Living, Working, and Breaking Down in Dubai – My Truth with Hashimoto’s
First, I want to thank myself for simply being here — alive
and still standing. There was a time when I truly wished I had never been born.
And you know what? When you’re mentally and emotionally down, those thoughts
can creep in. It’s more common than we think. But if you’re someone who’s still
struggling and still trying — still showing up — then be proud of yourself. One
day, you’re going to win.
So, let me take you back to what happened after we moved to
Dubai.
As I mentioned in my previous blog, I arrived in Dubai in
August 2022 on a visit visa. By the end of September, I landed my very first
job as a Guest Service Agent at a five-star hotel. At the time, we were living
in a partition — basically, a flat divided into small rooms using boards. You
have your own space, but it’s not entirely private. You can hear noise from
other rooms and share the common AC, bathrooms, and kitchen.
At first, food wasn’t a big concern, as I usually had my
lunch at the hotel cafeteria. After work, my husband and I loved stepping out
for fresh air. Sitting in the office all day is draining, so we’d often grab a
shawarma or some grilled chicken in the evening. I didn’t cook much at home
because I didn’t have the motivation or energy to cook after returning from
work.
As we are coming from a middle-class family in
Sri Lanka, we mostly ate home-cooked meals. Fast food like KFC or McDonald’s
was only for special occasions, like birthdays. But in Dubai, fast food and
sweets are everywhere — it’s so easy to fall into that habit. Still, you do get
tired of it eventually and start missing mom’s cooking.
Life went on like that for a while, until July 2023. That’s
when I fell off an electric scooter and dislocated my right shoulder. I had to
rest for a month, keeping my arm in a sling even afterward for some time.
And guess what? Before the accident, I weighed about 62 kg.
Just two months later, I’d reached 70 kg. That’s an 8 kg gain — in no time.
I had joined a gym earlier that year, around March or April,
but after the accident, I wasn’t allowed to lift anything heavy for 4–6 months.
Then my 7-month gym membership expired, and honestly, I had zero motivation to
return.
As I neared my one-year mark at the hotel, I felt totally
drained. Even though my job was mostly sitting at a desk, I had no energy left
after work — not even to cook. I thought maybe I was just bored of the same
routine, so I started applying for other jobs.
That’s when I got my second job in Dubai — as a barista
starter at Costa Coffee.
I was so happy! It might sound small, but I had always
dreamed of working in a café. I loved those teenage movies where girls work
part-time in cute cafés while studying. It looked so fun and cozy — and now I
was finally living that dream.
But after around three months, exhaustion crept in again. I
was on my feet all day, learning everything from scratch. I had no experience
in coffee making, so I started with basic cleaning tasks. Some days, I had to
mop the floor by myself alone. The seniors would teach us how to make coffee in
between. By then, I had completely stopped cooking at home. I had no energy to
even shower some nights — I’d sleep in my uniform and wake up feeling just as
drained.
Eventually, I realized that the barista job wasn’t a good
fit for my body. I had to quit, but we weren’t financially stable, so I
couldn’t stop working either. I must say that I had a very good experience at
Costa Coffee, and I learned a totally different side — Coffee and I loved it!
I started job hunting again.
(Oh wow, this post is getting longer than I thought! But I
really wanted to tell you everything like a story — not just give dry facts. I
want you to understand my life through these moments.)
After about four months at Costa Coffee, I got my third job
in Dubai — this time as a Reservation Agent at Emirates Golf Club (Dubai Golf).
I still remember walking through the green field to the office for my interview
— it felt so peaceful. The staff were friendly and so welcoming, and I really
wanted that job so badly. I miss that place a lot now since I resigned.
I started there in April 2024, and although the probation
period was six months, I got confirmed as a permanent employee in just three. I
genuinely loved my work and felt excited to grow there.
By August, I began learning something new — a customer
service assistance role for their mobile app. It was different from
reservations. Customers could book golf courses through the app, and we handled
the calls and emails when something went wrong — login issues, payment
problems, missing membership info, etc. It was a big responsibility, and I
loved it!
At the time, only one other colleague was handling that
part, aside from the supervisor. The rest of the team managed reservations and
sales. Then, that colleague resigned suddenly, and my supervisor and I had to
take over everything. I also learned to create reports, had to join meetings —
which was completely new to me — and managed even more responsibilities. But I
truly enjoyed it, and I learned a lot.
That’s how much I loved the job: I started missing my
lunches. I’d stay at my desk for hours, only getting up once or eating lunch
around 3 or 4 p.m. Still, I didn’t complain because I loved working hard. My
boss found out, I wasn’t eating on time and always started
reminding me: “Sam! Did you have lunch? Please go and eat. Do not miss your
lunch.” The team was supportive, and I was so happy to be there.
But then, I started getting sick more often. I’d feel dizzy
in the shower, like I couldn’t keep my balance, and I was scared I might fall.
I had terrible headaches — 3 to 4 times a week.
When I was first diagnosed with Hashimoto’s five years ago,
I had started to experience headaches too. I went to the doctor and, after
checking my eyes and symptoms, he prescribed migraine medicine. I didn’t think
much of it at the time.
But by the end of 2025, around November, I realized — I
really needed to check on my health. I was scared my body might give up.
I went to a general physician, told them all my symptoms,
and was referred to both an ENT doctor and a neurologist. My headaches had
become too serious. Even though my GP wanted me to get an MRI, we had to take several steps to make sure the insurance would cover it — otherwise, they
might reject the request.
So, when I visited the ENT doctor, she carefully examined my
eyes, ears, nose, and throat. After the checkup, she mentioned that everything
seemed fine externally and there wasn’t anything obviously wrong with those areas. However, she suspected that my ongoing headaches could be related to my
thyroid and suggested running some specific tests to get a clearer picture.
These were the tests she recommended:
- TSH
- Free
T4
- Anti-Thyroglobulin
Antibody (A-TG)
- Anti-Microsomal
Antibody
- Neck
Ultrasound
That moment really felt like a turning point — like I was
finally getting closer to some real answers. It was also the beginning of a new
phase in my health journey, one that brought both clarity and even more
questions.
I know this blog has turned out a bit longer than I
expected, so I’ll pause the story here for now. But in my next post, I’ll walk
you through the results of those tests and share how I finally discovered that
my hypothyroidism wasn’t just “hypothyroidism” — it was actually Hashimoto’s
all along.
Thank you so much for sticking with me through this part of
the journey. I hope you’ll come back for the next chapter — we’re getting to
the heart of it now.
Written by: Samadara Abeysinghe
© 2025 Life with Sama. All rights reserved.
This post is based on my personal experience and is intended for informational and emotional support purposes only.
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