During the occupation of Yahidne, Valentyna spent 28 days in the school basement together with the villagers. There were 37 people in the small room where she stayed with her 83-year-old mother and husband, nine of whom were children. All this time, Valentyna sat on a chair, day and night. She slept for an hour or two a day. She ate almost nothing because of nausea. The woman's sick old mother suffered from suffocation. When the village was finally liberated, Valentyna saw that her apartment had been completely looted.