I-Search: What I Learned
I-Search: What I Learned
Rebecca
May 10, 2010
My first research question for this project is what specific events can cause a soldier to have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? In researching about this question I found that any kind of traumatic event can cause the disorder. Soldiers at war must see their comrades and other soldiers being killed right in front of them which can be very traumatizing. Also, the conditions that soldiers must live in are very difficult to deal with. Interviewing my uncle really helped to answer my questions. In the interview he explained some of the living conditions that he had to deal with. Also, my uncle talked about everything that they must see on a daily basis while at war. Finding out these answers really made me realize how hard it is to be at war. Soldiers go through so much everyday while they are at war. Even though I found out about everything that they have to go through, I still cannot imagine being at war. War can be very traumatizing for a soldier causing them to suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
For my second research question I wanted to find out what can soldiers or loved ones of soldiers do to help treat PTSD, substance abuse and suicide or prevent it? In my research I found out about some very good therapies they have for soldiers who suffer from PTSD. The therapies are most effective in helping soldiers get over their PTSD. Also, there are some therapies that soldiers can do before going to war to help prevent getting the disorder. I found out information about these therapies using sources from the LibGuides Pathfinder. One of the main sources I used was the National Center for PTSD. This source provided me with the causes, effects, treatment and many explanations of this disorder. I think that the therapies are a very good way to help soldiers and veterans. Instead, some soldiers may take medications. However, I think therapy could be much more effective than medicine. PTSD can be very hard to deal with but the therapies can help the soldiers get through the pain.
My third research question for this project is why do so many soldiers suffering from PTSD turn to alcohol or drugs and suicide? During my research I found out more about why soldiers turn to substance abuse and even suicide. Suffering from PTSD is very hard and painful to deal with. So, people with the disorder often turn to substance abuse to help ease the pain. Also, when they feel that alcohol and drugs isn’t enough they turn to suicide. Before starting this project I did know a little bit about why people would choose to drink or do drugs. Another source that helped me realize the reasons for substance abuse was my uncle. He explained it to me and also researching on the National Center for PTSD helped me find my answers. I think that it is very harmful and can lead to even worse things. I also think that if anyone suffering from PTSD is considering substance abuse they should immediately seek counseling or therapy to help. Therapy could prevent substance abuse and suicide.
There are a few aspects of this project that I think I did well on. First, I feel I did well on in this research project is my multigenre elements. I really enjoyed the elements that I chose and I feel that they show some of the main points of my project. Also, they really helped wrap up my research. Second, I feel that I did well on my Google Site. It kept me on track being able to see what I’ve done and what was still left to do. Also, all of the elements I have posted show each step of my research during this project. Third, I feel that my interview went really well. Being able to interview my uncle made it a lot easier. Also, I came up with some questions that I was really interested in knowing and he answered them very well. Doing all of this really helped me with my entire project. I feel that I did most of the elements of the project well and they can really show everything that I have done throughout the semester.
If I had the opportunity to do this project again there are a few things that I would do differently. First, I would spend more time practicing my presentation and becoming more comfortable with what I wanted to say in my presentation. Doing so I think would help to prevent me from becoming nervous and forgetting what I want to say. After doing this project I have learned that I do get nervous and try to get through my presentation quickly. Second, I would be more consistent with my blog entries. There were a few that I did not do or I turned in late. I learned that not doing these really can affect my grade. Third, if I was to do this project again I would do more with my Netvibes page. I feel that I was worried more about my Google Site and other things that I had to do. I should have spent more time adding to my Netvibes page. Overall, there are some things that I could have done better on.
Thinking about all elements of this project the grade I think I would give myself is a low B. I feel I deserve this grade because I did spend a good amount of time on this project in class and outside of class. Also, I feel that I made a major improvement from last semester. This semester I spent more time on each element of the project. I feel that this semester I did a lot better on my blog entries as well. Furthermore, I seemed to be much more organized this semester.
My digital elements, Netvibes and Google Site, show a lot about the research I did and all of my work during this project. Posted on my Google Site are all of my I-Search documents. These documents summarize each part of my research I did during the project. Also, I have my multigenre elements posted which show some main facts of my research. Another thing that I have on my Google Site are my project updates and daily agendas. This shows what I have been working on each day. It also helped keep me on track throughout the project.
