Christopher White
Dr. Kelly Anspaugh
English 110.03
12 April 2011
Symptoms of PTSD
The relatively new name for a believed very old disease, called PTSD, has imposed many problems on those who have had the bad luck of encountering it. The many symptoms that the people suffering from this disease will go through can have a traumatic effect on the victim and their families. Veterans and current soldiers are often the most recognized with suffering from the disease but in truth anyone that has recently experienced a traumatic event can contract PTSD. Post-traumatic stress disorder is defined as, “A common anxiety disorder that develops after exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened” (MedicineNet). Those suffering from PTSD may have symptoms such as flashbacks and nightmares of the event, severe depression, and many suffer from alcoholism and drug use. These symptoms are widespread and sometimes hard to diagnose which is one of the main reasons why soldiers have a hard time with their lives after returning from war.
MedicineNet.com says one symptom may be, “Reliving the event through upsetting thoughts, nightmares or flashbacks, or having very strong mental and physical reactions if something reminds the person of the event.” Often soldiers suffering from PTSD will have what is known as flashbacks which are where soldiers will mentally go back to the traumatic event they encountered and truly believe that they are in there. Anyone can suffer from flashbacks and it can be hard for people to deal with. They can happen at any time and are basically impossible to predict. Flashbacks can be similar to nightmares, hallucinations, and anxiety attacks which can mentally destroy a person. Rob Sara was one of the soldiers that had PTSD after his stint in Iraq. Sara opened fire on an Iraqi woman thinking she was a suicide bomber only to find out later that she was holding a white flag in her hand. Sara...