The comic book world has always used mental illness as inspiration for characters. It is easier for an audience to justify the actions of a villain by tying them to a diagnosable mental illness.Marvel, the comic company responsible for The Avengers, is especially talented at incorporating mental illness into shaping their characters. Enhanced human Jessica Jones is one of these characters. Marvel uses her illness as a major plot point, and in doing so very accurately portrays how the illness manifests in real life. Jessica Jones is a Private Investigator, and she is very good at her job. Jessica has a shady past, and as the series plays out the audience begins to learn more about the events that transpired. Jessica was raped; The man who raped …show more content…
Jessica’s tries to manage her PTSD by self-medicating; She also suffers from Alcohol Use Disorder. Jessica’s ability as an enhanced human is super strength. She spends most of the time using her physical strength to combat the breakdown of her mental strength. The DSM-5 lists Post Traumatic Stress Disorder under Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders. The DSM-5 also lists eight diagnostic criteria for PTSD. Jessica meets all eight criteria. Jessica has been a part of multiple traumatic events in her lifetime. She was raped and she was involved in the car accident that killed her family. As a P.I. Jessica has also seen multiple individuals killed or beaten. The first diagnostic criteria requires the patient to have been exposed to “actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence.” Throughout the series Jessica experiences frequent nightmares and flashbacks of her trauma. Jessica also has triggers that bring back memories of her trauma. The second diagnostic criteria requires for the patient to have “presence of one or more intrusion symptoms (distressing memories, distressing dreams, dissociation) associated with the traumatic event, beginning after the traumatic events occurred.” While Marvel uses Jessica’s flashbacks as a plot device, they actually indicate significant distress. Jessica also becomes significantly distressed when she is around …show more content…
This time, instead of being a victim she decides to be proactive and use drastic measures to make sure he never victimizes anyone again. At the time of Kilgrave’s second appearance Jessica had been suffering from her symptoms for eleven months. The death of her family earlier in her life also caused her eight additional months of psychological suffering. Combined, Jessica had been suffering from PTSD for two years and seven months. Jessica has very few friends, she has no social life and her only source of income is her job as a Private Investigator. Jessica doesn 't seek help for her problems, but she does start a support group for other victims of Kilgrave and his mind control. She tries to “tough” her problems out by self medicating. Her PTSD is causing her to be alcohol
Consequently, her mental state had begun to deteriorate and she lost all control in fighting her illness and became delusional. She honestly believes she has become the woman in the wallpaper who must be set free.
The first behavior which proves Spartacus has post traumatic stress disorder is the nightmare of not being reunited with his wife. Most of his nightmares were of his wife being by his side during these trials and she would give him advice on how to survive and them being reunited again. His nightmares seemed to be prophesy or warnings of what would happen ...
Melinda makes minimal contact with her friends and as a consequence, loses her friends after these actions. Little did Melinda’s friends know, she was avoiding them unintentionally. On the first day of school, when Melinda sees her friends again, she realizes they want nothing to do with her. “I see a few friends, people I used to think were my friends, but they look away” (Anderson 8). This quote proves that Melinda was able to understand that her friends were not really her friends anymore. There are many reasons why victims may isolate themselves after this experience. “Victims are three times more likely to suffer from depression, six times more likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, 13 times more likely to abuse alcohol, 26 times more likely to abuse drugs, and four times more likely to contemplate suicide” (Who are the Victims 3). This quote from the article may help readers understand why victims suffer from diagnosis’ like depression, which cause them to isolate themselves. As a final point, victims of sexual assaults can connect to Melinda because they may isolate themselves after this type of
While some other shows attempt to present flawed female characters, they fail in making the viewer sympathize and understand them. Instead, the viewer sees these characters as “unlikeable” and often the women end up at the receiving end of a joke and then serve no further purpose. Alsop argues that newer television shows such as Transparent, Fleabag, and Girls have characters with multiple flaws, some that may even seem irredeemable, but the characters do not let those flaws define them. This causes the viewer to empathize with the characters on a deeper level. What the author of the article may not know is that of those three shows mentioned, the writing, directing, and producing credits go mostly, if not exclusively, to women. Perhaps this is the difference that makes these television shows stand out in today’s feminist dialogue and allows the viewer to empathize with the characters rather than judge
Margaret is painted as a strong character from the very beginning. As Jessica Ray Lymberopoulos writes in her essay,