Multigenre Musings
For our multigenre project the first element I chose is the post-secret style postcard. For this I am writing a secret that a soldier suffering from PTSD has. The postcard will tell his secret about choosing drugs to deal with the pain and his thoughts of suicide. Soldiers suffering from PTSD usually hide how they are feeling. However, on this postcard he will let his secrets out. The second element I am doing is a Glogster. On my Glogster I will have pictures and facts about PTSD: substance abuse and suicide. I will include some of the main facts of soldiers suffering from this disorder. The third element I picked is a music playlist. I will select music that reflects people feeling alone and out of hope which causes substance abuse and suicide. The last multigenre element I have chosen is a blog for a person. In the blog a soldier will reflect how he is feeling and what is going on in the war. He will discuss the choices he makes and the effects of his choices.
Research Reflection 4
One of the main information sources I am using in my project is the National Center for PTSD. I found it on the LibGuides Pathfinder and it is very helpful. It provides many links to the causes and effects of the disorder. Also, it gives many specific details that answer the questions I have. Some of the links provided on this sources include causes, effects, description, how to help loved ones, signs and symptoms, and treatments. Another very helpful resource that I will be using for my project is my uncle. He fought in the Vietnam war and witnessed substance abuse and knew a suicidal soldier. My uncle is who I interviewed and he provided me with many helpful answers to my questions. Throughout my research so far I have learned that Evernote is a very helpful tool to keep my sources organized. I have found many great resources on the LibGuides pathfinder and I have bookmarked them with Evernote. Evernote is very easy to use and has really helped me with researching.
Reading Journal 5
Rebecca
4/26/10
Pages 162-203
I Am a Soldier, Too
By: Rick Bragg
“There was silence in the room for a few seconds, Jessi was much thinner than they remembered, and her head had been shaved so doctors could better treat her head wound. Dee stood transfixed by the sight of so many machines, so many tubes and wires, by the bag of blood that hung near her daughter’s bed. She knew that what she was seeing in the bed was no worse than what any mother saw after a child’s catastrophic accident — in fact, all through this ordeal Dee had told herself that she was not special, that the pain, fear and worry were spread out over the American landscape, coming home to people who lived with as much or worse, much worse. As she looked at her daughter she was determined not to cry, but she could not speak, either.” (Bragg 168) Jessi’s mom knew to expect the worse but it still hurt her to see her daughter this way. War can have such a major effect on soldiers. Jessi is lucky to even be alive. Loved ones of soldiers never want to see or hear that they are hurt. Jessi was very hurt but her family stood by her side and held her hand while she was in the hospital bed.
Research Reflection 3
For the project I have decided to interview my uncle. He is a veteran and fought in the Vietnam War. I have decided to interview him because after he got home from war he was greatly effected by it. I don’t know if my uncle was officially diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder but he does know about the disorder and the effects of war. I think that interviewing him will really help me with my project and presentation. I have come up with some questions to ask him and continuing my research will also help. I want to know more about the specific causes and effects. Also, I want to learn the reasoning behind veterans choosing alcohol, drugs, and suicide. I hope that my uncle will be able to answer all of the questions I have for him. My topic is PTSD and substance abuse and suicide. So, I have decided on these three research questions: What specific events can cause a soldier to have PTSD, what can soldiers or loved ones of soldiers do to help treat PTSD substance abuse/suicide or prevent it, and why do so many soldiers suffering from PTSD turn to alcohol or drugs and suicide. I came to these questions because I do have a general idea of what the answers are but I want to know the specific answers. I think that finding the answers to these questions will really help me with the project and the presentation we will be doing. I am looking forward to finding out the answers to my interview questions and the research questions I have decided on.
Reading Journal 4
Rebecca
4/14/10
Pages 121-161
I Am a Soldier, Too
By: Rick Bragg
Marines told a lawyer about a blonde captive in the Saddam Hussein General Hospital and people believed it was Jessi. The marines also said that they had seen one of Saddam’s Fedayeen slap the young woman across the face. However, Jessi said she was not slapped: “Unless they hit me while I was asleep–and why do that?” she said. “She said she was never tortured, never threatened while in the hospital. The doctors and nurses would later say the same, that they never saw anyone abuse her, that neither the Fedayeen nor the soldiers mistreated or threatened her.” (Bragg 123)
Jessi’s family and friends are very relieved that she is alive: “But for now, it was enough to know that Jessi had survived and was back in the hands of her army so that she could get medical help. They knew then that Jessica had almost died at the hands of the enemy, but did not know about the hands of the Iraqi doctors who had cared for her. It would be a complicated story altogether, but for a few hours in a two-bedroom house in Palestine, West Virginia, it was blissfully simple. She was alive.” (Bragg 138) Jessi’s loved ones have been very worried about her being missing. They feared that she was dead. So, they were very happy to find out that she is alive.
