PTSD (Blog #3)

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder can occur following a life-threatening event like military combat, natural disasters, terrorist incidents, serious accidents, or violent personal assaults.Most survivors of trauma return to normal given a little time. However, some people have stress reactions that don't go away on their own, or may even get worse over time. These individuals may develop Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. Unfortunately, many soldiers suffer from PTSD after returning to their homes. For example, almost thirty-one percent of Vietnam veterans were afflicted with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder upon their return to the United States. The same is true for twenty percent of Iraqi war veterans. 

PTSD in war veterans is often referred to as "shell shock" or "combat stress," but in reality it isn't something that either of those two terms can describe. People are forced to relive their trauma over and over again through flashbacks. They have trouble sleeping, and when they manage to fall asleep they have terrifying nightmares. During the day they are haunted with frightening thoughts. Often times they feel either emotionally numb or feel strong guilt, depression and worry. They also might feel constantly tense or "on edge," and might be easily startled. They also might have angry outbursts or have trouble controlling their emotions.Things that remind them of the traumatic event can trigger avoidance symptoms, and these symptoms may cause them to change his or her personal routine.

In the story A Perfect Day For Bananafish by J.D Salinger, we see that Seymour exhibits some of these symptoms due to traumatic events that he must have experienced during the war. Also, in the movie Apocalypse Now, we can notice some of the same behavior in Captain Willard. At the beginning of the movie, there is an especially intense scene that shows a perfect example of this type of behavior.

In conclusion, PTSD afflicts many war veterans, and it really shows how war can affect people. It is very unfortunate that so many veterans have to suffer through this disorder.