Svitlana, Psychologist of 61st Brigade: "Year ago, Iskander missile struck building in Pokrovsk. My face was so lacerated that I told my comrades-in-arms: I don’t have face anymore"
A 40-year-old woman, a mother of two who joined a combat unit, is undergoing treatment to remove multiple scars as part of the Zagrava program. This initiative unites cosmetic clinics across the country, and all treatment is provided to the wounded free of charge.
A woman wearing a pixelated uniform jacket with a "Psychologist" patch was waiting for me outside the VIST-CLINIC cosmetology center in Sumy, where we had agreed to meet. At first glance, you’d never guess how severely Svitlana was wounded a year ago. But when she shows photos of her face right after the injury, it’s hard to believe that any of it could ever be repaired. Svitlana smiles at that and tells her story openly and calmly. Her positivity is infectious. Maybe it’s not just the doctors’ skill that’s driving her fast recovery, but her natural optimism as well.
"THE NUMEROUS STITCHES ON MY FACE — I CALLED THEM CENTIPEDES"
- "How did I get injured? In March 2024, when our brigade was in Pokrovsk, an Iskander missile hit the city — the building near the ATB store, where we and other soldiers from the unit had rented an apartment. It was a place where we could at least occasionally get a proper shower. I was on the phone, calling a taxi. Then a loud ringing in my ears. And that’s it. It felt like the phone exploded. I dropped to my knees. My face was burning so badly I screamed out loud. They lifted me up. I could feel glass under my feet — but interestingly, my feet weren’t cut, even though I was barefoot… My face was badly lacerated. And I kept repeating: I don’t have a face. That’s when the fight began."
Svitlana shows photos of her face taken at different stages, including the ones from the day she was wounded. Blood and horrific injuries…
- They stitched up whatever they could at the hospital I was taken to right after the injury," she continues. "Then I was transferred elsewhere. Naturally, everything became swollen and inflamed." The wounds were covered with bandages. I wouldn’t say I was upset about what had happened. I was alive. There was a man next to me who kept repeating: ‘I will love you no matter what you look like.’ That gave me strength. It didn’t let me fall apart or dwell on the scars. But there were a lot of them. The deepest were above my eye, around my lip, on my chin, neck, and chest. At first, I called the stitches centipedes — they were sewn in such a way that the scars looked like they had little legs. But they’re gone now — thanks to laser resurfacing.
- How did you find out about the Zagrava program, the one where cosmetic doctors help the wounded?
- I used to work at a hospital in Feofaniya, in Kyiv. About a month after I was wounded, I went to see Dr. Andrii Strokan. I told him: ‘Please help me. Maybe someone knows how to treat scars like this.’ But I want to be clear — I wasn’t in despair. I was banged up, sure, but that’s just how it was. The military doctors had told me to come back in three months for further treatment. And I thought: why wait that long? The scars will harden by then. It’ll be harder to treat them. Strokan said: ‘There’s a cosmetic specialist, Vladlena Averina. I’ll call her and set up a consultation for you.’ That’s how I ended up at AVERINA CLINIC. That’s when the procedures started — they used exosomes, polynucleotides…
- Did it hurt?
- I didn't feel any pain. And I looked at myself right away - I took photos to see how my centipedes were changing. The scars on my chin and neck were complicated. We have been treating them for a long time. But they are still much smaller than they were.
- Have you ever asked about money, the cost of treatment? After all, a private cosmetic clinic...
- They immediately told me not to worry about anything, explaining that help for those who suffered in the war from the actions of the Russians was free. That the country's cosmetologists had united to create the Zagrava programme and agreed with suppliers of medicines specifically for this purpose. This kind of care for the wounded is very important and motivating. (Censor.NET has already told about this initiative)
The treatment will be carried out as long as I need it. I can tell you that it was also psychological help. At first, I put myself in Vladlena Ihorivna's hands. Every two weeks, I came for treatments. And now I am working with Alla Vitaliivna in Sumy.
- You started your treatment in Kyiv, but why did you end up in Sumy?
