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She ran combat stress control for soldiers in Afghanistan as her own life was crumbling

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

Time now for StoryCorps' Military Voices Initiative, recording and sharing the stories of service members and their families. This Veterans Day weekend, we hear from Army Sergeant First Class Anna Cherepnina. When she was deployed in Afghanistan, she ran combat stress control to help other soldiers cope during several mass casualty events.

In her personal life, she was facing her own tragedies. Over the next several years, she experienced a staggering sequence of life-changing losses. First, a long-term partner died, then another. Then she lost her grandparents. And finally, she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, ending what she had hoped would be a lifelong career in the military.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ANNA CHEREPNINA: As soon as I started to kind of, like, swim up for air, one thing after another would start to happen. To lose two partners before you're 30 - you can't make it up. And, like, my grandma was my rock. She was the mother that I didn't have. On my birthdays, she would spend hours and hours making this special cake just for me. So after she passed away, every single day, I would wake up telling myself, I just want to die. It's that depression that makes you think that there's nothing. There's no hope. There's no help.

But then, one morning, dreading to be awake, I saw this beautiful fox in my backyard. And I've never seen foxes there before. I usually have a dog bowl out there for my dogs. So I'm still admiring this beautiful creature. And then it turns around and takes a massive [expletive] right into the dog's water bowl. And I just had this, like, moment of awakening. I'm like, what the hell? I have let my life become a bowl full of fox [expletive]. And that was the turning point for me. I knew I had to keep going.

(SOUNDBITE OF BLUE DOT SESSIONS' "LIPTIS")

CHEREPNINA: That's when I saw a post asking for folks living with MS that would be interested in hiking to Everest Base Camp. I knew from serving in the military that when you're in the right mindset, you're able to push your body to the limits. And I needed that reminder. I'm still that resilient, tenacious person that was there before all this loss. So I thought that it would be so symbolic to be standing next to the tallest mountain in the world.

And on Day 6 of hiking, it was my birthday, and we were at 14,468 feet. I felt super lightheaded and dizzy. But all of a sudden, the clouds opened up, and we could see the peak of Everest for the first time. It was, like, a gift that was like, you're going to make it.

Later that day, we were having dinner in this teahouse, and the lights go out. It was just, like, what's going on? And then I see somebody walking with a cake and candles on it, and the whole teahouse starts singing "Happy Birthday." I was in shock. I just couldn't believe that the group went out of their way to go find a cake at 14,000 feet. I definitely cried, and I'm not a public crier (laughter). But it reminded me that even when I felt alone, I was not. In reality, there are so many people that care about you, even if you forget about it.

(SOUNDBITE OF BLUE DOT SESSIONS' "LIPTIS")

SIMON: Anna Cherepnina, for StoryCorps in Washington, D.C. Today, she's found a new path as an outreach specialist for the Wounded Warrior Project, which helps veterans find their next mission in life. This interview was archived at the U.S. Library of Congress.

(SOUNDBITE OF BLUE DOT SESSIONS' "LIPTIS") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Scott Simon is one of America's most admired writers and broadcasters. He is the host of Weekend Edition Saturday and is one of the hosts of NPR's morning news podcast Up First. He has reported from all fifty states, five continents, and ten wars, from El Salvador to Sarajevo to Afghanistan and Iraq. His books have chronicled character and characters, in war and peace, sports and art, tragedy and comedy.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.