Investigation Paper: College Students with Trauma

Essay by Mehmood October 2007

download word file, 9 pages 3.3

With the rising sentiment against the war in Iraq comes a concern that the American soldiers who are brought home from this military adventure will be suffering from post traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. This type of anxiety disorder is often associated with war veterans but other people out there, who never joined any war, can have PTSD. For example, I never joined any war but I am suffering from PTSD. Anyone who has been exposed to any traumatic experience can be afflicted with PTSD. It is a serious anxiety disorder and the person who has this illness knows that the traumatic event will be relived over and over again. PTSD is a curse. It is a non-curable anxiety disorder. Researchers have not been successful in their study coming up with a cure. But what is the real nature of PTSD? What is it like to be a college student with PTSD? How does this illness affect college students? And how do students who have PTSD cope with the demands of college life?According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), about 5.2

million Americans have PTSD and not all of them are caused by a war experience. PTSD can happen to any person who has been raped or sexually abused, has been physically harmed or threatened, has been victimized by a violent crime or has been exposed to a car crash, fire, or tornado. Witnessing a violent event may or may not lead to PTSD but when a person has nightmares and flashbacks about a particular violent event there is a high probability that PTSD is present. Of course, not everyone who experiences trauma will get PTSD. Some people simply manage to adjust well after exposure to a traumatic event. But other people, typically within three months when...