Trauma: Fertilizer for the Soul?
We gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience by which we really stop to look fear in the face... We must do that which we think we cannot.
- Eleanor Roosevelt
Exposure to stressful situations can result in negative psychological consequences such as PTSD, anxiety disorders, physical illness, and depression, but more and more research is focusing on the potential positive effects of the process of recovery. The literature points to a number of areas of measurable personal growth achieved by those who have successfully worked through trauma from bereavement, natural disasters, war, abuse, and illness. Perhaps surprisingly, researchers are finding that those who experience the most posttraumatic growth are those who are more vulnerable to begin with. While more resilient victims are able to survive traumatic situations with lower levels of psychological impact, those who are more deeply affected appear to be more driven to make meaning from stressors and the ways they influence their lives.
Researchers have identified five areas where some trauma survivors experienced assessable positive change as a result of their struggles:
- interpersonal relations,
- internal fortitude,
- ability to identify new possibilities,
- spiritual change, and
- increased appreciation of life.
No one is suggesting that exposure to trauma is beneficial, but research findings encourage clinicians and clients to approach treatment from a growth perspective in addition to acknowledging the suffering and soul-searching that may follow a crisis. Responses to trauma differ widely. Resilience is a complex trait linked to increased ability to resist stress and to manage the impact of traumatic events. It is possible that less resilient people are more apt to feel a need to work on meaning-making and identification of coping mechanisms in response to a greater perception of harm in a stressful situation.
History and religion are full of stories about people who have worked through tragedy and adversity and found themselves stronger, wiser, more self-reliant and/or more deeply spiritual. Humanistic theories and philosophy are based on acknowledging humankind’s need to make meaning of the choices and events that shape our lives. There is no denying that trauma can cause great and lasting distress, but it may be helpful to see that, for some, the negative experience and the attempt to recover can be an occasion to achieve positive personal changes. To quote psychiatrist and neurologist Viktor Frankl, “When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.”
Sources:
Hogan, N. & Schmidt, L. (2002). Testing the grief to personal growth model using structural equation modeling. Death Studies, 26, 615 – 634.
Kilmer, R., Gil-Rivas, V., Tedeschi, R., Cann, A., Calhoun, L., Buchanan, T., et al. (2009). Use of revised posttraumatic growth inventory for children. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 22(3), 248 -253.
Levine, S., Laufer, A., Stein, E., Hamama-Raz, Y., & Solomon, Z. (2009). Examining the relationship between resilience and posttraumatic growth. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 22(4), 282 – 286.
Peterson, C., Park, N., Pole, N., D’Andrea, W. & Seligman, M. (2008). Strengths of character and posttraumatic growth. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 21(2), 214 -217.
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Tedeschi, R. & Calhoun, L. (2004). Posttraumatic growth: conceptual foundations and empirical evidence. Psychological Inquiry, 15(1), 1 -18.
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Note: Free full text links to some of Calhoun and Tedeschi’s journal articles on post-traumatic growth are available at their website: .
Author: Lori Standish, St. Joseph's College
