Traumatic Stress Disorder In The Razor's

In W. Somerset Maugham’s The Razor’s Edge, we read about a character named Larry Darrell, who acts and responds differently after World War I. Isabel Bradley, who is engaged to Larry, discovers that Larry has indeed changed since the war. She says that, “He gives me such an odd impression sometimes; he gives me the impression of a sleep-walker who’s suddenly wakened in a strange place and can’t think where he is. He was so normal before the war. One of the nice things about him was his enormous zest for life. He was so scatter-brained and gay, it was wonderful to be with him; he was so sweet and ridiculous. What can have happened to change him so much?” (49). From this statement we come to understand that Larry’s attitudes and behaviors have

According to MedicineNet.com, “Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an emotional illness that is classified as an anxiety disorder and usually develops as a result of a terribly frightening, life-threatening, or otherwise highly unsafe experience. PTSD sufferers re-experience the traumatic event or events in some way, tend to avoid places, people, or other things that remind them of the event (avoidance), and are exquisitely sensitive to normal life experiences (hyperarousal)” (Edwards). Larry’s traumatic experience happened when his best friend Patsy saved him when a plane was about to shoot him down. In an effect to save Larry, Patsy’s plane winged the enemy’s and soon after Larry watched his friend die. Larry says that his best friend “fell back dead. He was twenty-two. He was going to marry a girl in Ireland after the war” (51). This event shook him up because his best friend had his whole life ahead of him, and suddenly it was lost. This event and many others caused Larry to suffer from battle fatigue. In the war, he was constantly shot at and saw his fellow soldiers shot and killed. The constant amount of traumatic experiences in which he experienced caused him to suffer from

Isabel says, “If Dr. Nelson is right and he’s suffering from delayed shock surely new surroundings and new interests will cure him, and when he’s got his balance again he’ll come back to Chicago and go into business like everybody else” (48-49). Isabel’s statement though lacks understanding of what kinds of treatments are beneficial for treating PTSD. New surroundings and new interests won’t help treat PTSD because people who suffer from PTSD “tend to avoid places, people, or other things that remind them of the event” (Edwards). In order to understand what helps treat PTSD, we must come to understand that PTSD can never be fully cured. According to ptsd.about.com, “Treatments for PTSD will never take away the fact that a traumatic event occurred. Treatments for PTSD cannot erase your memory of those events,” (Tull) and, “That said, it is important to remember that symptoms of PTSD can come back again” (Tull). Even though it cannot be cured, it can be treated effectively with treatment. According to mayoclinc.org, “The primary treatment is psychotherapy, but often includes medication” (None). With the help of psychotherapy and medication, people who suffer from PTSD can begin to regain their life from anxiety and