Published Monday, 19 October 2009
Sharon Commins, who will arrive back in Dublin in a Irish government jet on Monday night, said she was scared, anxious and stressed throughout her 107-day ordeal.
The 32-year-old and her Ugandan colleague Hilda Kawuki - snatched from their Goal compound in Darfur by an armed gang in July - were released in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Ms Commins said both women lived in constant fear of being shot but kept each other strong during their captivity.
"You could die in there of sadness, you could just die if you didn't lift your spirits," she said.
"It was just incredibly sad every morning. Such a heavy burden to continue.
"We definitely needed each other and we prayed together and tried to keep each other strong."
Shots
Ms Commins said the women were petrified the night three armed men burst into their compound, held guns to their heads and ordered them into the back of a van.
Up to 18 armed men then held them captive and intimidated them.
"There were mock assassinations on a few occasions so it was extremely scary and we were always anxious and stressed and upset until the minute we got out," said Ms Commins.
"We'd be told to kneel on our knees and they would shoot around us.
"Obviously, the first time that happened we thought we were actually going to be shot and each time we think, OK, I hope it's a mock, but you do never know.
"It was an extremely dangerous situation to be in."
Ms Commins told RTE radio said they lived in difficult conditions and were held on four different mountain ranges where they were exposed to all the elements.
They sheltered from the sun under two blankets, which they also used at night to cover them.
They were given two meals a day, had very little water and could wash themselves only every two weeks.
The aid worker said the armed gang wanted a ransom.
"The flip side of that coin is that they were getting increasingly frustrated that they were paying money to feed us and they were getting more frustrated by the day," she said, from the Sudanese capital Khartoum.
"We were still happy to be alive but extremely fearful. We were never confident that we would be kept alive. The fear of being shot was a constant threat."
Ireland's Department of Foreign Affairs said it did not pay a ransom to end the captivity - understood to be one of the longest-running of any foreign aid staff in the region.