Nature vs.

Nurture: Affliction from PTSD

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD

Honors Intro to Phycology

Sam Basch

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD 1 All throughout history, when nations have a social or political disagreement is often leads to an armed conflict, known as war. War is a brutal thing; there is death all around, weapons of terror, and a feeling of hopelessness. Thunderous artillery barrages, sun-like explosions, and bullets flying through the air. The horrors of war can break and traumatize even the toughest of soldiers. If they return home, many war veterans are diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. However, some soldiers, who go through the same events, do not. How do they return mentally intact? Were they raised in a more hostile environment that mentally prepared them, or were they naturally mentally stronger? To try and find out if it was nature or nurture that kept them together, one must first look at what post-traumatic stress disorder is. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a disorder where the patient still suffers from the feelings experienced during the traumatic event (Javidi 2012). Anyone can get PTSD and any type of traumatic event can cause it; violent personal assaults, sexual abuse, sudden death of loved ones, car accidents, and natural disasters. They can experience feelings of fear, hopelessness, anger, aggression, and nervousness to name a few (Javidi 2012). The level of severity depends on the events, but the possible symptoms remain the same. People with posttraumatic stress disorder also often relive the event by thinking about them. They will have flashbacks or dream that they are reliving them. This can lead to feelings of anxiety and increased aggression in the sufferer, which if left untreated can lead to serious problems (Javidi 2012). These problems can range from drug and alcohol abuse, to having a break down and go on a killing spree. It can lead to depression, which is a bridge to thoughts of suicide. In one of

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD 2 the worst conflicts of all time, World War I, PTSD, which was at the time called shell shock, left survivors with some of the worst symptoms, such as severe tremors, unexplained deafness or blindness, and paralysis (Javidi 2012). Though these are in the most extreme of cases, they are still considered effects of PTSD. So why do some people get it and others don not? Is it genetics or the environment that they are raised in? This is a classic example of Nature vs. Nurture. Nature vs. Nurture is the constant debate in psychology on whether or not it is biology or our experiences that shape who we are (Schwartz 1998). The debate has been going on all the way back in times of ancient Greece, with Plato saying that who we become is a trait inherited at birth (Myers 2011). Two good cases to demonstrate Nature vs. Nurture in getting post-traumatic stress disorder is the story of Vassili Zaitsev and the Afghan war veteran Brandon Garrison. The first case will discuss the PTSD free life of a veteran of the battle of Stalingrad, one of the most horrific battles in human history; while the other will discuss an afghan war veteran whos PTSD caused him to attempt suicide. Vassili Zaitsev was born in March of 1915 and grew up in the Ural Mountains of the Soviet Union. He lived with his family of sheep herders where he was taught to hunt the wolves that threatened their flock. At the age of five, he and his younger brother would go out a night to hunt these predators. Living in the mountains made getting supplies, such a bullets expensive, so he had to shoot wisely as to not waste any ammunition. This made him an excellent marksman (Zaitsev 2003). In June of 1941, Germany began its invasion of Russia in what was called Operation Barbarossa. They pushed through the Eastern front but came to a halt in Stalingrad, in what

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD 3 would become the most brutal battle in human history. To slow the German advance, Russian Generals threw all available troops to the city, including volunteers from the Black Sea naval forces, which was where Vassili was stationed (Zaitsev 2003). His taste of battle began the morning after entering the city. He and his men were bombed and strafed by German fighter planes, which caused them to launch their own attack on the German machine gun emplacements at a petrol depot. As the men charged, a German plane bombed the position, causing one of the petroleum tanks to explode, engulfing many of the men in flames, and causing the others clothes to catch fire. Yet they continued their advance and took the position (Zaitsev 2003). Attacks like this were common; as a result, the average soldier had a life expectancy of 24 hours in the city (Zaitsev 2003). For Vassili, the brutality of the city only got worse. In his memoirs he writes about having engaging a German soldier in hand to hand combat, and having to strangle him. In another battle, over taking a bombed out factory, he was knocked unconscious and assumed dead. He was buried in a mass grave, which he had to dig his way out of upon awaking. Every battle was a blood bath, rockets and bombs leaving countless dismembered bodies, and yet, he was unfazed (Zaitsev 2003). He was eventually recognized for his marksmanship abilities and was made a sniper. Every day he would go out and hunt German officers, killing a confirmed 225 of them between November 10 and December 17, 1942. He was also hunted by Germanys top sniper, Major Erwin Knig, but came out victorious after slaying him in a three day duel (Zaitsev 2003). In January of 1943, during a German attack, against all odds, Vassili and his team of snipers repelled an overwhelming force. As the German retreated, Zaitsev charged after them, wanted

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD 4 to take them prisoner. As he ran out, a German rocket barrage began on his position. A rocket went off in front of him, blinding him with shrapnel (Zaitsev 2003). For a whole month he was blind, before an experimental surgery was able to restore his sight. Despite Generals wanting him to promote the war effort and be a tool for propaganda, he returned to the front and fought out the rest of the war. After the war he studied at a University, in Kiev, to become an engineer. He lived out the rest of his life there as a textile factory director. Before his death in 1991, he wrote two memoirs about his life, never once mentioning the effect it had on him mentally. If anything, in his books he seems to demonstrate that to him, the war was about patriotism and defending the motherland. His most famous quote was, There is no ground for us beyond the Volga, which meant surrendering the city was not an option (Zaitsev 2003). Most war veterans are often times hesitant to talk about their experiences, almost ashamed or scared to. Zaitsev was always energetic to talk about it in his war stories. One important quote from his memoir, I feel really demonstrates his feelings toward his career as a sniper: As a sniper, I've killed more than a few Nazis. I have a passion for observing enemy behavior. You watch a Nazi officer come out of a bunker, acting all high and mighty, ordering his soldiers every which way, and putting on an air of authority. His henchmen would follow his will, his wishes, and his caprices, to the letter. The officer hasn't got the slightest idea that he only has seconds to live (2003). What he is doing does not seem to trouble him. It is a simple as hunting any other animal for him. With this mentality, he was able to blend back into society after the war without any

