A shell-shocked WW1 soldier in the trenches, 1916
A shell-shocked WW1 soldier in the trenches, 1916
A creepy-looking picture of a shell-shocked soldier. Shell shock was a term used for what is now known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This psychological disorder occurs when someone goes through a traumatic event such as war, severe abuse, or other highly distressing situations.
Symptoms of PTSD include avoidance of others, intrusive thoughts, and extreme altercation in mood and arousal. People with PTSD have intense flashbacks to their traumatic events and may dissociate from reality.
PTSD is thought to occur due to the brain's inability to process trauma fully. The brain will usually process experiences and "store" them. Still, the emotional distress of some of these situations may lead to the brain replaying them over and over because it cannot understand what has happened or why it occurred (these are usually thoughts of people of such events).
PTSD can lead to other psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety as well as Obsessive-compulsive disorder. PTSD is being heavily researched today to help people suffering from it.
Psychology was not very well understood then, so many soldiers returned home with many mental issues, and they had to deal with these issues themselves. This soldier is most likely going through some disassociation episode, and the photographer captured his expression.
This picture was taken during the battle of Flers-Courcelette in September 1916, which means that it is possible he had to go through 2 more years of combat with these mental health issues.
Comments
Post a Comment