PTSD In Vietnam War Essay

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An estimated 8% of Americans, 24.4 million people, have PTSD at any given time. That is equal to the total population of Texas, according to PTSD United. This mental condition affects people who have gone through a traumatic situation before, and are holding onto the memory. PTSD became widespread and documented around the time of World War I, and has been rising since. There has never been true a cure. Many people do not pay much attention to people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. However, with a few awareness programs, one person could make all the difference in a victim’s life. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD for short, is defined as a mental health disorder triggered by seeing or experiencing a terrifying event.
The first large occurrences of PTSD were in the 1910’s. During World War I, PTSD was common amongst veterans of trench warfare. It was referred to as “shell-shock”, which was originally believed to be caused by the sounds of artillery fire, according to Nancy C Andreasen. World War II had even more cases due to the use of more weapons, bombs, and smaller squads, which caused less social interaction. It was then that the government realized that PTSD in veterans, or more commonly called “combat exhaustion”, can effect anybody, not just the weak minded. The Vietnam War experienced the most victims, however. Each battalion had a mental heath therapist, which helped immensely through the early years of the war. However, the citizens questioned the legality of the war, and soldiers were disgraced. They returned home and recieved no appreciation, and a loss in socialization. Roughly one in three soldiers had post-traumatic stress disorder, and 15 percent still had the condition 20 years later. More recent events have also spiked PTSD cases; terrorism. 9/11 caused global fear for everyone, but also caused over ten thousand cases of PTSD in first responders and bystanders. Research and treatment improved vastly over the years, with treatments working on patients who have access to

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