Regarding the Civil War veterans he saw, Reverend JL Burrows once said, "It's not in human nature to be content with physical constraints." This quote perfectly describes the feelings of soldiers taken prisoner during the Civil War. Many of these captives harbored feelings of resentment toward their captors, despite the relatively mild conditions of the prison camps. However, these feelings of resentment quickly turned into animosity as conditions went from mildly inconvenient to hellish nightmares. This will become evident when we examine the history of prison camps and the examples of two of the worst offenders: Confederate-run Andersonville to the south and Union-run Elmira to the north. These evil prisons and their practices would leave a wound as catastrophic to the soul as the Minie bullet was to the body. This invisible injury is known as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and has a variety of symptoms. Although PTSD is more common among inmates, there are cases in which strangers remember painful details that could have caused them to experience similar symptoms. These symptoms do not disappear upon leaving the camps, but last throughout life. This effect is easily seen throughout the life of Angelo Crapsey. However, not all prisoners suffered like Crapsey, as there are examples of prison camps that remained satisfactory throughout the war. Although anyone involved in the civil war was at risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder, those taken prisoner were exposed to circumstances that could significantly increase these risks. It can be argued that although conditions in some camps remained humane throughout the war, the irreversible psychological damage caused by the tragedies encountered... middle of paper ...... certainly resembles "patients suffering from cretinism". seem to indicate a resounding “yes”. Hearing tales of the horrors put them in a state of exhaustion even before the battles began. If they were unlucky enough to be taken to one of the most notorious camps, they would be exposed to such terrors that could leave even the strongest mind in a state of ruin. An account of freed Union surgeons says: "Ambulances brought sixteen to the hospital, and during the night seven of them died. Again, eighteen were brought, and eleven of "They died in twenty-four hours. At another time, fourteen were admitted, and in a single day, ten of them died," shows how the prisoners lived in the constant shadow of death. This, coupled with the lack of adequate nutrition and exposure to various means of torture, meant that these captives continually lived within millimeters of the breaking point..