Post-Traumatic Growth: The Positive Effects of Trauma
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What is PTG?
Post Traumatic Growth is closely linked to to the idea of resilience and describes the positive effects that experiencing trauma can have on a person.
There is an underlying assumption that experiencing any kind of traumatic event must somehow result in either negative outcomes such as long-term anxiety or, for some, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Although mostly associated with combat (for example those fighting in the Vietnam war) PTSD has become synonymous with traumatic events across a wide spectrum of scenarios, including childhood sexual abuse, road traffic accidents, witnessing trauma and so on.
However, research shows that in fact the majority of people (around 80%) experiencing traumatic experiences do not suffer any long term consequences and generally adapt to the experience going forward in life.
Positive Effects of Trauma
Perhaps the most well known example of Post Traumatic Growth is highlighted by what has now become known as the 'Stockdale Paradox'.
Commander James Stockdale was the most senior Naval officer to have been captured during the Vietnam conflict and was held prisoner for 7 years, during which time he endured various forms of torture.
Remarkably, however, not only did he NOT suffer any negative consequences, but on the contrary, he described his experience as 'life-affirming' and said that he would not change what happened to him if he could.
It was well known among the rank and file of military people who were familiar with Stockdale that he had a high level of resilience to challenges long before his Vietnam experience, and research does suggest that resilience, the ability to maintain a perspective on negative events and 'move on', is a key determinant in surviving trauma.
Resilience Can Be Learnt
Not everybody has a high level of resilience and there are numerous early developmental factors which can limit it, including the frequency and severity of past-traumatic experiences.
The good news, however, is that resilience is a skill that can be learnt in a predictable and systematic way, mainly through the ability to manage thoughts and 'appraisals' of situations through the modification of underlying beliefs and value systems.
Medicalisation of Human Emotions: A Cultural Model
Medicalisation is the process of taking aspects of human behaviour and trying to explain it through medical principles.
This process of medicalisation is then used to legitimise the management of our behaviours using conventional medical approaches such as drug interventions or surgical procedures.
Psychosocial Determinants of Mental Health and Wellness
Psychosocial determinants are those factors which take into consideration the interactions between SOCIAL and individual PSYCHOLOGY.
We are all governed by psychological processes such as thoughts, feelings and meanings and all of us live in a social context of one sort or another.
Models of Mental Health: Differing Perspectives
The main models of mental health highlight the interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors in determining an individual’s mental well-being.
The Biopsychosocial Model recognises the influence of genetics, psychological traits and socioenvironmental factors on mental health.