“Not Ready to Quit”: SSG Beth King

At 30 years old, Beth King was a single mother, and joined the Army as a way to provide for her five-year-old son. She deployed to Afghanistan and became a Chinook helicopter maintainer. 

As one of the few women in her field, SSG King felt extra pressure to excel. She had to prove herself to her male colleagues, and if she failed, she was told they would take a “long break” before allowing another woman to join their company. She succeeded, and became the first female to fully progress to crew chief in her company.

One night, King’s Chinook was hit by an RPG, and she was four feet away from the blast. She fell out of the helicopter, but was caught by her harness. Although she and the rest of the crew made it back to their FOB, King knew something wasn’t right. She experienced severe pain, spells of vomiting, and had difficulties with her speech, but had no visible injuries. Unfortunately, King’s need to prove herself as a capable woman in her field persisted to the detriment of her health. She was asked multiple times to tough out her injuries and continue flying missions, and she complied, going 18 months without treatment.

King later discovered she had suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) that was made worse by her continued action. She was medically discharged, and began physical therapy. 

King also suffered from PTSD, anxiety, and depression. She found that cycling in a special wheelchair reignited her competitive spirit and greatly improved her mental health, so she trained for competition. Unbeknownst to her, the wheelchair cut off circulation to her feet, and her consistent and intense training in the chair caused significant, lasting pain. 

Now, King is awaiting an amputation of one of her legs. If the amputation is a success, and the pain completely dissipates, she plans on amputating the second.

In the meantime, King has begun training in the javelin throw, and hopes to compete in the 2024 Paralympics. She says in this interview “I would love to go to the Paralympics, but the truth is I just like being better. I like improving. I like growth. It is like all this effort is not meaningless. All this pain and suffering has led to me improving, then it's worth it.”

To learn more about King, and how the Wounded Warrior Projected aided in her recovery, visit https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/mission/meet-a-warrior/beth-king.

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