My dear friends,

I am writing to you with my deepest thanks for the emotional support you gave me a few weeks ago. I know my thank you is late, but recovery has been up and down. At least now, I can say that I am definitely improving.

Your incredible support truly overwhelmed me. When I messaged you, I hoped some of you might write in to help me, but I didn’t expect so many of you. It was amazing to experience such a response at time when I felt so broken and very alone. 

I was deeply affected by your sentiments, your insight, your advice, the experiences some of you shared, and by hearing about your lives. Many of you wrote very touching messages that brought tears to my eyes. Some of you wrote profound words of wisdom – I’ve put some of those messages at the bottom of this page for everyone to read. Some of you shared how your lives have changed and improved since conquering IELTS – that really warmed my heart. Also, I know some of you were struggling yourselves with pain, loss and grief. I do very much hope this message finds you in a better place emotionally and on the path to healing.

And there were some of you who wrote humorous messages that actually had me laughing out loud on one of my worst days. I’d like to thank Zeeshan for his fantastic “Legend of a Kidney Stone” – if you have a subscription, I’ll sign up! You nailed my humour! And Enrique who wrote about how as a teacher, he had once told a student that “sleeping on it” was a great way to solve a problem. The student had then asked if they should put the test under their pillow. Brilliant!

You all helped me so much. Not only by the content of your messages, but also by the time and effort you took to reply. It felt like so many wonderful hugs coming into my life. Thank you. I wish I had the words to describe how impactful that was, particularly for someone like me who has lived alone so long.

Yes, you all helped me get my vision back. I now see the impact my work has and I can’t wait to carry on. But I will take a bit more rest before I start, just to give my body what it needs. And yes, my fire inside is starting to grow again. It feels good to see my way forward.

For anyone else who is struggling in life, I will say – reach out for support. It makes a huge difference. Even the strongest people need support from others, it is completely natural. But remember that when you do reach out, it will be at a vulnerable time in your life, so please reach out wisely and safely to people you know you can trust. I knew I was safe with all of you. I was right. Thank you!

Sharing Your Words of Wisdom

1. Pain may knock you down, but spirit picks you back up. (Zeeshan)
2. Strength is inspiring in itself. (Emmanuel)
3. Fighters fall. But fighters rise. Every time. (Miriam)
4. Fighters do survive, but they don’t have to fight alone. (Aylin)
5. Stand in front of the battle of life bravely with a smile. (Od)
6. You are stronger than you feel right now. (Amr)
7. The human body may be fragile, but the human spirit is absurdly tough. (Zeeshan)
8. To start running fast, sometimes we need to take a step back to gain momentum. (Minh Tuan)
9. Strengthen your inner voice and let it speak with positivity, resilience and hope. (Ahmed)
10. Even the strongest souls need time to breathe. (Obaydur)
11. Take things moment by moment. Even the tiniest spark is still fire – and yours is still burning. (Aylin)
12. Stay the course. You matter. (Mena)
13. Life is a journey with no guidelines. Live it freely. (Lin)
14. People deserve to improve the quality of their lives. (Palomino)
15. Life gives us moments when we need to redefine our paths. (Fiza)
16. We are so fortunate just to be alive. (Ekta)

     *  You are all my inspiration. *

Hi guys,

This is my personal story. I am sharing it with you to show how keeping positive, using time effectively and staying determined can change your life regardless of how difficult your situation might be right now. I hope my story will inspire you to be proactive and keep strong during the Coronavirus situation. Make a cup of tea, sit back and read about success through adversity 🙂

In 2013, my health collapsed. I became very seriously sick. I lost my job. I lost most of my money. I lost my friends. I lost my apartment. I lost my independence and even my freedom too. I was too sick to go outside. I was locked in. I struggled to walk around the house and all basic actions (even washing my hair) were very difficult. At times, just sitting in a chair was incredibly painful and I had to return to my bed to lie in isolation, darkness and silence. I couldn’t get food for myself. I struggled to speak easily. I was sick and seriously disabled.

The doctors told me there was nothing they could do to help me. They said I would probably be sick for quite a long time, but they couldn’t say how long or even if I would ever recover. My situation was similar to the uncertain situation many of you face today with Coronavirus. Feeling you have no control over your lives or your future. Watching all your dreams and plans disappearing and there’s nothing you can do. Feeling worried and alone. The feeling of isolation from the world became normal for me when I was sick. But I wasn’t facing months without work, without income, without health, without friends, without freedom – I was facing years or decades.

It took about a year of suffering for my health to improve enough for me to be able to sit on a sofa and use a laptop for 30 mins or 1 hour a day. I wanted to do something positive with my little bit of time. I started making plans for a website to give people free lessons for IELTS. But I was still so sick. It was all very difficult. I had no idea how to make a website, I wasn’t tech minded, but very slowly I learned. Typing was hard because I struggled to use my arms. My thinking was sluggish and difficult as well. I kept making mistakes, many mistakes, and getting stuck. After 6 months, I was well enough to make video lessons in a spare bedroom. I also didn’t know how to make or present videos, so that was another thing to learn. With each new thing I learned, I felt happy. My website and videos were all made entirely by myself while sick. By 2015 both my website and videos started to become popular.