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD 5 problems, no guilt, and no regret for his actions. There is no documentation of him suffering from PTSD; he shows no signs in his writing or speeches. The other case study is on a victim of PTSD. Over the last ten years the United States has been waging war in the Middle East. This war has left many veterans afflicted with posttraumatic stress disorder (Burton 2008). One of these veterans is Army Specialist. Brandon Garrison. Garrison returned from a seventeen month tour in Afghanistan in 2007. After being state side on leave, he began showing symptoms of mental trauma. He would have nightmares, flashbacks, and vivid memories of the horrors he saw overseas. As a result of this he began drinking daily, abusing alcohol as a means of coping with his flashbacks. For him it was the same one every time. During a patrol in a valley, his squad was fired on by a rocket propelled grenade and machine gun fire. He and other soldiers tried to help the wounded while awaiting medics to arrive. He tried helping his injured friend, who ended up dying not long after the attack (Burton 2008). After realizing there was a problem with his mental health, Garrison began going to a behavioral health clinic on his army base, where he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. He was prescribed medication to help him sleep at night. His troubles did not end there though; Garrison began having thoughts of suicide. He was prescribed Valium; a drug used to treat anxiety, but ended up almost dying from purposely overdosing on it. After the attempted suicide, he was admitted into a psychiatric ward for treatment. After several psychiatric and group therapy sessions, he was transferred to a medical center in Washington. At the time of the article (March 28 2008), Garrison was in the process of being medically discharged from the military and seeking therapy on his own (Burton 2008).

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD 6 Both soldiers in the cases went through traumatic events, though, not to discredit Garrison, Zaitsev went through a much more horrific war and did things many would say are inhumane. Yes Garrison watched one of his squad mates die and was in a firefight with the enemy, but in Vassili Zaitsevs military career, he hunted down and killed almost three hundred people, watched friends be burned alive, saw men blown to bits, lost his vision for a month from a near death experience, and yet he was still mentally in check. Is he just genetically more mentally tough then? Was Garrison weaker in the mind? Could their upbringings be why one was afflicted and the other was not? Evidence from their cases would suggest it is a mix of each. Being raised to hunt predators on a snowy mountain in the middle of the night at the age of five would definitely raise someone to be mentally tough. The idea of being a hunter would without a doubt correspond to why Vassili took such pleasure in sniping enemy soldiers. For him it was a game. On top of that, there was a sense of purpose to the fighting and the carnage. The Germans were brutal invaders threatening the Motherland and the only way to stop them was to kill them. He was a war hero for his actions and as a result would have no reason to regret what he had done. In his case, it was socially acceptable. Garrison on the other hand, fought a completely different war. As Americans in Afghanistan, one of their primary objectives is to liberate the oppressed people and be on peacekeeping missions. Having the constant fear that one of the villagers that they are there to protect can turn on them at any second would definitely get to someone. Fighting an invisible enemy, one who fights with guerrilla tactics means death can happen at any second, a mental burden hard to bear for seventeen months. With the debate on whether or not we should be in

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD 7 the Middle East and people saying it is a bad war, would without a doubt make watching your friends die even worse. For them, there is no reason for the bloodshed, no need for the loss of life, so seeing it would be much more unsettling. Soldiers in the Middle East are called murderers by their own people, many are not proud of what they see or do over there. Genetics still do play a role in this however. No matter how one is raised, nothing can prepare someone for the things they will see in a warzone. Some people are just mentally tough and capable of keeping in touch with reality despite what they see and experience (Koenen
2005). Genetics can also be a disadvantage. Garrison had been diagnosed with a personality

disorder (Burton 2008), which is claimed to have amplified the trauma from the experience and helps induce the PTSD (Schwartz 1998). In conclusion not just one variable seems to play into whether or not soldiers are affected by post-traumatic stress disorder. Perhaps people are just born capable of handling the horrors of war; while others may be nurtured into being able to keep their mind intact after being in a warzone, but then again there are probably people who have a mix. Of the cases, one was far more nurtured for war, while the other was not only nurtured negatively, but also had a genetic weakness. As a result they did an exemplary job illustrating both sides of the spectrum. In the debate of Nature vs. Nurture, both seem to be key factors in these cases and ultimately both will come into play.

Nature vs. Nurture: Affliction from PTSD 8 References Burton, T (March 29, 2008). A Soldier's Struggle With PTSD. Retrieved from http:// http://www.military.com/news/article/a-soldiers-struggle-with-ptsd.html Javidi, H. H., & Yadollahie, M. M. (2012). Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. International Journal Of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 3(1), 2-9.

Koenen, K. C. (2005). Nature-Nurture Interplay: Genetically Informative Designs Contribute to Understanding the Effects of Trauma and Interpersonal Violence. Journal Of Interpersonal Violence, 20(4), 507-512. doi:10.1177/0886260504267759 Myers, D. G. (2011). Exploring Psychology: Eighth edition in modules. New York, NY: Worth Publishers. Schwartz, S. (1998). The role of values in the nature/nurture debate about psychiatric disorders. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 33(8), 356 - 362. Zaitsev, V (2003). Notes of a Russian Sniper. UK: Frontline Books