After nearly two years of immobility, depression, and isolation, a former assault trooper fights to reclaim his life. Now he drives, rows, and takes care of his pet chinchilla

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1. **A veteran who lost the ability to walk after being wounded returned to a full life when he refused to let a spinal injury define him. After nearly two years of immobility, apathy, and isolation in his own apartment, the former assault trooper pushed himself to the limit in rehabilitation. Today he drives, dresses independently, and has even won a medal at the world rowing championships. Frontliner spent a day with Ivan Nedobryk – from morning coffee to evening training – to witness the life of a veteran who learned to live again.**

   Ivan served in the 95th Air Assault Brigade. In June 2022, during fighting in the Donetsk region, he and his comrades came under enemy fire. A bullet struck his spine, instantly taking the use of his legs.

   He was evacuated, given first aid, and then taken to a hospital where doctors delivered the verdict: he would never walk again. Ivan remembers that reality didn’t hit him all at once. At first, he went through a long period of stabilization, surgeries, and endless IV drips. Over time, he came to understand that life was now divided into “before” and “after,” and that his main task was no longer simply to endure, but to learn to live in a wheelchair.

   >“I understood even then that the injury was serious, but I simply couldn’t end myself – I was paralyzed. For anyone who’s wounded, thoughts eventually come that life might be over. I spent almost two years confined to bed. Recovery was incredibly hard,” Nedobryk says.

   **Winning the battle within**

   After three years of daily training, Ivan has pushed his rehabilitation to its fullest. Today, he can take a few steps independently using leg braces – the highest level of physical recovery achievable for his injury through exercise alone. To advance further and enhance his quality of life, physical therapy is no longer sufficient. The next step is a neurostimulator, a device implanted in the spine that stimulates muscles with electrical impulses.

   See more photos and full story here: [https://frontliner.ua/en/returning-to-life-veteran-rises-from-wheelchair-after-combat-spinal-injury/#](https://frontliner.ua/en/returning-to-life-veteran-rises-from-wheelchair-after-combat-spinal-injury/#) 

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