Posts two or more 100+ word responses to initial posts of classmates. Posts motivate group discussion and contributes to the learning community by doing 2+ of the following:
offering advice or strategy
posing a question,
providing an alternative point-of-view,
acknowledging similar experiences
sharing a resource
First Post to Respond to
Davin perryNew! Week 5- Mental Illness
Hello class,
What are one or more important sociological issues in health and medicine in the world today that you observed in the Series you explored? What are some data you can find to show the prevalence of these issues, and what groups of people do these issues affect most?
I must have read every single one of these stories out of curiosity. The series that I chose was the Invisible Wounds series because I think that PTSD has a negative stigma attached to it that makes treatment and even seeking treatment very hard for an individual. Society has done those affected a great disservice by being dismissive when people open up about their struggle with mental illness.
Most of the stories began with people describing how much of a normal life they left behind before going off to war. Artists, students, husbands, daughters each described how witnessing the horrors of war had stolen pieces of their mind. The same tone was echoed throughout the series people felt as if they were never meant to be in a position to experience such carnage.
The story of the young man who only enlisted because of his family's long history of military, and his father's acknowledgement He detailed his experiences with snipers, IED's, death and the toll they take on his mental health. PTSD doesn't only affect first responders, law enforcement, and military members it each demographic of people without prejudice.
It is estimated that 8% of Americans suffer from PTSD at any given time, which is roughly the 24 million people, or Texas (pstdunited.org, 2013). I have two friends that suffer from PTSD due to abusive relationships and though they are years removed the scars are still present. Mental illness has become a running joke or punchline over the years.
Society labels sufferers as crazy, unstable, psychotic, etc; making disclosure hard for those who need help. Do you feel like therapy should be mandated for all returning service members?
Second Post to Respond to
Ethan MastinNew! Week 5-Ethan
One of the stories I read was about a family who has a little girl that has been diagnosed with cancer and how it has affected each of their lives. The mother feels afraid all the time, which seems to keep her on the attack. She gets very short tempered and fights a lot with her husband about very little things.
The father seems to be much more emotional about it. He cries all the time but tries to hide when he does it because he wants to feel like he can still be the rock for everyone to lean on. He mentioned that what kills him the most is not being able to be in control of what happens to his daughter. They both mention that they think it might be a lot easier for their daughter because she doesn't really understand what can happen. All she worries about is playing and being able to see her friends but her parents always have to remind her that she is sick.
The main sociological issue with this story is how cancer not only affects the person diagnosed but the whole family as well. It is common for parents to fight when their kids are diagnosed. When their child is diagnosed they are in shock and disbelief, which causes fear and anxiety, which can lead to depression, sadness, and anger. When someone you know has cancer its affects everyone around them. There are doctors who feel the pressure of making the kid feel better, co-workers who have to cover for the family members who are always in the hospital, and their friends of the family who also feel guilty if they do not do anything to support them.