They tried to make her a poster girl for women in combat, which brought her a lot of unnecessary attention I think. Interesting that she is haunted by the death of her female friend, but maybe not so much by her male comrades. It definitely sounds like the Iraqi doctors butchered her. All those corrective surgeries by themselves would be a nightmare.
I have always felt a degree of sympathy for her. She and others like her should not have been in combat, but she was.
But the despicable Left wanted to use her (as you described) as a poster girl.
From all I have seen, at no time has she maintained she did anything at all unusual. Her celebrity, as much as she shunned it, was a complete fabrication by the left, colluded with by liberal military leaders.
The used her as a tool with not thought for her personal or mental well being.
They should all be horsewhipped.