Trauma - Post-Traumatic Growth

About Trauma

By Claigh H. Jensen LDS Family Services https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2008/02/about-trauma?lang=eng 

People may experience circumstances so distressing that normal coping skills are not adequate. Such incidents might include abandonment, abuse, war, environmental disaster, an untimely death, severe illness, and many others. 

Research suggests that: an estimated 70 percent of adults in the United States have experienced a traumatic event at least once in their lives, and up to 20 percent of these people later develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). An estimated 5 percent of Americans—more than 13 million people—have PTSD at any given time.

While no one is excluded from the trials and sufferings of this life, people may believe if they are strong enough or faithful enough, they should be able to move on with their lives after a traumatic event. Most people who experience trauma are able to return to leading a normal life, but they typically go through an adjustment period first.

Symptoms of Trauma

The stress caused by trauma can affect all aspects of a person’s life, including mental, emotional, and physical well-being.3 It is important to tell your doctor of any traumatic events you or your loved ones may have experienced. The following may be symptoms of trauma:

Discussion

• Have you experienced symptoms of trauma? What has it been like for you?

• How has trauma affected your relationships with others? 

Helps

Family members are often the first to notice these indicators. Here are some ways they can help:

• Spend extra time together. Gathering as a family away from the demands of work, school, and other responsibilities communicates love, commitment, and priority. Simple things such as smiles and hugs give assurance and are helpful when breaking through a sense of isolation.

• Strengthen and renew spiritual foundations. Encourage personal prayer, and gather in family prayer often. Priesthood blessings can also be tremendously beneficial; during high stress times it is often easier to “hear” than to “feel” the word of the Lord. Keep a journal. Listen to music that invites the Spirit. Attend church and the temple.

• Be patient and gentle. Encourage, but do not rush, the healing process.

• Use good judgment when seeking professional help. Family Services and other professional resources may help you or your loved one successfully work through the experience to a higher level of functioning. Turning the traumatic experience into a growth experience could be a primary goal of professional intervention.

• Understand that everyone experiences traumatic events differently. In fact, some might experience an event as traumatic, while others may have only felt uncomfortable. For this reason, remember not to compare your experience to others’ or use your experience as the standard experience. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/liahona/2023/09/06-after-trauma-building-resilience-and-embracing-healing 

• Remember that no one knows our suffering as extensively as Heavenly Father and the Savior do. The Lord “descended below all things, in that he comprehended all things, that he might be in all and through all things” (Doctrine and Covenants 88:6). Sister Amy A. Wright, First Counselor in the Primary General Presidency, taught: “We all have something in our lives that is broken that needs to be mended, fixed, or healed. As we turn to the Savior, as we align our hearts and minds with Him, as we repent, He comes to us ‘with healing in his wings’ [2 Nephi 25:13], puts His arms lovingly around us, and says, ‘It’s OK. … We can fix this together!’"

• After experiencing a traumatic event, recognize the ways you have grown or can grow because of the experience rather than focusing on the traumatic event itself. Research has found that after trauma, people often experience what has been labeled “post-traumatic growth.” Post-traumatic growth is demonstrated by a person finding increased strength after a traumatic experience, like improved relationships, greater appreciation for life or certain qualities of life, or an increased awareness of possibilities of life. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/liahona/2023/09/06-after-trauma-building-resilience-and-embracing-healing

“He that is faithful in tribulation, the reward of the same is greater in the kingdom of heaven. Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation. For after much tribulation come the blessings.”  (D&C 58:2-4)

“The cavity which suffering carves into our souls will one day also be the receptacle of joy.” –Neal A. Maxwell 

“No pain that we suffer, no trial that we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education. … All … that we [patiently] endure … builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us more tender and charitable. … It is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire and which will make us more like our [heavenly parents].” -Orson F. Whitney 

“Our Heavenly Father … knows that we learn and grow and become stronger as we face and survive the trials through which we must pass. We know that there are times when we will experience heartbreaking sorrow, when we will grieve, and when we may be tested to our limits. However, such difficulties allow us to change for the better, to rebuild our lives in the way our Heavenly Father teaches us, and to become something different from what we were—better than we were, more understanding than we were, more empathetic than we were, with stronger testimonies than we had before.” -Thomas S. Monson

Discussion

• What are some things that have helped you cope with effects of trauma?

• Have you noticed any personal growth or resilience as a result of what you’ve been through?