PSYC 303 Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
The attack on the World Trade Center, Hurricane Katrina, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the BP oil spill, trapped Chilean miners, earthquakes in Haiti, floods in Pakistan, tsunamis in Indonesia, murder and displacement in Darfur, massacre in Tiananmen Square. Survivors of these events experienced extreme trauma. Sometimes the consequences of these traumatic experiences cause the person to have trouble dealing with life for months or years. We call this extreme reaction post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Knowledge of PTSD may help an individual become more resilient after experiencing extreme stress. The goal of this course is to familiarize the student with the disorder in order to understand the consequences of severe trauma. Understanding PTSD is necessary not just for mental health providers, but also for the individual who may experience, or knows someone who experiences, severe trauma, and the citizen concerned about the well-being of war veterans. In this course we will examine PTSD in depth; anxiety disorders; history and prevalence of PTSD; specific traumas (combat, sexual assault, crime, natural and man-made disasters, terrorism, etc.); symptoms, biology, consequences, impact and treatment of PTSD.
Prerequisite
PSYC 105 with a grade of "C" or higher.