Cringe-worthy injury doesn't keep 'Naked and Afraid' contestant from finishing challenge

Usually fishing trips are fun, but that wasn’t the case Sunday for one Naked and Afraid survivalist. On just Day 2 of the 21-day challenge in the South Africa bush, 31-year-old Cheeny from Maine got a barbed fishing hook buried deep in her thumb.

Cheeny was a Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) specialist in the Air Force for eight years. The Air Force website claims, “These experts know how to survive in the most remote and hostile environments on the planet.” Needless to say, she is extremely tough.

While she managed the pain of the injury, she was unable to remove the barbed hook without the help of a medic.

“​​The only option that I had was to cut the fishing hook itself and feed the entire hook through the rest of her thumb,” said the medic.

In what appeared to be an extremely painful procedure, the medic slowly forced the hook through Cheeny’s thumb and out.

While the whole incident had some viewers cringing, Cheeny seemed none the worse for wear after having the hook removed. Not only that, but she also went on to finish the 21-day challenge.

“I'm so happy right now” she said after finishing. “I did this for the SERE community and I hope they're proud. Honestly, I'm super grateful for this whole experience. But I'm also very happy that it is over.”

Naked and Afraid airs Sundays at 8 p.m. on Discovery.

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