Post Traumatic Stress Disorder During The Holocaust Essay

PTSD in Holocaust Survivors The Nazis killed over six million Jews and millions of other Polish and Soviet civilians in the Holocaust. They also killed gypsies, physically and mentally disabled people and homosexuals. The number of survivors today are quickly dwindling down. Clinical psychologist Natan Kellermann defines a Holocaust survivor as any Jew who lived under Nazi occupation and was threatened by the â€Å"final solution† (Kellermann 199). This definition can be applied to not only Jews, but to anyone in general whose life was threatened by the Nazis. When these survivors were liberated, they believed the suffering was over, but for many, this wasn’t the case. The trauma of the horrors they faced is still evident in their life. By analyzing the effects of post traumatic stress disorder after the Holocaust, readers can see that the aftermath of the Holocaust is still prevalent in the survivor’s everyday life; This is important to show that while the trauma may not be overcome, the survivor can be more at peace with the events. When World War II ended, many of the prisoners felt as if their newly found freedom was surreal. The mental and physical torture the prisoners underwent led to the loss of happiness, even after they achieved freedom. Victor Frankl writes â€Å"there could be no earthly happiness which could compensate for all we had suffered...and yet we were not prepared for unhappiness† (Frankl 147). With everything they went through, it is understable why theseShow MoreRelatedMaus and the Psychological Effects of the Holocaust1704 Words   |  7 Pagesthe Holocaust The Maus books are award-winning comics written by Art Spiegelman. They are the non-fictional stories of Art and his father, Vladek. 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