Persephone Rizvi, from England’s Huddersfield town has revealed to BBC how Islam “saved” her life. Rizvi started by explaining that she used to party a lot. “The party wouldn’t stop until four or five AM in the club.”
She went on to add that she was struggling to see a purpose in her life and she wanted to do better for herself. “I was using alcohol as my coping mechanism and going through emotionally-draining experiences that I couldn’t really make sense of. I was struggling to see a purpose in my life and I wanted to do better for myself. I didn’t know what I was doing,” said Rizvi adding, “So I became a Muslim.”
She then opened about her journey of becoming a Muslim. “One of my friends there, Haleemah, was Muslim. I did the Ramadan fast with her, and that was my first exposure to Islam. I wasn’t thinking about joining a religion at that point – it was more of a personal challenge. My ego was saying, ‘It’s 30 days of fasting, I can do that.’”
“When I first fasted I was still partying and drinking, but my attitude started to change. I started having these moments of, ‘I am better than this, I’m worth more.’ That month of abstinence made me feel a sense of selflessness and gratitude, and gave me the self-care package I needed so desperately. That was my calling card to Islam.”
“My dad is Black British and went to (a Christian) church, and my mum wanted us to have a knowledge of faith, but they didn’t force it on us. There aren’t any practicing Muslims in my family,” she said while talking about her family. “My parents are super supportive – they’ve actually fasted with me a few times,” she said.
She continued by saying that when she became a Muslim, she did not tell anyone until one day she went into her house with her headscarf on and said, “I’m Muslim now!”
Her parents were shocked to see her in a headscarf but they were not unhappy.
Rizvi then continued by talking how wearing a headscarf changed her life. “I feel more comfortable. I can get from A to B without anyone stopping me – the way I used to dress, I used to get stopped loads. On a ten-minute walk to uni, I got stopped about five times. Men now don’t bother me at all.”
“That’s why I say Islam saved me, because now I know the best way for me to handle those dark times. I wouldn’t have coped this way, by praying and taking care of my mental health as well as physical, if it wasn’t for Islam,” said Rizvi while talking about how Islam saved her.
