PTSD In The Film 'Prisoner Of Her Past'

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The 2010 documentary film, Prisoner of Her Past, was about Howard Reich discovering the circumstances that caused his mother, Sonia, to develop late-onset PTSD. Sonia, who escaped Dubno Ghetto and faced traumatic events as a child, was a normal adult until she ran out of her house in the middle of the night thinking someone was trying to kill her. After 60 years of forgetting her lost childhood, Sonia begins to relive her nightmare. Unfortunately, Sonia refuses to discuss her past, which creates curiosity in her son. This causes Howard Reich to conduct a research to uncover his mother’s past in order to understand why she is reliving it. Reich also compares his mother to other trauma survivors, such as Hurricane Katrina, and reveals the interventions that are being done today to help young children who face PTSD. …show more content…

The film proves how war effects children in ways that are unimaginable. Sonia suffered from starvation, frostbite, and fear for five years as a child. Although Sonia coped with her experiences as an adult due to her having a family, her instilled fear was never dealt with. Her lack of support, love, and trust in her life caused to become silent over her past and develop PTSD in her late adulthood. Howard Reich’s research allows viewers to understand why Sonia is reliving her past while offering insights on how to help others who have faced traumatic events. The film reveals the murky world in which Jews were hidden, abused, betrayed, and murdered by

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