Kewalin Sirirattanaprasert

Holocaust survivor

The shawl illustrates the horror of holocaust and trauma that follow for the survivor. The

Holocaust is the event that happened during the World War II in 1933 until 1945 with the

purpose of killing all of the jewish people and their culture in Europe. Jewish people were treated

brutal and heartless by Nazis and more than six million of them were murdered. Yet, despite this,

some people survived but they were permanently affected both physically and mentally.

Even though, there are lots of Jewish people who lost their lives during cruelly event,

holocaust, but there are also more than 500,000 survivors around the world along with 200,000

people in Israel.1 The average age of survivors is 79 and quarter of them are older than 85. Aging

doubles issue in their life since most of them already faced both physical and mental problem.

Mental health is the main factor that affect survivors life the most because it influences

in their routine such as work and communication. This includes anxiety which they have to

handle with many random feelings in addition of fear, helplessness, and insecurity. Sometimes,

the Jewish survivors feel guilty to their family and friends because they are one who survive and

they come up with questions Why am I still alive?, Why not my family alive? for instance2

.The survivors present their mental health through death, nightmares, panic attacks, and others

1Goldhill, O. (n.d.). Holocaust survivors 70 years of trauma: I could cry nonstop, even now.
Retrieved December 06, 2016, from
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/world-war-two/11370513/Holocaust-survivors-70-years-of-tr
auma-I-could-cry-nonstop-even-now.html
2H. (2016). Harrowing story of the Holocaust survivors still fighting for a dignified life.

Retrieved December 06, 2016, from

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/harrowing-story-holocaust-survivors-still-7806437
 Kewalin Sirirattanaprasert

psychosomatic symptoms3. However, not every people have the same problem, they are separate

into different range from mild psychological disturbances to severe.

According to interviews, there are many statements that affirm about holocaust survivors

mental illness that they have to confront until present. The first person told that I have

nightmares constantly. I recently dreamed that a guard grabbed me. My wifes arm touched my

face, and I unfortunately bit her severely.4 which this quote illustrates the symptom of survivor

that even though he already lived his life as normal but he still could not get risk of anxiety

problem. Another quote talks about the guilty feeling towards their family, I felt guilty for many

years that maybe I should have run back and tried to get her with me or stay with her. Maybe I

didnt do enough to stay together. Maybe I was too selfish about saving myself.. The survivor

starts to blame herself about the past situation that him or her still stuck with it and can not let it

go easily. There are a lot more sorrowful story of holocaust survivors life, not including people

who are not able to talk about their old days.

The circumstance in the camp is too horrible and disgusting to live. There is not enough

food and drink for all of the people in the camp so the outcome is people lacking of nutrients and

they are emaciated. Not only diet that is not enough for them, but also clothes and habitats. The

rate of death in the camp dramatically increases all the time arise from the gas chamber

execution and diseases are another factor that have an effect to it. The common illness that can

discover in the camp are typhus, typhoid fever, tuberculosis, and dysentery. It is unclear for

Jewish people on that time even if they will alive or dead.

3Introduction to Survivor Stories. (n.d.). Retrieved December 06, 2016, from

http://holocaustlearning.org/survivors
4Emotional Wounds that Never Heal - Nathan Durst. (n.d.). Retrieved December 06, 2016, from

http://www.jcpa.org/phas/phas-durst-f02.htm
 Kewalin Sirirattanaprasert

Next, Many Jewish people could pass that horrible life time however, physical illness is still

there with them. There are a lot of symptom that can observe from survivor such as

weaken remembrance, an incapability to focus, uneasiness, irritability, emotional liability,

insomnia, headaches, and other paralytic issues5.The illness that doctor can find it outstanding

from survivor is "premature aging which means patience look older from their age.6 Also the

disease related to digestive system is another main disease that commonly find out from patience

such as diarrhea and peptic ulcers. However, respiratory tract disease has only less than 30%

among survivor because those survivor develop resistance to it.

In the shawl, Rosa could survive her life after all of the event happen but from all of the

story that she had faced, her daughter died in front of her, no food, and other violence thing will

change her life forever. According to the research, most of the survivor will have mental and

physical illness that stay with them all the time.

In conclusion, survivors have to face both mental and physical problem since they had

passed the horrible life time that even the time passed, however their wound still stuck into their

heart and it is hard to change. Therefore, even survivors survive their life on that brutally

holocaust but it does not mean that they can pass their everyday life easily from trauma and other

disease.

5Impact of the Holocaust. (n.d.). Retrieved December 06, 2016, from

http://www.sandrawilliams.org/HOLOCAUST/holocaust.html
6Full Interview with Holocaust Survivor, Theodore Haas. (n.d.). Retrieved December 06, 2016,

from http://jpfo.org/filegen-n-z/survive.htm