Throughout the book, Catcher in the Rye, Holden goes on a journey. This journey isn’t a physical journey it is a mental one. Holden experiences post traumatic stress disorder, or more well known as PTSD. PTSD affects Holden both mentally, though the way he think about the world he lives in, and physically, through the way he interacts with other people. “When in danger, it’s natural to feel afraid. This fear triggers many split-second changes in the body to prepare to defend against the danger or to avoid it. This “fight-or-flight” response is a healthy reaction meant to protect a person from harm. But in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), this reaction is changed or damaged. People who have PTSD may feel stressed or frightened even when they’re no longer in danger.”(1 NIMH) What The National Institution Of Mental Health is saying is that individuals that suffer from PTSD are stressed even when they are in good environment. PTSD usually occurs after someone has gone through a near …show more content…
Holden show a lot of these symptoms throughout the book. For example Holden always says that he is depressed is really never happy. “It drives me crazy. It makes me so depressed I go crazy. I hated that goddam Elkton Hills.”(Salinger 8), “t. I partly blame all those dopes that clap their heads off--they'd foul up anybody, if you gave them a chance. Anyway, it made me feel depressed and lousy again, and I damn near got my coat back and went back to the hotel, but it was too early and I didn't feel much like being all alone”(46). Holden is always depressed about something throughout the book which is one symptom of PTSD. Another symptom that Holden has he really doesn’t care about the future and is always living in the past and present. “‘Oh, I feel some concern for my future, all right. Sure. Sure, I do.’ I thought about it for a minute. ‘But not too much, I guess. Not too much, I