The Emotional Scars of September 11
Walking past the courthouses and city hall toward Ground Zero, you enter an uncanny world that is both completely familiar and totally strange. Though street signs and landmarks remain unchanged, axes of orientation no longer line up as they once did. It is not just the reduction of people and traffic; something else, something palpable yet far more difficult to articulate is loose on the streets.
I visited the site with my friend, Aaron, who had been in the World Financial Center at the time of the attack. He was not injured but while escaping had images seared in his mind that will change him forever. He felt it was important for him to return to the scene of terror and knew he should not go
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It is not merely that our screens are too small and camera angles too limited; rather, the reality confronting us is not only visual but, more importantly, visceral. There is only one word I know to describe the response to what we saw: awe. A strange religious atmosphere pervades Ground Zero. There has been much talk about the role of religion in this conflict but very little understanding of what religion-either our own or the religions of others-involves. There are, of course, many gods and many faces of gods believed to be one. While religion often gives people a sense of meaning and purpose in times of personal and social crisis, its symbols, stories and rituals also carry people to the edge of life where unmasterable power always threatens to erupt. Religion is associated as much with terror and anxiety as with love and peace. For a few brief moments on September 11th, the veneer of security was torn to reveal a primordial vulnerability that neither defense departments nor advanced technologies can overcome. The encounter with this awesome power is a religious experience that leaves nothing unchanged.
I don't know how long we lingered-in this realm, time stands still. Eventually, we roamed up Broadway past Trinity Church, whose graveyard is more haunting than ever, to the Wall Street subway station. Descending underground, awe gave way to anxiety. For over a century, philosophers have been telling us that
September 11, 2001 (herein referred to as 9/11) was a day in American history, which will be remembered as the most horrific attack on American soil. This attack, carried out by nineteen Islamic extremists, was associated with al-Qaeda, and involved the hijacking of four airplanes. Two of those airplanes were hijacked and flown directly into the World Trade Center in New York City, New York. The third plane’s target was the Pentagon in Washington D.C., and the fourth plane was brought down in Pennsylvania where it is believed the passengers aboard fought the hijackers. This horrific day in history cost over 3,000 people their lives, and was labeled the worst attack on American soil since the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II.
As the story progresses, it became evident that the setting was a post nuclear apocalypse in New York City. The author utilized descriptions such as “high towers of the gods” and “great caves and tunnels” to describe skyscrapers and subways respectively.The author’s selection of the location highlights the complete difference of the
With the recent release of the popular movie and book American Sniper, much attention has been drawn to the effects of the disease of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder on its victims. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, a mental illness from going through a traumatic experience, is more prevalent in veterans and men currently serving in the military, and it is important that effective treatment be sought.
Imagine a cloud of black smoke covering the sky of your hometown or having to make the choice if you should jump to your death out of a skyscraper because if you didn’t, then you would burn alive. Imagine calling your husband while on a plane while knowing that will be the last time you tell him you love him. Imagine the fear you would feel not knowing if your loved ones survived a terrorist attack. This nightmare on an imaginations became a terrible reality for New Yorkers and American citizens. On September 11, 2001, four aircrafts were hijacked by Al-Qaeda terrorists. Two of the aircrafts flew into the twin towers in New York City, one aircraft crashed into the Pentagon, and the fourth aircraft crashed into a field in Pennsylvania. These terrorist attacks that took place on September 11 resulted in many casualties, an increase in airport security, and the United States invading Afghanistan and the Middle East.
It’s crazy how something as small as someone’s beliefs can cause one of the biggest tragedies worldwide. All it took was more than a dozen terrorist, two planes, and a well thought out plan to create the catastrophe we call the 9/11 attack but they call a tremendous heroic event. This was simply an act of being at the right place at the wrong time. 9/11 could be seen all the way in space but was felt by the people in the smallest towns to enormous cities. Although the crashes on 9/11 happened in the amount 102 minutes the aftermath lasted about 99 days yet will never be forgotten among everyone everywhere. Those were truly 102 minutes that shook the world and for some it will never stop shaking.
The term “Psychological trauma” refers to damage wrought from a traumatic event, which that damages one’s ability to cope with stressors. “Trauma” is commonly defined as an exposure to a situation in which a person is confronted with an event that involves actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to self or others’ physical well-being (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Specific types of client trauma frequently encountered by which therapists and other mental health workers frequently encounter in a clinical setting include sexual abuse, physical , or sexual assault, natural disasters such as earthquakes or tsunamis, domestic violence, and school or/and work related violence (James & Gilliland, 2001). Traumatic
In the 12 years since the terrorist attacks on the world trade towers in New York city, thousands of hours of research and interviews has been conducted, scores of books have been written, and countless documentaries and films have been produced in an effort to help us understand how and why terrorists were able to carry out the massacre of nearly 3500 people. Despite the plethora of religious and nonreligious beliefs represented by the friends and family of those who died, one universal belief binds them all: the belief that an unspeakable act of cruelty has changed our nation and our people for all time. The name ascribed to this act of terrorism is debated widely. Some call it evil. Others call it nothing more than supreme cruelty.
