The Internal War

Mackayla Harris

What is PTSD? Before this class I did not really know what PTSD was. I know it is kind of crazy for me to not know that, but I do not really know many people who have fought in a war. During this semester I have read many blog posts and articles about PTSD and it seems to really affect people after war. PTSD stands for posttraumatic stress disorder. PTSD can develop after someone has been harmed or has seen someone else harmed. It usually comes from a fear. It could be a fear of being harmed, someone else being harmed, or losing a loved one.

There are many symptoms of PTSD. According to the article “What is PTSD?” some of the most common symptoms of PTSD include “recurring memories or nightmares of the events, sleeplessness, loss of interest, or feeling numb.” Many people with PTSD relive the event that caused the disorder. They play back the scene in their head with vivid details. The memories can come back at any time, and they can feel just as terrifying as when it was actually happening. The person will often have nightmares. They also have flashbacks about the event. There are also triggers that can cause the person to remember. The person with PTSD may see, smell, or hear something that triggers the terrifying memories. PTSD can make people have a hard time concentrating and sleeping. It can cause the person to become irritable and anxious. The trauma caused by PTSD changes people’s lives. The people often do not do things they would have normally enjoyed for fear of it bringing back memories. They will go out of their way to avoid things that could be triggers. PTSD prevents people from living their lives like they should. It also affects the families of people with PTSD. The family must learn to cope with the new way the person will act. That can be very stressful for the family members because they are not used to how the person will act, and it is not how the person used to be.

There are a couple different ways to help treat PTSD. The article “Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)” states that “the main treatments for people with PTSD are psychotherapy (“talk therapy”), medications, or both.” Different people need different treatments. Psychotherapy is talk therapy. The person can talk with a mental health professional about their illness. The person with PTSD can also talk to family and friends about what they are going through. The family must be understanding and ready to listen whenever the member with PTSD needs to talk about their disorder. There are many different medications approved for treating PTSD in adults. These medications are antidepressants. The medications can help the person stop thinking about the memories as often. Also, taking the medications may help people go through psychotherapy. The person with PTSD will often have to try different treatments to find what works best.

Living with PTSD is very stressful not only for the person with the disorder, but also the person’s family. It is important we keep trying to help the people with PTSD. A lot of veterans have PTSD because of their time fighting for our country, and it is only right that we do what we can to help them when they return from war. We should be willing to talk to the people with PTSD and help them cope. We should also help them find professional help to make it easier on them. They do not deserve to go through a war in their head every day while trying to fight the memories. I do not know anyone with PTSD, but I know now that it can cause many problems and that it is an awful thing to have to live with.

"The Union’s Resources"

Mackayla Harris

What was one advantage the North had over the South during the Civil War? Before deciding on writing about the Civil War, I had never given it much thought. After some research, it was not hard to see some of the advantages the North had over the South. Their advantages are what I believe pushed them to win the war. After the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1861, the Southern slave states seceded from the nation and formed the Confederacy. The North became the Union. The war began in 1861. It all started when Confederate warships bombarded Union Soldiers at Fort Sumter, South Carolina. The majority of the fighting took place in the states of Virginia and Tennessee. The North had many advantages over the South. However, I believe the biggest advantage they had was their superior resources.

Industry is one of their resources that the South did not have. The factories and industries provided the North with the much needed war materials. The article, “Strengths and Weaknesses:North vs. South”, states that in 1860, “the North manufactured 97 percent of the countries firearms, 96 percent of the countries railroad locomotives, 94 percent of its cloth, 93 percent of its pig iron, and over 90 percent of its boots and shoes."  Industries gave the North the advantage. The North always had plenty of guns and ammo. The North was the main supplier of guns. It became hard for the South to get new ones. They had to make do with what they had before the war began. The lack of firearms greatly impacted the South.

Another resource that the North had was their transportation network. According to"Letters, Telegrams, and Photographs Illustrating Factors that Affected the Civil War", the North had “a better transportation network, mainly highways, canals, and railroads, which could be easily used to resupply military forces in the field."  The North had twice as many railroads per square mile compared to the South. The North was much more capable of transporting their manufactured war supplies to their armies. It was also their way of getting food to the soldiers.

