PTSD In Veterans Essay

PTSD affects more than 3 million people a year and people can either forget about what happened to them that caused them PTSD or people can get serious symptoms. PTSD is when someone experiences or witnesses a horrifying accident that they can’t forget. PTSD is caused by physical and emotional feelings or thoughts. Some effects of PTSD can negatively affect your physical and mental health. All Quiet on the Western Front is a book that can relate to people nowadays that have PTSD by talking about a soldier named Paul that goes through terrifying experiences in World War 1.

"1 out of 10 veterans alive today was seriously injured at some point while serving in the military." (Morin). While any of those ten veterans could have a hard time re-entering regular civilian life, the injured one will most likely struggle. Military personnel struggle most coping with service-related injuries when returning, which can affect them by developing PTSD and finding it difficult to maintain a full-time job.

People suffer from PTSD because of wars. It is a disorder caused by the extreme and acute stress faced by people in a traumatizing situation and the Vietnam War left thousands of soldiers with PTSD on both ends of the war. Soldiers were assigned tasks such as maiming, torturing and killing thousands of Vietnamese who came in their way and

PTSD is a disorder that is caused by stressful or frightening events and in this case it can be caused by war. PTSD can happen in male of females at any age depending on what happened. Nearly 31% of Vietnam veterans, almost 10% of Gulf war veterans, 11% of veterans that fought in the war with Afghanistan, and 20% of Iraqi veterans have been afflicted with PTSD. 1 out of every 13 people will deal with PTSD during their lives. PTSD can affects a person 's life mentally, emotionally, and physically. There are 3 clusters to PTSD. the first cluster is re-living the event. The way the person relives the event is by having recurring nightmares and images that can happen at any time. During this cluster the victim has extreme emotion and physical reactions. The second cluster is avoiding reminders of the event. Reminders of the event includes places, activities, people, or thoughts. During this cluster the victim may withdraw from friends and or family, they will feel emotionally detached, and will lose interest in everyday activities. The third and final cluster is being on guard or hyper-aroused. During this cluster the victim could feel irritable or angry all of a sudden, they could have difficulty sleeping and or a lack of concentration, and being overly alert or easily startled. Victims with PTSD may pick up drug or alcohol habits or suicidal tendencies. 18 veterans commit suicide each day, that is 126 each week, and 6,552 each

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder occurs when an individual experiences a traumatic event, such as combat, assault or natural disasters. With PTSD, individuals feel threatened and stressed beyond the healthy reaction. The physical symptoms of the disorder include alcohol and drug dependence and the inability to maintain jobs and relationships. On the psychological spectrum, symptoms of PTSD include flashbacks and social avoidance. Today, hundreds of thousands of military veterans have seen combat. Several of which have been shot at, and witnessed death. These are types of events that can lead to PTSD. The Department of Veteran Affairs reports 31 percent of Vietnam war vets to have PTSD. Veterans with PTSD face life changing challenges.

Mental health issues are a real problem for post-war veterans. The most prevalent mental health problem seen in veterans is Post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. PTSD is an anxiety disorder that follows the experience of a traumatic event. Of the 2.7 million American veterans that served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, at least 20% were diagnosed with PTSD (Veterans Statistics). PTSD affects everyone differently but the most common symptoms of PTSD include: reliving the event, increased anxiety, and avoiding any reminders of the trauma (Robinson,Segal, Smith). These symptoms negatively affect their life

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, is a psychiatric issue that can occur after an experience or seeing of a traumatic event, for example, military battle, catastrophes, terrorist episodes, genuine mishaps, or physical or rape in grown-up or youth. PTSD can affect most veterans in their everyday life after they come home from war. Most symptoms include nightmares, sudden alertness after a loud sound, depression, and the ability not to interact with people the same way.When in danger, it’s natural to feel afraid. This fear triggers many split-second changes in the body