On September 11, 2001, 2,996 people were killed in the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon building in Virginia, and in a plane crash in Pennsylvania. Religion played a huge factor in what happened on that tragic day, and also what we believe in our world today. Many people have very strong religious beliefs with who they believe in and who they do not believe in. Religion has an impact on our world due to the fact that people will stand up for what they believe in and they will not stop until people believe them or they are stopped. 9/11 happened due to the extreme beliefs of the Muslims, through the use of symbolic targets, what the Muslims believed in, and with what the United States got involved in prior to the attacks.
New York: 9/11 Memorial and Museum: This memorial and museum of 9/11 was my favorite site in New York and it also taught me a few life lessons. When you first walk up to the sight there are these two breathtaking fountains in the shape of the square buildings that use to stand straight up. Then around the squared fountains the names of all the victims are written. Just by looking at the fountains it taught me the first lesson, to never take life for granted no matter the situation. Realizing that the victims arose that morning not realizing that it would be their last morning getting out of bed, it disturbs and rattles you a bit. When I sat back and just watched the water flow in the middle of the fountain, it truly hit me that these were all
It took me a while to decide which place to go for my museum paper. I honestly didn’t care about my interest at first and depended on the convenience to get to the place. I thought of going to the Grand Central or Louis Armstrong’s house just because I have been there for multiple times and the museum was close to where I stayed. However, after I did some research for other places to visit and unintentionally happened to watch a documentary called, ‘102 Minutes That Changed America’ on YouTube, I changed my mind right away to visit the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. I was in extreme shock for few hours from virtually experiencing the horrific event of 9/11. I lost my words when I saw the scene of people jumping out from the building. My heart was beating and my eyes started to tear from seeing all those horrific events that happened on that day. As I have never learned about this case in detail, everything in the film was too extreme for me to comprehend the situation that was being played in front of my eyes. Therefore, after finishing watching the film, I felt an urge to visit the Memorial and Museum to have a better understanding about the incident.
When you first head down to the exhibit, you see a large map of the east coast on the wall. On this map shows the flights that were used by the terrorists in 9/11, you see their flight paths, and the time when they each crashed. Followed by that, you walked past pillars that showed pictures of people reacting to the planes crashing into the towers, you see the fear in their eyes, the horror. Each picture had its own emotion that was heavy to look at. After walking past
A bright, yellow sun smiled down from a picturesque blue sky, as a slight breeze made its way through the maze of skyscrapers in New York City on a cool Tuesday morning. Who could have guessed a morning as benevolent as this could be a source of such inexplicable cruelty? This particular day in September of 2001 would change the world forever. Without warning, an explosion rang out. A puff of black smoke bellowed upward from the north tower of the World Trade Centers. An unpleasant silence ensued. As the bystanders below tried to make sense of what they had just seen, a woman let out a bloodcurdling scream, then another did the same, and then another, until the sounds of the individuals blended together to create one indistinguishable cry of fear.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects 7.7 million American adults and can also occur during childhood. PTSD is an anxiety disorder that stems from a recent emotional threat such as a natural, disaster, war, and car accidents. PTSD usually occurs from an injury or coming close death. A person who has experienced a past traumatic event has a heightened chance of being diagnosed with PTSD after a current trauma. PTSD can also be determined by looking at one’s genes, different emotions, and current or past family setting. Normally, when a person without PTSD goes through a traumatic event the body releases stress hormones, which in time returns back to normal; However, a person with PTSD releases stress hormones that do not return
Although all therapists are aware of the childhood emotional abuse issue, it is possible that only few therapists understand the scope of the issue. Emotional maltreatment is harder to detect than other forms of abuse because it is more subtle. When Child Protective Services (CPS) conduct family assessments, it is the hardest form of abuse to prove because parents are very open about the topic and emotional abuse does not leave any physical evidence behind. However, it certainly influences a child's self-esteem, promotes the feeling of guilt, insecurity, and creates the inability to form stable relationships during adulthood. Although some behavioral disorders are related to emotional abuse, it is not possible to predict it correctly
September 11th changed the lives of many Americans, irrevocably. The horrendous attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon altered the way American’s viewed their positions within the world, not to mention their lives and their safety. The attacks brought terrorism to the forefront of national attention, in every aspect. The government became immediately immersed in an effort to understand and defeat terrorism, and simultaneously, the media, with its perverse fascination with violence and profit-driven espousal to round-the-clock, up-to-the-minute coverage, demonstrated an obsession with the attacks, by broadcasting almost nothing but the latest developments in the search and rescue efforts and investigations