- From Pokrovsk, our brigade went to the Rivne region for some time. While we were rebuilding, recruiting people, the unit was being coordinated, and I could go to Kyiv for procedures. But I knew that the programme was active all over Ukraine. And when we were sent to Sumy, I asked if it was possible to continue my treatment in this city. I was given the address of the clinic. When I came here, they were already waiting for me. August, September... I have been here for seven months now. I visit the clinic about once every two weeks. Each time it can be a different procedure... The doctor, of course, chooses what to do. In the course of treatment, I realised how important it is how a specialist performs the procedures. My doctor inserts the needle directly into the scar to inject the medication. It’s an unpleasant sensation, but that’s the most effective way to deliver the drug right where it’s needed — to break down the scar tissue, to soften it and make it less visible. The procedures sting, they hurt — but they work. Sometimes they’re done under anesthesia, and sometimes I just have to grit my teeth and bear it.
"MY DAUGHTER TOUCHED MY SCARS AND THEN EVEN KISSED THEM."
- Do you continue to serve?
- Of course. Such injuries are not grounds for dismissal. But I was not going to leave the army. The brigade accepts me for who I am and supports me. When it’s sunny outside — and I’m not supposed to be exposed to sunlight — no one forces me to stay outdoors.
- Was there a time when you didn't like yourself? When you couldn't look at yourself in the mirror?
- Never. I accepted everything that had happened calmly. When I tried to cover my centipedes with foundation, it would get stuck in the scars — it looked terrible. So I stopped doing that. I just applied the creams the clinic gave me, and that was it. I can see how much my face has changed thanks to the treatment. And it also feels different. There used to be a scar near my lip that made me smile differently — it pulled the skin around my mouth, and my smile didn’t look right… But the doctors have taken care of that scar. Now I can smile properly again. There’s no tightness left at all."
- How did your children react to your injured face?
- My son is 11, and my daughter is seven. They knew their mom was serving. They knew their mom was a soldier. After I was wounded, I called my parents and asked them to prepare the kids. They were told that Mom had a few scratches. Then I sent a photo with a note saying that Mom looked a bit different now. The kids said there was a cartoon where the characters’ faces were stitched up — and when they saw my face in the photos, they immediately remembered that. When we met, my daughter wasn’t scared of my scars. On the contrary, she gently touched them with her fingers and even kissed them. It all depends on how you frame the situation. If you show them that you’re not miserable or broken, just that you look different now, and that’s okay, they’ll understand. I stay in touch with the kids all the time. They always want to see me on video, and I never say no. After my treatments, they ask me, ‘Mom, why are you so red?’ I explain — and that’s it. The important thing is to see each other when they want to. People are losing arms, legs, eyes in this war. And they’re doing incredibly well — they’re learning how to live with it, getting through all the challenges. My problems are much smaller.
- Have you advised any of the wounded to go to a cosmetologist, told them about the programme that helps you?
- Our team medic, Allochka, was also injured - a piece of shrapnel left a scar under her eye. She was treated in Kyiv. She was also offered the opportunity to get rid of the scar as part of the Zahrava programme. She is being treated in Odesa - there is a clinic there that supports the treatment of wounded soldiers and civilians. She knew about the program because she had seen me all scratched up. And later, she saw the results of my treatment. To be honest, she didn’t really believe it was possible to fix everything. She admits she only agreed to undergo treatment after seeing with her own eyes how the doctors helped me and my case wasn’t an easy one.
I also gave the Kyiv clinic’s number to some of the guys, when I saw a young soldier whose face was shredded. I’d say, ‘Here’s the number — call if you ever want to deal with the aftermath of the injury.’ But our soldiers are so tough, they never complain about anything. Usually, they say: ‘There’s no time or opportunity for treatment right now. Maybe later. After the victory.’ You know what they do? They grow out their beards — and that’s it. Covers up all the scars. Beards save the day."
- How long have you been in the military?
- I used to work at a military enlistment office in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Then I decided it was time to actually join the army. I’ve been serving since April 13, 2023. At the enlistment office, I was a psychologist. I saw how the guys’ hands would sweat, how they’d break into a nervous sweat out of fear, especially during their first days there. They were scared. And I got tired of just watching them. I realized I had to do something too. I was ready to help the guys in the war. Exactly in the war.