Research Reflection 2
In my research I have found a lot of useful sources. I have found great resources on the LibGuides Pathfinder. I have started looking more into my topic of PTSD, substance abuse and suicide. There are some sources I have found that I know are going to help me a lot with the upcoming projects. I have found a lot of the information I need. The articles I have found are going to help me with my multigenre elements and my presentation. In my book I have been reading more about what soldiers go through that can cause PTSD and this should also help me.
Reading Journal 3
Rebecca
3/31/10
Pages 79-121
I Am a Soldier, Too
By: Rick Bragg
“Both Lori and Jessi were unconscious when they were dropped off at the military hospital around 10 a.m. by Iraqi soldiers. Lori had suffered a serious head wound. The Iraqi doctors said that they tried to save her, but that brain surgery in the opening days of the war, as their emergency rooms filled with wounded, was impossible. She died before Jessi came to.” (Bragg 81). Lori and Jessi had met because they were roommates at their base and they became good friends. Lori was all Jessi had while in the army and now she has lost her.
“Long after the army’s messenger had left, they could still hear him. “Your daughter is missing in action. Her whereabouts are unknown. She was last seen…” (Bragg 85). Greg, Dee and Brandi, Jessi’s dad, mom and sister, could not bare the thought of Jessi being gone. They thought she couldn’t be dead because she was a supply clerk. However, they did not know where she was or if she was okay. Brandi did not feel anything and could not concentrate: “I tried reading books. I would read the same line over and over again. I’d read romance novels and there was no romance in it,” she said. “It just didn’t interest me. I’d watch television and not see it. I was just there.” Also, Jessi’s mother cried all day and could not sleep. Dee did not know what day it was because it all just ran together. Greg and Dee hoped Jessi had found a place where she would be safe while she waited. They could see her sick and injured but they knew she was alive. Jessi’s family could not bare the thought of her being dead.
I-Search Paper: What I Knew About My Topic
The topic I am interested in researching is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and the affects it has on soldiers. I am really interested in this topic and it speaks to me because substance abuse and suicide are major issues today but the people that do make these choices are not usually suffering from PTSD. I really want to be able to see the specific causes and affects that cause soldiers to suffer from PTSD and make these decisions. Also, it speaks to me because a family member very close to me abused alcohol and passed away because of this. Alcohol took over her life and she knew it was happening. She was not a veteran, however, substance abuse and suicide are a major issue and some people may not realize that or take it seriously. It is very important to research because I do know some facts about the topic, but not everything. I want to know more and I am looking forward to researching this topic.
Some things that I do not know much about is the specific causes and what happens to make soldiers have this disorder. Also, I want to know more about the soldiers that do have this disorder. Is it something that they will most likely suffer from for the rest of their lives? Is there any specific help for PTSD or any way to prevent it from getting worse? Why do some veterans suffer from this and others do not? What are some signs/symptoms of PTSD and substance abuse and suicide? Are they open to talking about it or is something people hide? What goes through their minds when making the decision of abusing alcohol/drugs or committing suicide? Does alcohol and drugs really relieve them of their pain and make them feel better? I have many questions that have yet to be answered. I am really looking forward to doing more research and finding out the details.
Research Reflection 1
So far in my research I have found some excellent resources. I have found these resources on the LibGuides pathfinder. The topic I am considering is post-traumatic stress disorder and substance abuse. There are many good articles about this issue and I think it will be a great learning experience. However, I am still going to explore my options for a topic. Also, I am going to continue to find and bookmark as many resources as possible for PTSD and substance abuse. Continuing my research will really help me see all of the causes and effects of this disorder and being at war. Also, reading my book I Am a Soldier, Too will help me with the projects and presentation we will be doing.
