"We were devastated," Ms Donimey said this week.

"The red lights went on and I realised life's too short."

Eight weeks later she signed a contract with King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh and was on a plane to Saudi Arabia.

This was the first of three visits Ms Dominey made, spending a total of nine years in Saudi Arabia between 1993 and 2009. Saudi law meant Ms Dominey was forbidden to drink alcohol, drive, fraternise with men, practice the Catholic faith and she had to be appropriately covered in public places.

"Yes, I had to wear an abaya and a headscarf , yes I couldn't drive," she said.

Her time there was spent working in nursing administration and recruitment.

"I got eight weeks annual leave, 60 days annual sick leave, my own apartment with free amenities in a women's compound and even a tax free bracket on my wage," she said.

She also attended many cultural events including three traditional weddings and the famous Princess Souq. The souq is a market held annually when the royal family get rid of everything they do not want and it is usually sold at a very cheap price.

She returned home to settle at Nelson Bay, able to set up a comfortable life here with the money she made in Saudi Arabia.

"It was a great experience, it opened me to the world," she said.