93 Days in Captivity: What a Hostage Rescue Taught About Survival

The rescue did not erase the trauma. Buchanan detailed the complexities of what she terms "surviving survival" – the PTSD, the hypervigilance, the difficulty of reacclimating to a normal life after intense trauma. She said many people assume that being rescued is the end of the story. In reality, the hardest part often starts after the helicopters leave. She described night terrors, a constant sense of threat, and the challenge of trusting people again.

Her experience is documented in "Impossible Odds," the 2013 book she coauthored about the kidnapping and rescue. She has since written "How to Survive Survival," published in 2025, which addresses the long recovery that followed long after the rescue teams left. Buchanan said she wrote the second book because she found little guidance for the psychological aftermath of surviving a life-threatening event. She wanted to offer a framework for others facing similar struggles.

Buchanan's account offers a rare first-person perspective on a hostage crisis that ended in a military intervention. The lessons extend beyond her own story. She argued that the same mental tools – compartmentalization, purpose, routine – apply to anyone facing a protracted crisis, whether a hostage, a patient with a severe diagnosis, or a soldier in combat. The key, she said, is not to deny the fear but to keep it from becoming the only thing you see.