From Survival to Service: A New CRNA’s Journey

When Ariel King, DNP, CRNA, graduated from her nurse anesthesiology program in December 2025, the milestone represented far more than the end of a demanding course of study. It was the culmination of a long, determined journey shaped by early instability, military service, single parenthood and years of balancing school, work and caregiving. 

King said her motivation has always been rooted in one goal: creating a different future than the one she grew up with. 

“I would tell myself that I had to find a way to get out of my situation and make something of my life,” she said. “I didn’t want anybody to necessarily feel sorry for me or pity me for how I grew up.” 

King spent part of her childhood in a foster group home after experiencing abuse. She also experienced periods of homelessness. Education, she said, became her path forward early on. 

“I knew that the way out of that life and that environment was going to be through education,” she said. “I thought, ‘I have to get good grades. I have to just keep trying so I can give myself a better life.’” 

After graduating high school, King initially pursued a biochemistry degree. But lacking stability and support at home, she left school and joined the U.S. Army at 18. 

King served on active duty as a combat medic, working on an evacuation platoon while stationed in Germany. During that time, she trained alongside international partners and found a sense of community. She married at age 21 and later gave birth to her daughter. 

“In the military, I found family,” she said. “I found other people that came from dysfunctional pasts. And suddenly I didn’t feel so alone.” 

It was also during her military service that King first encountered Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs), also known as nurse anesthesiologists. CRNAs have been the predominant providers of anesthesia care in the U.S. military since the Civil War. They practice to the full scope of their license and training in the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force and are often the sole anesthesia provider on forward surgical teams. 

“There was a CRNA that I worked with in the military,” King said. “When I saw all of his different intubating blades and how he worked, I knew that was what I wanted to do.” 

After leaving active duty with an honorable discharge to care for her daughter, King returned to the United States and enrolled in nursing school when her child was eight months old. By that time, her marriage had ended. She said it was a challenge balancing single motherhood—and not receiving child support—while attending school and working full time as a patient care assistant in a hospital. Her schedule often included day shifts followed by evening classes. She credited the caregivers in her life, including her grandparents, for helping her make it through. 

“My grandparents have always been there for me,” she said. “Even to this day, they are, other than my daughter, my best friends.” 

King went on to work as an ICU nurse for a decade before entering a nurse anesthesiology program in 2022. Her daughter, now nearly 13, has been her primary motivation. 

“I want her to be proud of me,” she said. 

King said her experiences also inform how she shows up for patients. Her background, she said, has made her attentive to moments when people feel exposed, anxious or unheard—and deliberate about how she uses the limited time she has with them. 

“As an anesthesia provider, you’re with the patient in the most vulnerable state they’re going to be in,” she said. “We don’t have a lot of time to build that trust, but I try to take small actions to make them feel comfortable and safe, and to let the patient know I’m there for them.” 

As she prepares to begin practicing as a CRNA, King said she is looking forward to the autonomy and stability that comes with a career in nurse anesthesiology. She is drawn to obstetric anesthesia but remains open to different practice settings, with an emphasis on work-life balance so she can spend time with her daughter. 

When asked what advice she would give to others facing difficult circumstances, King was direct. “I would want them to remember that it does get better. Whatever it is you’re dealing with right now, it will not last forever.” 

Looking back, she said she is proud of how far she has come. 

“If you would have told eight-year-old me or 12-year-old me where I would be right now, I would be so proud,” she said. “The biggest piece of advice I have for others would be to keep going.” 

King said she once felt nobody would care about her past and was reluctant to disclose her journey. That changed after she shared her story online and was contacted by a single mother who said King’s story gave her the confidence to apply to a nurse anesthesiology program. 

“Helping even one person like that makes everything worth it,” King said. “I want people to know that you can come from a terrible background or situation and still make something of yourself in your life.”