Natalia was teaching at her school in Kyiv when a student’s mother began shouting at her. The confrontation triggered memories of interrogation rooms where Russian captors had screamed at her and demanded that she confess to being a spy.
During a later Zoom counseling session with Ukrainian-American psychotherapist Viktor Dlugunovych, Natalia said the encounter made her feel as though she had fallen into a pit of fear. Yet she was able to pause, close her eyes, remind herself that she had survived captivity and regain control of the situation. She then told the woman calmly that they should continue the discussion in the principal’s office.
The incident led Natalia to ask whether she had recovered and how she could recognize recovery. Dlugunovych explained that distress and progress are not mutually exclusive. Although the flashback was painful, Natalia had managed to step back from it, establish a boundary and choose a deliberate response.
Natalia, a mathematics and physics teacher with 35 years of classroom experience, spent 10 months in captivity during the Russian occupation. She described repeated interrogations, sleep deprivation, hunger, withheld medication for high blood pressure and persistent verbal abuse.
Her professional identity also helped her endure the interrogations. Natalia said her authority as a teacher appeared to influence the young men questioning her, who began treating her with a degree of respect. She felt that the dynamic shifted as she started asking questions in the manner of a teacher rather than remaining only the person being interrogated.
Back in Ukraine and teaching again, Natalia says her students give her strength. She also plans to speak publicly about her experience. At the same time, she continues to experience episodes of intense distress, including crying and difficulty breathing, even when she feels mentally composed.
Her return to work therefore does not mean that the healing process is finished. Dlugunovych encouraged her to look not only at whether distress has disappeared, but also at how she responds to difficult moments. In the classroom confrontation, Natalia recognized that she had reacted more deliberately and effectively than she might have immediately after returning from captivity.
She continues taking prescribed antidepressants and understands that being able to work or appear calm does not eliminate the need for professional care. For her, recovery does not require declaring herself completely healed. It can also mean recognizing gradual changes while painful symptoms remain.
Natalia’s experience illustrates that recovery may unfold unevenly: the survivor who can set a boundary and continue teaching can also be affected by nearly disabling flashbacks. Both realities can exist at the same time.
Sources: Psychology Today.