Dana Vulin has described rebuilding her life after a deliberate fire attack in Perth as a long process of medical treatment, rehabilitation and choosing how she wanted to move forward. In interviews, she has spoken about deciding to live, refusing to make hatred the focus of her recovery, and telling her story in her memoir, Worth Fighting For. Those are her personal reflections—not a formula for how anyone else should respond to trauma.
The attack and the long recovery
Most cited coverage places the attack in February 2012, when Vulin was 25. Reports identify Natalie Dimitrovska as the woman who doused Vulin with methylated spirits and set her alight. One ITV article gives a different year, so the date is best understood as reported rather than treated as undisputed. Accounts also differ on the extent of Vulin’s burns: reports have described 64%, 65% or approximately two-thirds of her body. ITV This Morning, ITV Loose Women, Mamamia, Now to Love
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The treatment described in interviews was extensive. ITV This Morning reported that, over five years, Vulin underwent more than 200 reconstructive operations, spent hundreds of hours in physiotherapy and wore compression garments for three years. These are figures reported by the interview page, not independently audited medical records. Her recovery also involved skin grafts and wearing a protective mask.
A 2017 profile in The West Australian reported that Vulin was diagnosed with cervical cancer after the attack and was continuing to face medical procedures. That account describes her circumstances at the time; it does not establish her current health. The West Australian
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How Vulin has described her outlook
Vulin has framed her recovery in terms of choices she made for herself, rather than as advice for other survivors. Speaking to ITV Loose Women, she said: “I made a choice to live.” To ITV This Morning, she described why she did not want hatred to shape her life: “I don’t have hate for anyone. That’s just toxic.”
She also told Mamamia: “I learnt not to hate, because believe you me, if I was going through this journey and focusing my energy on hate, I wouldn’t have half of the recovery I have now.” That is her account of what helped her. It should not be read as a claim that anger, grief or other responses obstruct recovery for other people. ITV Loose Women · ITV This Morning · Mamamia
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Advocacy and the decision to tell her story
Vulin has also spoken publicly about the lasting effects of burn attacks and the law. In 2017, The West Australian reported that Dimitrovska had received a 17-year sentence after being found guilty of grievous bodily harm with intent. Vulin called for stronger penalties, arguing that the law should reflect the severity and lifelong impact of setting someone on fire. This is historical reporting; it does not establish current law or Dimitrovska’s present parole status. The West Australian
Vulin’s memoir, Worth Fighting For, gives readers a longer account of the attack, the court case and her ongoing recovery. The West Australian reported that Penguin released it in August 2017. That publication information does not confirm which editions or listings are currently available. Mamamia · The West Australian
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In a separate reflection to The West Australian, Vulin connected her survival to speaking up for others: “Why on earth would I have fought so hard for my life if I’m not going to fight for other people’s rights?” She also told the paper, “I love the skin I’m in and I respect my body.” Together with her memoir, those statements show how she has chosen to describe life after the attack: not as a finished recovery story, but as a continuing relationship with her body, her past and the causes she wants to support. The West Australian · The West Australian
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