“The essential psychological effect of trauma is a shattering of innocence” (Margolies). A shattering of innocence means that a person can never look at the world in the same way because they are always afraid of another traumatic event. “In order to be diagnosed with PTSD, a person must have three different types of symptoms: re-experiencing symptoms, avoidance and numbing symptoms, and arousal symptoms” ("Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."). Re-experiencing symptoms include ones that are triggered by past memories of the situation. Avoidance and numbing symptoms occur when the person is trying to avoid everything related to the event such as certain locations or television shows that could have a possible relation to the traumatic event. Arousal symptoms happen when the victim is constantly alert for another traumatic event. One of the most serious effects of PTSD is that the victims “may develop additional disorders such as depression, substance abuse, problems of memory and cognition, and other problems of physical and mental health” ("Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."). Substance abuse, for example, can drastically change the human body mentally and physically. These effects and symptoms usually last longer than 3 months
To begin with, I believe that Nicole has a mental health problem that stems from a couple of things: genetics, the way she was raised (nurture), and the abuse of alcohol. Genetics is a source of illness because of her mother, who committed suicide. The manner in which she was raised is also a factor because she has no limits and can do anything, and her father and stepmother seem like they try to disrespect to her throughout the movie. Lastly, the abuse of alcohol is a problem because instead of attacking her problems straight on, she is diverted by alcohol.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is defined by our book, Abnormal Psychology, as “an extreme response to a severe stressor, including increased anxiety, avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma, and symptoms of increased arousal.” In the diagnosis of PTSD, a person must have experienced an serious trauma; including “actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violation.” In the DSM-5, symptoms for PTSD are grouped in four categories. First being intrusively reexperiencing the traumatic event. The person may have recurring memories of the event and may be intensely upset by reminders of the event. Secondly, avoidance of stimuli associated with the event, either internally or externally. Third, signs of mood and cognitive change after the trauma. This includes blaming the self or others for the event and feeling detached from others. The last category is symptoms of increased arousal and reactivity. The person may experience self-destructive behavior and sleep disturbance. The person must have 1 symptom from the first category, 1 from the second, at least 2 from the third, and at least 2 from the fourth. The symptoms began or worsened after the trauma(s) and continued for at least one
The military culture is truly a society of warriors who heavily rely on each individual to master the ability of handling stress under the most extreme circumstances. Personal sacrifice in order to ensure mission success is paramount within the military culture. Due to this mindset, which is heavily reliant on demonstrating resilience through adversity and displaying inner strength, individuals diagnosed with a mental illness face an extraordinary battle amongst their peers.
was like in the house, we can only take Jessica's word for it. I, for
“Post traumatic stress disorder is a debilitating condition that follows a terrifying event” (Marilyn 8). It occurs when one has witnessed or experienced a traumatic event, such as war, child abuse, or other types of violence. Victims may claim to relive or re-experience events that were traumatic to them. They may even “feel” or “hear” things from the event. Other symptoms may include: “forgetfulness…amnesia, excessive fantasizing…trancelike states…imaginary companion, sleepwalking, and blackouts” (Putman 2). A lot of times, coping mechanisms fail and the following inner dissonance can lead to a multiplicity of upsetting emotional and physical symptoms (Robert Saperstein 2). Some children suffering from PTSD may show traumatic play. This refers to the reenactment of a traumatic experience. Usually, children will change the ending to make it happier. This is an extreme example of using the imagination as a way to escape the terrible memories. Billy has all the symptoms associated with the disorder as he also used his imagination to escape his bad memories.
PTSD is defined as mental health disorder triggered by a terrifying event (Mayoclinic). This ordeal could be the result of some sort of physical harm or threat to the individual, family members, friends or even strangers. (NIMH) While PTSD is typically associated with someone who has served in the military, it can affect more than just that genre of individuals. It could affect rape victims, victims in a terrorist or natural disaster incident, nurses, doctors, and police and fire personnel and bystanders. PTSD can manifest itself in many forms. The primary signs and symptoms of PTSD include but are not limited to re-experiencing symptoms (flashbacks, bad dreams, frightening thoughts), avoidance of places, situations, or events that may cause those memories to resurface, and hyperarousal symptoms (easily startled, feeling tense or on edge) (NIMH). Other symptoms may include not having positive or loving feelings toward other people, staying away from relationships, may forget about parts of the traumatic event or not be able to talk about them, may think the world is completely dangerous, and no one can be trusted.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental illness that develops after exposure to an event that is perceived to be life threatening or pose serious bodily injury to self or others (Sherin & Nemeroff, 2011). According
is able to talk the rapist out of finishing the act. She humanizes her rapist because that is
For instance, Sally Jupiter was almost raped by The Comedian and was saved by hooded justice. She felt it was her fault that the encountered took place because she was seen as a sex symbol for most men.