The Power of Receiving: A Lesson from the Ebola Outbreak in Sierra Leone

The Ebola outbreak, spanning from 2014 to 2016, marked one of the most challenging humanitarian missions of my career. In the heart of Sierra Leone’s Ebola outbreak, where chaos and suffering were all around, I learned an important lesson about receiving love.

My experience taught me that to give love, you must first be open to receiving it.

Part of my role was connecting Ebola treatment centers with communities. We needed to build trust with community leaders, religious figures, and witch doctors. Traditional burial practices were significant contributors to the virus’s spread, making it crucial to work with influential figures for alternative funeral ceremonies.

Most of the cases were spread because of the burial practices where the whole community would wash the body of the dead. With Ebola, once the patient dies, that’s when the viral load is the highest, and so whole communities would get infected with this disease that had a 60-70% fatality rate. Furthermore, they believed that if they didn’t clean the dead and bury them correctly, then the deceased would haunt them and future generations.

That is why it was so important to work with the religious leaders and witch doctors in coming up with alternative funeral ceremonies and treatment of the sick. But in doing so, there was constant stress that we ourselves would contract

Ebola since it was impossible not to interact with people, and often children would come running up to hug you. Ebola symptoms are the same as almost every common disease you can get there (the flu, malaria, dengue), including food poisoning. I got food poisoning five times in the two years I was there, but each time I had to be quarantined.

People in hazmat suits would take a blood sample, and I had to face the reality that I might die. The eroding from this fear of being on the brink of death and witnessing thousands of others on the brink of death, or others who were the sole survivor of large families, was immensely depleting of my heart.

I was in charge of creating programs to give psychosocial support to communities, Ebola workers, and Ebola survivors who were often ostracized from their families for fear of Ebola. Then, on top of my day job, I also provided counseling for humanitarians who were suffering from PTSD or severe burnout because of their work since the beginning of the outbreak.

My brain knew that we couldn’t help everyone, but my heart was breaking at seeing all the pain and death.

Acceptance and receiving love became essential for my resilience. The fear of death, coupled with daily potential risks, and regular quarantine. My heart was worn down by exposure to pain and death and needed replenishing.

I developed daily practices, like accepting energy and love from the universe. These became my lifeline. These rituals enabled me to provide support to communities, Ebola workers, and survivors.

Acceptance proved transformative, overcoming initial vulnerability and fear of dependence. Understanding the infinite nature of the universe’s love eased these concerns.

The journey of acceptance and receiving became the foundation of my ability to give back. It sustained my work, eventually earning me a medal of honor from the Canadian government. This experience affirmed that to radiate love, one must first be capable of accepting it.

Being capable of such love provided a profound shield against rejection or abandonment. Faced with infinite love, resilience and strength in battling the Ebola outbreak and other humanitarian challenges weren’t just duties but a testament to the transformative power of giving and receiving love.

To read more about my journey of choosing love over fear through my life and career, check out my book: The Good Thing About Mortar Shells.

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