Combat and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

1) Soft Spots: A Marines Memoir of Combat and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder by Clint Van Winkle
2) Survival Stories: Memoirs of Crisis by Kathryn Rhett
3) Denial: A Memoir of Terror by Jessica Stern
4) College of the Overwhelmed: The Campus Mental Health Crisis and What to Do About It by Richard Kadison and Theresa Foy DiGeronimo
5) How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie
Book reviews: You may choose 2 books from the list of books provided on the class website and write a book review about each of them. The paper should be 2 pages long (single spaced, Arial 12 point, one inch margins). You will earn 4 or 5 points of extra credit if your paper is of exceptional quality, shows careful reflection of the books content, provides a thoughtful personal reflection, ties in course materials, and is written clearly and with correct grammar and spelling.
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Stressors are a ubiquitous part of life, and how we respond to stressful experiences can have dramatic effects on our physical health and well-being. The topic of human stress is interdisciplinary; we will approach the scientific study of stress from many different vantage points, including psychological, biological, environmental, and medical perspectives. In the first part of the course, we will learn how individuals respond psychologically and physiologically to stressors; for example, what types of conditions are perceived as stressful, what biological systems are activated in different stressful situations, and how coping and personality can influence these responses. Then, we will examine how experiencing chronically stressful situations can influence our physical and mental health; for example, by leaving one more vulnerable to illness, or by influencing the progression of certain diseases. We will also investigate how social, family, and societal factors can influence stress processes. Finally, we will examine stress-reduction interventions, which have been shown to alleviate some of the negative effects of stress on health.