Today I listened to an episode of “The Psychology Podcast” about Post — Traumatic Growth (PTG). Post Traumatic Growth is described by Dr. Richard Tedeschi as “the positive changes that people often report as a result of the struggle of the aftermath of traumatic events.”
As someone who has actively pursued a healthy life with complex post traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD), I came into the podcast with a lot of educated assumptions. But, as a human being, I of course also came with plenty of false assumptions.
Throughout the past ten years of my wellness journey, I have shared many a meme stating that “healing is not linear.” I even made one of my own for this post (seen above).
And yet, it turns out that I was once again assuming a linear relationship that did not exist. It’s amazing how we do that, isn’t it? We love lines. We just love them.
Prior to educating myself with this podcast, if you had asked me what Post — Traumatic Growth was, I would have guessed it to be the growth someone can experience AFTER they address and heal from their Post Traumatic Stress symptoms.
It turns out that is a false assumption. PTG and PTSD can happen concurrently. Both experiences can have the same starting point, and both can progress at their own non-linear and non-parallel rates.
What a beautiful thing to know. Here are my key take — aways from this podcast.
I can experience trauma and simultaneously experience suffering and growth.
My suffering is not an indicator that I am not growing.
My growth is not an indicator that I am not suffering.
When I think I am “past” a certain stress response and it reappears as a problem, it doesn’t mean I have lost any of my growth.
When I feel safe and happy and fulfilled, that doesn’t mean I am never going to experience PTSD, and perhaps oddly, thinking of growth and PTSD on two separate planes helps me accept the happiness more.
All day I have reflected on my journey of growth and healing and have been practicing intentionally separating that growth from the subconscious “was I healed enough from PTSD” measurement that was holding me back.
It has been empowering.
I encourage you to take a moment today to really think about the “Healing is not linear” concept and see if you can find a practical application.
If you need some inspiration, I highly recommend listening to Dr. Tedeschi.
Anna Westbrook
AnnaWestbrook.com
IsabelandtheRunawayTrain.org