How does post traumatic stress disorder create conflict within patients and their families, and how can I determine if this disorder goes undiagnosed in most cases?
The Interview with Mr. Carey Whitlow
Questions are underlined
His answers are italicized
My reflections are in blue
1. What do you know about PTSD?
It’s all based on trauma. In
today’s society PTSD tends to be associated with war trauma, but it can be from
other experiences. Any traumatizing event can cause PTSD. For instance, rape,
abuse, a bad car accident, war, etc… Think about it like this- when little kids
watch scary movies right before they go to bed, what will happen? They wont be
able to fall asleep, or if they can, they will have bad dreams. As an adult who
can see things rationally, you will try to explain to the child that the movie
wasn’t real, but they wont see it that way, because they aren’t thinking
rationally. That’s like PTSD.
That’s a great
analogy… the child and the scary movie. I’ve never thought about PTSD that way.
I’ll definitely use that when I’m presenting my final project to people in the
community, because it makes understanding PTSD pretty simple.
2. In who is PTSD common?
People like war veterans, children
who’ve been abused, rape victims… Really, anyone who has been through a
traumatic event. Maybe someone who was in a really bad car accident.
Makes sense… I
guess it could also be someone who has witnessed a murder… or even seen a bad
car accident, not just been in one.
3. What are the symptoms of PTSD?
Withdrawal, hallucinations- well
not necessarily hallucinations, but flashbacks… These can be caused by
“triggers” which may be, say, a smell that they smelled during the traumatic
event. Other symptoms could be erratic behavior, or sometimes phantom limbs if
there were lost limbs during war. For example, say there’s someone who was in
war and was passing by a lamppost when a landmine went off and blew off their
legs. When they have recovered and are back home, they may be driving down the
road and see a lamppost that looks just like the one where they lost their
legs. This lamppost could be a trigger that causes them to feel pain in their
legs, that aren’t actually there anymore- this is called phantom limbs. People
with PTSD could also experience depression, and a lot of times they are know
for “not playing well with others”. Like if a child was abused, they usually
don’t work well in groups at school. People with PTSD also can’t rationalize
and may have attachment issues. The biggest thing about PTSD is that you can’t
differentiate reality and possible reality.
This is really
cool, because last year I did my final project on strokes and stroke
rehabilitation. I came upon the concept of phantom limbs, and now it’s also
incorporated with my project this year… pretty weird. Also- Coach Whitlow was a
great person to interview because he kept giving examples like the lamppost one
from this question! I’ll have to remember that giving examples makes it easier
for your audience to relate and understand.
4. Do you believe PTSD is genetic or an acquired illness?
I’m not really sure… that’s
something that could start up a lot of big debates. Experiments could be done
to test this, but obviously, PTSD doesn’t have to be genetic, because it is
caused by a traumatic event.
I’ll have to
research this more… I’m pretty sure it’s not genetic, but I want to keep
looking into it. And it would be cool if I could do an experiment, but it
wouldn’t really be possible with confidentiality of patients and all…. But
maybe I could create one and create pretend results…. We’ll see!
5. Do you consider it a mental illness, or simply a mental weakness?
Again, trying to answer this could
make a lot of people mad… but I believe that PTSD can be a legitimate
disability that some people play to make it a weakness. There are some people
who have the right to claim it as a disability but don’t… and there’s some who
claim it, but won’t try to move on. There’s no doubt, traumatic experiences
affect people, but how we learn and deal with them is what makes the
difference. Look at WWII vets for example- They all went through a lot of
traumatic experiences, but once they got home from war, they got right back to
work. There was work to be done, so they came back and did it. Now, there are
many who sit back and get everything handed to them, just because they have a
disability. Like I said, PTSD is a legitimate disorder, but some people use it
to their advantage unfairly.
Yeah… I
definitely wouldn’t want to come off as insensitive, because PTSD is a real disorder
that people struggle with, but I think Coach Whitlow is right in that some
people in this generation just deal with things differently because times have
changed.
6. Have you or do you know anyone personally with PTSD?
Yeah…. I’m not giving any names or
anything, but I knew some. PTSD is a real concern… I know people who don’t just
sit back and let their disorder rule their lives. They admit, “yeah, I’m messed
up, but I wont let it hold me down.”
I think that’s a
really positive way to look at things. Really, in any mental illness or
struggle, it’s all about attitude and frame of mind. If you let yourself dwell
on the bad, you will only see the bad, but if you stay focused on the good, you
may be happier. And obviously, that’s what makes mental illnesses so rough, is
that they can control the way you think. So it’s all pretty complicated…. Nothing’s
ever as simple as it seems.
7. I know you’re a war veteran, have you ever been through something
similar to PTSD?
Yeah… I’ve never been “diagnosed”,
but I’ve had some bad dreams… You could call them night terrors. I’ve got lots
of friends that have trouble sleeping for the same reasons. But has it affected
my life? I don’t know. This is the only life I’ve lived, so I wouldn’t know if
it would’ve been any different.
That’s a cool
thought… Has “_____” affected my life? I guess we’ll never know, like he said,
because we only have one life. But maybe you could say that yes, “_____”
affected my life, because every experience I have or lesson I learn or disorder
I struggle with makes me who I am, therefore affecting the course of my life
greatly.
8. Do you think that majority of people who have PTSD are getting the
treatments they need, or do they even need treatment?
I think that real PTSD from war
goes undiagnosed and untreated way more often than not. But I also think there
are probably more war veterans that are diagnosed than civilians… Think about a
17 year old girl who is rescued from sex trafficking and thrown back into a
normal life. Do you think once she starts getting into relationships with boys
or even getting married she’s going to have trouble with intimacy? Yeah. That’s
the kind of thing that probably goes undiagnosed/ untreated all the time.
I’ll have to
research more and make that a big part of my project- whether people with PTSD
get the treatments they need or not… It’s a big concern because PTSD can take
over your life if you’re not careful. Some people can’t afford or aren’t
educated on how to be treated, and those are the people I want to help. I want
to go to school to learn about mental illnesses like PTSD, so I can help those
who don’t understand them.
9. What are your thoughts on treatments for mental illness (PTSD
included)?
I think there are three types of
people with PTSD:
1. People who are undiagnosed and untreated- they need help
2. People who are diagnosed and working on treatment- getting better
3. People who are diagnosed, but are overplaying their illness. They need to move on and try to grow up.
This is really true, I think. Some people need to be educated and understand their disorder, but some are poaching off of others far longer than is necessary. I believe treatment itself can only go so far, and then attitude needs to step in. Without a positive attitude, PTSD can control one’s life.
10. Some people with PTSD claim that
since PTSD is a stress disorder, medical marijuana is a beneficial treatment.
What are your thoughts on that?
Do you want to hear my honest
opinion? … I think people in society- all of us- are naturally bad. But people
are just looking for an excuse to sin. They are just seeking a worldly solution
to a godly problem. If medical marijuana is alright, then why don’t we just
start handing out morphine to everyone? Then no one will be able to feel
anything at all. I think PTSD is a mental thing that can affect physiology. But
I can take a drug and physically affect my thinking. The point of medical
marijuana is relief. We’re all just looking for some kind of relief, but some
are looking in the wrong places.
I agree with this
opinion on medical marijuana. This question/answered strayed a little from the
rest of the interview, focusing specifically on PTSD, but I think it’s a cool
thing to look at. There are people out there who need help, with or without
PTSD, but some are finding it in the wrong places.
