The author provides some of the earliest research of post traumatic stress disorder and it origins. Jean-Martin Charcot and Sigmund Freud research of homeless women provided the first clinical diagnoses of people who had been abused or traumatized. Charcot and Freud called the diagnosed disorder hysteria, of which carried similar symptoms to todays post traumatic stress disorder. Charcot and Sigmund studies also provided a treatment model which they called talking therapy and later psychotherapy. The major view of this writing provides the characteristics features and criterions described in the DSM IV, the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. There are 20 chapter in the text that provide information on post traumatic stress disorder as it relates to ethnicity, policies and politics, current issues related to families in treatment of substance abuse, domestic violence and its effects on youth behavior and crime and society. There are also suggested hypothetical examples of a research module for post traumatic stress disorder for future references regarding substance abuse. The intension of this writing is to provide enough information to bring forth invisible wounds for clear diagnose. Although, some mental health disorders are clearly noticeable (i.e., depression, anxiety, panic attacks, dissociative disorders) other may not be so obvious. The text describes how once triggered the symptoms become a recurring cycle until treated. Therefore to assure veterans are properly assessed, the text implies an understanding of the dynamic of post traumatic stress disorder, uncovering the veil and opening up clear communication to assist veterans, and practitioners.
