intense grief but also had to cope with the demands of war. Her uncle was killed around the same time, and she focused on caring for her grandmother, who struggled to cope with the loss. In quieter moments, Buchkouska broke down into tears but tried to stay strong.

The Russian invasion has resulted in a significant number of deaths and injuries in Ukraine. According to the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, 2,514 civilians were killed and 12,142 others injured in 2025 alone. The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates that nearly two million Ukrainian and Russian soldiers have been killed, wounded, or gone missing since the start of the invasion.

The human toll of the war is evident, with many people living with amputations and psychological trauma. The economic impact of the war remains uncertain, with questions about job security and decent pay hanging over the population. For those affected by the conflict, daily life is marked by uncertainty and fear.

“Living during a war means living in complete uncertainty,” said Oleksandra Matviichuk, a human rights activist at the Center for Civil Liberties. “There is no safe place in Ukraine where you can hide from Russian missiles.” The constant threat of attack has become a defining feature of daily existence, with people regularly woken up to mass strikes by Russia.

According to Sabine Freizer Gune, the UN Women’s representative in Ukraine, “pretty much everybody” in the country is struggling with mental health issues. In eastern Ukraine and big cities like Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Odesa, people are frequently targeted by Russian forces, leaving them without a sense of safety or security.

Source: Al Jazeera