Did mental illnesses such as PTSD occur in soldiers since ancient times? (Think the movie 300)

by SnapKreckelPop
kesascarfman

We can't psychoanalyze dead men but we can use written accounts of symptoms to extrapolate the possibility of ptsd.

In fact the battle of thermopoly included two soldiers who displayed symptoms of ptsd. They were sent home as they were not fit for service.

When one of them found out about the final sacrifice, he committed suicide for the shame he felt not dying with his brothers in arms. The other soldier later regained his honor dying in an later engagement.

Please also refer to this post

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1les1j/how_did_the_soldiers_of_antiquitymedieval_times/

Also u/sapere_adve did his master thesis on roman ptsd. Here: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/1j6ssm/comment/cbbvfib?st=JBF582EA&sh=9ea2e29f

It illustrates a reasonable contrasts between how shame culture (japan, china, ancient rome) and guilt cultures(american & modern western europeans) process trauma.