Hello I m Darren Magee and today s question asks what is meant by Post Traumatic Growth? Now this
is a theory developed by psychologists Richard Tedeschi and Laurence Calhoun in the mid 1990s.
It is a theory that explains the transformation of positive growth experienced by people who have
endured psychological struggles with adversity. In this video, I will outline the theory, look at the
areas that the growth takes place, some of the signs that might show the growth taking place,
and look at some ideas to consider that might help with that growth. So just to break it down a
little, post refers to after the event, after the situation. Traumatic refers to the emotional, the
physical responses to the event, and growth means positive psychological change that is experienced
as a result of the traumatic event. Before I go any further, I would like to take a moment
to thank BetterHelp for sponsoring this video. Now that's BetterHelp, that's B E T T E R H E L P.
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off your first month s subscription, just click the link in the description of this video. Now
back to the topic for today, Post Traumatic Growth. Now in their work Tedeschi and Calhoun
noticed that not everybody who experienced trauma, for example, having been in our life threatening
situation, a victim of violence, long term abuse, not all of them went on to develop PTSD, or Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder. Many showed incredible resilience and began to thrive in the aftermath of
the event. Now that growth does not mean that the trauma wasn't destructive, it doesn't mean that
people weren't hurt or frightened. It doesn't mean like they behave as if it didn't matter.
But what was happening, and this will take place over a period of time, there were other areas,
their connections with others, their strength, their resilience, their confidence, they began
to develop and grow. These characteristics started to become more consolidated, and they identified
specific areas in which this growth takes place. So let's look at them now. The first one is there
was a greater appreciation of life, not just their own life or other people's lives, but even
just life in general. Like many people have been through Hell tend to develop a compassion under
the empathy, become more generous with their time in supporting others, especially others who may
have experienced the same thing. They can become more adventurous, but not in a reckless way.
They are just more able to live in the moment. They can become more cautious, but not necessarily
overanxious. It's just that there are more measured. There is a greater appreciation of their
relationships with others. Now those relationships can become closer, they can become stronger. But
they are also open to forming new relationships, mutually healthy, beneficial, supportive ones.
They also develop a confidence to be able to leave behind relationships that are not so healthy.
Another area of growth would be being able to identify new possibilities, a new purpose in life.
Many have experienced trauma, have used this experience as a platform for something greater,
perhaps to start campaigning or lobbying for a change in an area in which they were hurt.
Or they could move into an area of work that supports people who have been traumatised.
They may write a book, write poetry, share their experiences, share their stories. They go on to
develop a greater awareness, to utilise their personal strengths and their support network
in that area. Many people recognise that they are more resourceful than they thought. They are more
resilient than they give themselves credit for. And although when faced with future adversity,
it's not that they become fearless, but they start to become braver. Lastly, there's an
enhanced spiritual development. Now this could be a religious faith or it could be becoming more
connected with the world, with other people, with nature, there is a greater appreciation of nature,
beauty, the human spirit even. So some ideas that can help with growth in these areas would be,
first of all, don't play down the traumatic event. Don't play down your responses to it or the impact
that it has had. Talk about it, talk about it in a safe space with someone you feel comfortable with,
someone who's going to listen to you, someone who's going to validate you. Someone who
could help you explore options, to explore choices and this could be with a therapist
or perhaps in a support group. And this is a strange way of putting it, I know, but avoid
avoidance. Don't engage in avoidance tactics. Avoidance tends to either keep the distress going
or it makes it worse. Now in therapy you can learn to understand the things that you fear. Break it
down a little piece at a time, and when you expose yourself to those things that you do fear in small
little measured pieces, a small little piece at a time, the fear doesn't necessarily go away, but
what happens is it starts to dilute as you start to become more confident, more courageous. And
as much as it might hurt and as terrifying as it might be, don't forget the other side of that, pay
attention to your strengths. Pay attention to your qualities, your resources, your support network
and utilise them. And lastly, be patient. Be compassionate with yourself. Growth isn't always
instant. It isn't the push of a button. It takes time. It is not a race, it's a journey, and the
expression I heard recently that I thought summed up wonderfully was it's not about bouncing back,
it's about moving forward. Moving forward a little piece at a time. So that's a brief outline of post
traumatic growth. Now if there's anything I've missed, or if there's anything you might like to
share, please use the comment box below. There are some interesting conversations start around these
videos. If you find this video interesting or helpful, please consider subscribing to my channel
for future updates on mental health related topics. Until next time, thanks for watching.