Invisible Wounds Summary

In the TED talk “Art can Heal PTSD’s Invisible Wounds,” Melissa Walker discusses what invisible wounds are and how they are caused. Invisible wounds or PTSD(Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) is a mental illness that can be found after someone goes through a traumatizing and dramatic experience. This experience is usually a near death situation and the after effects is what mentally challenges the patient. However, some cases of PTSD can go unnoticed, sometimes even intentionally hidden by a patient. Many people with PTSD may hide their illness for various reasons. One reason is to prevent themselves from being viewed as weak. Many men have an idea of being the strongest one in the family. The speaker states “This physiological change, or speechless terror as it's often called, coupled with mental health stigma, the fear of being judged or misunderstood, possibly even removed from their current duties,
Although some may think not serving in the army is a blessing, serving the army may be very important for them. The army offers paid college scholarships for people who want to get a degree. However, if they are unable to fulfill their service required by the army, they may find themselves in a difficult situation. But there is hope for those with invisible wounds. Invisible wounds can be healed by a new type of approach. Art. Art has allowed many people suffering from PTSD express themselves. After a traumatizing experience, a certain part of brain has a malfunction and causes the patient to lose his/her ability to talk. Therefore, health professionals decided to use art to help these patients express themselves without using that part of the brain. As expected patients found themselves drawing vivid and dark images. Although their expression may not be light hearted and happy, it ultimately helped people recover from