The photo of a 9-year-old Vietnamese girl naked after napalm burned her clothes is one of the world’s most famous images. RT spoke to the ‘napalm girl’ about what it took for her to make it through and become the woman she is now.

Phan Thi Kim Phuc survived the severe burns she suffered in the accidental bombing on June 8, 1972, when she and other residents of her village, fleeing south, were mistaken by a South Vietnamese pilot for enemy soldiers. Terrified and in pain, she was snapped by an AP photographer and became the symbol of civilian suffering in the protracted US-backed war.

Now aged 56, Kim Phuc considers being alive, after those injuries, a miracle. Physical recovery took 14 months and 16 surgeries, but she also had to overcome mental scars that the ordeal left, learning self-appreciation despite the scars, forgiving those who caused the suffering, and finding love and purpose.

Watch the entire interview by RT’s Sophie Shevardnadze below.

Update: This story has been corrected to clarify that the incident occurred on June, 8 1972 and not, as stated earlier, in April of 1963.