- And the risk? You are a mother of two...
- We’re from the town of Marhanets, near Nikopol. While my family was still living there, we were constantly under shelling. In the end, I took my kids to stay with my parents, in a safer place. But the war was still close. That’s why I joined the army. And honestly, I think I always wanted to be a soldier, ever since I was a kid. I’ve never been afraid. I took training courses, received the rank of junior lieutenant, and transferred to a combat unit.
- After your injury, did you have any desire to return to your family, to civilian life?
- What? The enemy hits my face — that means I get to go home? No. That’s not me.
"YOU CAN’T MAKE IT PERFECT — THE SCARS OF WAR WILL STILL BE THERE. BUT YOU CAN MAKE THEM LESS VISIBLE."
We spoke with Svitlana just before her next procedure at the clinic. When she stepped into the treatment room, her doctor, Alla Turaieva, explained what still needed to be done to make her combat wounds as unnoticeable as possible.
- "We meet every two weeks — sometimes even more often," says Dr. Alla Vitaliivna. "It’s all for the best possible result. I’m in a hurry myself, because I don’t know how much longer I’ll be stationed here in Sumy. And I want to help Svitlana as much as I can. We also don’t know how long she’ll remain here — her brigade might be redeployed to another front. So as long as both of us are here, we’re trying to complete as many procedures as possible."
- I can see that Svitlana still has scars and scars on her cheeks and neck...
- That’s something we can and should keep working on. As long as we have the opportunity, we’ll keep doing procedures. Here, for example — this scar used to be hard, like a rope. It pulled the skin tight. Now it’s soft. During the treatment, we use a combination of hardware-based methods. We have all the necessary tools: CO₂ lasers, resurfacing, intense pulsed light. We use these devices at different stages, depending on what’s needed. I could talk about treatment all day — but Svitlana’s photos, from right after the injury and now, during recovery — they speak for themselves
Svitlana is my third patient under the Zagrava project. Before her, I worked with another woman and a man. The woman was also a service member, and the man was a police officer. The woman had facial scars as well, while the man’s treatment focused on his thigh.
- Did the injuries your patients sustained in combat ever frighten you as a specialist?
- No one ever scared me. In my practice, I had already treated patients with scars — mostly post-surgical. I moved to Sumy from Kharkiv in August 2022 and started working in October. That’s when I learned about the program. I was immediately interested and ready to work with the wounded. I visited other medical institutions, left information about Zagrava — that there’s a cosmetic clinic in Sumy ready to help. At first, it seemed like there should be many such patients — but I couldn’t find them. Eventually, wounded service members started reaching out. That’s when I got involved. The most important thing is that we have everything we need to help them — the equipment and treatments required to reduce the visible effects of combat injuries.
- Is there a point when you tell a patient: that’s it, you don’t need to come anymore — we’ve done everything possible...
- I’m already waiting for that moment," Svitlana says with a smile.
- I wouldn’t say there’s a clear finish line. Every patient sees themselves differently. Some choose to stop on their own. The first woman I treated — after one of her procedures, she said: ‘That’s enough. I’m happy with how my face looks now. Let it stay this way. This is what I wanted to see in the mirror.’ My position is simple: as long as we can keep going — we will. Achieving perfection isn’t possible — the scars will always remain. And I always tell patients that upfront. You can’t erase all scars or completely restore what was. It will never look exactly like it did before
- It will be even better," Svitlana smiles.
- But we are making every effort to erase all these traces and make them less noticeable," continues Alla Vitaliivna.
- "My doctor deserves a medal," Svitlana adds. "Over these months of treatment, Dr. Alla Vitaliivna has done absolutely everything she could for me. And she’s done it all for free with the utmost care and attention. It’s thanks to people like her — people I’ve been lucky enough to meet — that I can smile and feel joy when I look in the mirror. No matter what."
Phone number to get information and make an appointment for a consultation in the city that suits you best: 067 749 23 05.
The website where you can submit a request for assistance and find out about the clinics that provide assistance: zagrava.info
Violetta Kirtoka, Censor. NET