The North was also in control of the Navy. The article "Strengths and Weaknesses: North vs. South", states that " Since the North controlled the navy, the seas were in the hands of the Union.” All of the main ingredients in gunpowder during this time were imported from overseas. The North could easily use the navy to block any incoming ships from bringing more supplies to the South. When the blockades would happen, it would tremendously hurt the South.

I believe that the advantage of the North's superior resources is what helped them win the war. With the end of the Civil War came the opening of the Thirteenth Amendment. The Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States. It also led to the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. The Fourteenth Amendment granted citizenship to all people born or naturalized in the United States. The Fifteenth Amendment guaranteed that no American would be denied the right to vote based on race. The Civil War changed a lot of ideas in the United States.  

"Women in the Revolution"

Mackayla Harris

    What role did women play in the American Revolution? Since I attended DAR School from kindergarten through 12th grade, the American Revolution has been ingrained in me. DAR stands for Daughters of the American Revolution. The American Revolution was between the American Colonists and the British. In 1775 a problem began when the British starting taxing American Colonists without their consent. The colonists believed they were entitled to certain fundamental rights. They wanted to be represented in Parliament. During the war almost all the men left for the army, and a lot of the women and children followed. The women and children would follow behind the soldiers as they moved from place to place. Women are not mentioned much when talking about the American Revolution. That is probably because most of them stayed behind the soldiers and out of the way. However, women did play a very important role in the American Revolution. The women were nurses, maids, wagoners, spies, and even soldiers.

    Many of the women performed daily tasks for the soldiers. Gillian Courtney states that, “their duties consisted primarily of cooking, mending, laundry, childcare, and nursing the sick.” These women were called the Women of the Army. They would almost always start out as camp followers. They would wash, cook, and do daily chores for the soldiers. Most of these women were also nurses. These women sold their services to the soldiers in return for money and occasionally half rations of food. The nursing jobs were at times very hard. The women would search the battle ground directly after the fight to look for any soldiers still alive. They also had to retrieve the dead and prepare them for burial.

    During the American Revolution the moving armies had to carry their ammunition, food, and other supplies with them wherever they went. The army hired wagoners to transport the supplies from the supply center to wherever the armies were at. The wagoners would follow along with the armies carrying the supplies in their wagons. John U. Rees from Continental Line states that, "Wagons were the most important mode of transporting those supplies armies needed to carry with them, since waterways did not always follow the direction dictated by military necessity or were under enemy control." Many of the wagoners were women. These people, men and women, were paid for their services. The wagoners were a huge part of the army. Without them the soldiers would not have been able to receive the supplies they needed.

    

    Also, there was a small amount of women who were spies during the American Revolution. The National Women's History website explains, "With their almost unrestricted access to soldiers' campsites, these women could eavesdrop on conversations about troop movements, leadership changes, and equipment shortages and deliveries without raising suspicion." Both armies used women as spies. However, they still thought women were innocent, and that they would not do any harm. The women would report the information straight to the military and civilian leaders. It was easier for a woman to transport a document through the town than it was for men. The women were not suspected of hiding any information. However, men were usually stopped and searched because of the fear of transporting information.

    Many women became soldiers during the American Revolution. At the time women were not allowed to join the army. However, the women would serve as secret soldiers. Rebecca Brooks, the author of “The Roles of Women in the Revolution” states, "These female soldiers usually disguised themselves as men by cutting their hair, binding their breasts with bandages and adopting masculine names." Many of the women joined in order to earn money for their families. Some just wanted the opportunity to fight for freedom. If the women were caught they were sent to jail. The women also risked getting made fun of for not following their traditional gender roles in society. The women during this age were not supposed to be doing men's work.

    Women played a very important role in the American Revolution, not only for the home front but also on the battle ground. The women were beginning to become more involved in war efforts. This Revolution changed how women were viewed in a time of war. Their efforts showed that they could be useful during the war in many ways.