Post Traumatic Growth

You’ve probably heard someone casually throw out that they get “triggered” or they have PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). Because they had a trial in the past, they still sometimes react when something reminds them of that trial.

Have you heard of Post Traumatic Growth? Because someone had a trial in the past, they now view the world differently today. They have gained some wisdom or matured in some way after going through that hardship.

Trials should add and not take away. Growth should happen rather than stress.

But it isn’t always that easy. If you recently had someone break into your house, you might still jump when you hear only a branch bump against a window. You react and feel that stress because someone breaking into your house is a traumatic experience. You can’t just turn that off.

You can guide those reactions, though. By taking responsibility for them, you can decide how you want to respond.

I think of it like this. If you’re riding a horse, you can use the reins to tell the horse what you want it to do. But horses only listen if they’ve been trained. And some horses are harder to train than others.

Turning Post Traumatic Stress into Post Traumatic Growth might take time, but don’t despair. Don’t compare your horse with other horses! Just compare your horse today with your horse from yesterday. Has there been progress? Thank God for it. Did you go backwards? Thank God for the opportunity to learn and then thank Him for future progress.

What do you think?
Joseph