A Story of Resilience – Inspiration for Some
“He is the One who created death and life to test you as to which of you is best in deed.”
(Surah Al-Mulk 67:2)
“Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear.”
(Surah Al-Baqarah 2:286)
“Indeed, with hardship comes ease.”
(Surah Ash-Sharh 94:6)
“Seek help through patience and prayer.”
(Surah Al-Baqarah 2:45)
A Story of Resilience
Before the pandemic, Zaynab arrived in the UK with a suitcase, a CV, and the quiet certainty that effort is never lost with Allah.
The first job she found wasn’t at her level, but it was the best option on the table. The workday was “nine to five” on paper; in reality, it was a long choreography of unreliable buses, sore feet, and a manager who seemed to misplace kindness. Her colleagues were gems, but her body and mind paid the price. After a year, she knew she had to move.
The next role felt like air — reputable place, great team — except for the two-hour commute each way. Still, goodness in the workplace can carry a person far. Then COVID hit. The world closed its doors, and though her job survived, her curiosity for growth began to whisper again: What about a PhD?
She applied to a world-renowned institute. She got in.
The PhD Journey
At first, everything looked promising. But soon the ground shifted. Expectations swelled, weekends vanished, and the old scars of trauma reopened. The supervisory relationship broke down. HR stepped in, and a temporary supervisor was assigned to steady the ship while mediation took place. It helped, but only as a bridge — not a home.
In the end, the institute agreed that she should transfer to a new lab and project. The first lab would later shut down entirely.
At her new lab, Supervisor 3 welcomed her warmly, and the work began to breathe again. But just when things seemed stable, another gust: a financial crisis. Her supervisor faced redundancy. Zaynab stared at the cliff’s edge for the second time in two years.
She chose, again, not to let go.
The institute stepped in — clock extended, funding secured — five years in total, not the standard three. To keep the science moving, Supervisor 3 introduced Supervisor 4, a senior expert in the field. She learned a lot in those months, but time is a river; Supervisor 4 retired during her PhD. The baton passed once more, to Supervisor 5, who guided her to the finish line.
In total, Zaynab had five supervisors:
- The original in Lab 1
- The temporary supervisor during the breakdown
- The new lab lead
- The senior scholar who retired
- The final supervisor who saw her through
More Tests, More Strength
As if the academic turbulence wasn’t enough, life added more weight to the bar. A confirmed genetic condition linked to inflammatory arthritis. Injections twice a month — for life. All this on top of a handful of long-term conditions she was already managing.
Some days, getting to the lab was the experiment.
And yet the pages turned. Results came. Papers were written and accepted within the time she had. She walked into her viva the way she had walked into every hard day — with sabr (patience) and tawakkul (trust).
She aced it. The thesis was defended. The PhD — completed.
Lessons in Faith and Perseverance
If you skim her story, it looks like a sequence of obstacles and extensions.
If you sit with it, you hear a heartbeat: try, stumble, lean on Allah, stand again — repeat.
The Qur’an’s promise is not that hardship disappears, but that ease accompanies it — sometimes as a timely mentor, sometimes as an institutional concession, and sometimes as the strange peace that lets you do tomorrow what felt impossible today.
For anyone in the thick of it: better days are planted in the soil of these ones.
Hold fast to patience and prayer.
Allah sees you, knows the weight you carry, and — as He promised —
“Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear.”
(Surah Al-Baqarah 2:286)
Alhamdulillah. Indeed, with hardship comes ease.
(Surah Ash-Sharh 94:6)