I believe that each situation we face is a challenge. And many challenges have to be fought psychologically. Each day I woke up and decided – what single thing can I do today? I had little strength. But I did have determination, a strategic approach and a positive mindset to improve my life in small ways. My tips are:

1. Never wake up and compare your life today to what you had before or what you don’t have anymore or what other people have.
2. Try. Just because your dream seems distant or impossible right now, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. The more you try, the more doors open. You might just discover you have hidden gifts that you didn’t know about  🙂
3. Always find the positive in what you choose to do or what you must do. Your perspective matters. Smile and enjoy – it makes everything easier.
4. Don’t listen to negative voices in your head or from others. If you are surrounded by negativity, drown it out by filling your mind and life with positive thoughts. It isn’t easy. It’s a challenge, but you can do it. 
5. If things get hard for you, reach out to someone or find a solution. The very strongest and most success people are often those who have struggled or suffered. Make wise choices at tough times.
6. Don’t delay. None of us know what is round the corner. Use the uncertainty you find yourself in to remind yourself that time matters.
7. Life is a gift. Appreciate it. Like many gifts, there may be surprises inside 🙂 But don’t presume life is just a box to open, it is an opportunity and you are responsible to make the most of it!

To continue with my story, in 2015 it looked like my life was going to get better at last. A successful website and improved health. It felt exciting. But on December 25th, 2015, my health collapsed again for a second time. This was the hardest time for me. I had already been fighting for 2.5 years and now I had to face more years in sickness and pain. I felt deep despair at this time. What little support I got from family then failed. I ended up living completely alone while still being sick, disabled, unable to walk outside and often scared of collapsing.

I have been living in almost total isolation since 2016. For these years, I have rarely breathed the outside air or had conversation. There have been times when I have struggled, both physically and emotionally from the strain of my situation and illness. Worse still, during these years, I have not received loving messages from any friends or family to stay strong or keep me positive. Both neglect and abuse have played a role in my life both past and present.

When you face such situations on your own, I believe you must find strength, love and positivity within yourself. If other people don’t give you love, give it to yourself. If they treat you as worthless, make sure you remind yourself of your value. If others are not a source of strength for you, find that strength within yourself or read about inspirational people past and present. If you feel alone, connect to something within yourself that links us all together and nourishes us. Surround yourself and give yourself internally what you need to survive. You will cry, you will feel pain, but keep going. Never let fear or doubt stand in your way. Never let judgemental people affect you. Survive, you are worth it! And through this you will know your true self, the deep part of you that most people don’t even realise they have. That is special.

The concept of “seize the day” is well known, but how many of us actually live this way? While I was sick, I wasn’t able to “seize the day” because I was unwell most of the day. But I did seize 15 mins, 30 mins, or one hour when possible. With little strength and little time, I achieved great success by working in small steps. Small steps are no less valuable than big steps. They all lead somewhere, sometimes to success. But many of us delay too long or give up too soon. Be patient. Persevere. Approach your aims with integrity, respect for others and honesty about who you are – it shines through, people will see it. Don’t just aim for success, take those small steps because you love life and you love what you do. Your perspective changes everything.

I became successful by staying positive no matter what life threw at me. My website is now one of the biggest worldwide for IELTS preparation. My Youtube channel has now reached over 2 million subscribers. I have over 1,000 high band score results shared by successful IELTS candidates (Results Page) which encourage me to continue my work. Knowing that I help people reach their future goals is a wonderful way to live – I love it. See what can be achieved from your sofa, alone and sick?

I hope my story and my perspectives of how I created a bright future while in isolation, uncertainty and sickness will help you at this difficult time. Even if your life right now is not the life you want, things can change, but you must encourage life to change – either through your thoughts or actions.

Your life is not at a stand still because you are in lockdown. If you continue developing, being proactive each day, your life will be moving forward regardless of your geography.

Keep Positive! Stay Focused! Continue taking those Small Steps 🙂

I am thinking of you all at this time.

All the best

Liz (Elizabeth Ferguson)

Please feel free to share your own positive stories or thoughts in the comments box below 🙂

Thank you message from Liz: I would like to thank you all for your kind responses to my story. I apologise for not being able to answer each of your comments individually. However, I read each one carefully and was touched by them all. Your instinctive insight really affected me. Much gratitude and love to you.

Update 2025: While still living in isolation, alone, and fighting to safely access the outside world, I am confident things will turn around this year. Hopefully I might get a free video lesson made this year. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Behind a smile may be a painful past. Behind tears, a strong hero. Never be too quick to judge.

Thank you all for your kindness and support. All the best, Liz

FREE IELTS Lessons: This website contains hundreds of pages of free lessons, tips, model answers, topics etc. Go to the HOME page to access them.