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental disease that develops in those who have experienced a scary or dangerous event and it affects an estimated 6.8% of Americans in their lifetime (National Institute of Mental Health, “Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder”). Post-traumatic stress disorder is also abbreviated as “PTSD.” Slaughterhouse-Five, by Kurt Vonnegut, follows Billy Pilgrim, a World War II soldier, on his adventures through both the war and after the war. Pilgrim believes that he is visited by aliens from the planet Tralfamadore and abducted by them. He also thinks that he is able to “time travel” to different events throughout his own life. Due to his condition of thinking that he is able to time travel, Pilgrim can be said to have PTSD.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD for short, is the most common mental illness affecting soldiers both on and off the battlefield. According to the American Psychiatric Association DSM-V, PTSD can stem from a direct experience with a traumatic event or being a witness to traumatic events. Symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder are derived from four symptom clusters: intrusion, avoidance, negative alterations in mood, and negative alterations is arousal and reactivity (“Posttraumatic Stress Disorder”).

During the Vietnam War the soldiers, whether or not they wanted to be there, many of them developed mental illnesses. The things they would experience would cause burdens on them for the rest of their lives. “Ted Lavender, who was scared, carried tranquilizers until he was shot in the head outside the village of Than Khe in mid-April.” (The Things They Carried) Lavender carried tranquilizers until he died, because he was scared. This is one the effects war had on people. Due to cultural aspects these soldiers were burdened by drugs, the environment and social pressure to perform well, ultimately effecting their state of mind.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, also known as PTSD, is a mental disorder that most often develops after a veteran experiences a traumatic event. While having this illness, the veteran believes their lives are in danger. They also may feel afraid or feel they have no control over what is happening. If their feeling does not go away, the symptoms may disrupt the person 's life, making it hard to continue daily activities.

PTSD means Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and is a deadly disease emotional and physically. For example, it causes veterans to see flash backs of what they have saw over seas, they can physically hurt themselves and are unable to control the disease. PTSD is known to destroy family 's and break them apart even though the veterans can 't control it. "When trauma reactions are severe and go on for some time without treatment, they can cause major problems in a family"(Carlson).This shows how most family 's get divorced after a veteran has come back from war because of how severe the disease is. No veteran wants to admit that they have a disease, because they want to be seen as a tough individual. For example, many family 's force their loved ones to get treatment at the VA to help make their family better. PTSD makes the memory and senses more active and sensitive, this can be very disturbing to anyone. For example, a veteran who has PTSD has many blank stares throughout the day and can cause very bad dreams about what they saw over seas. All veterans who come home from war have received a diagnosis of

Throughout the history of the world’s conflict, soldiers have suffered in a multitude of ways. On the battlefields of the American Civil War, both Union and Confederate soldiers witnessed gruesome wounds. In the trenches of World War I, chemical warfare was a constant threat, and a very dangerous one, at that. Most recently, in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran, warriors and civilians alike fell victim to a kind of guerilla warfare never before seen; suicide bombings. This was in conjunction with the use of weapons such as landmines that terrorized cities for years after conflict ended. As a result of these horrors, those involved often were afflicted by “shell shock,” “battle fatigue,” or, as it is known today, Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

For many years the only injury soldiers were believed to have could be seen with the naked eye; however, the real injuries are within the soldier’s mind. Most soldiers and victims of war suffer from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), their own minds become danger zones as they recall horrific experiences when they dream, think, or merely close their eyes. The emotional pain stays with the victim years after the war is over. The physical pain that a soldier or victim endures can be healed with time and care, the emotional trauma they deal with stays with them for a lifetime. The psychological pain that the victims endure usually goes unnoticed until after the traumatic event. In the memoirs, A Long Way Gone and Bite of the Mango, the real torture for both of the narrators occurs in the aftermath of the catastrophe not during the war.

However, they are left with the memories of what they saw. Soldiers affected by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD causes them to “often recall and re-experience the specific trauma of war” (The Emotional Effects of War on Soldiers). This means that any type of thing that reminds the soldier of the war, will cause them to relive that moment. Whether it’s a loud noise, a crowd of people, or a weapon, even the simplest word can make them remember the exact feeling of the war. This not only makes them suffer but it also hurts others around them. Most soldiers when dealing with PTSD separate themselves from their loved ones and friends because of their “experience of near death and the fear that they will leave someone behind...” (The Emotional Effects of War on Soldiers). This can cause many problems with the family and the soldier’s relationships with others. Though, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t any help provided for soldiers. Many soldiers have “recovered from their traumatic experience with the right care” and can