The challenging journey from trauma to post-traumatic growth: Lived experiences of facilitating and hindering factors

Abstract

Background: Many people experience psychological trauma during their lifetime, often negatively affecting their mental and physical health. Post-traumatic growth is a positive psychological change that may occur in an individual after having processed and coped with trauma. This journey, however, has not been studied enough.

Aim: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore people's experience of suffering psychological trauma, the personal effects of the trauma and the transition from trauma to post-traumatic growth.

Methods: A purposeful sample of seven women and five men, aged 34-52, were selected whose backgrounds and history of trauma varied, but who had all experienced post-traumatic growth. One to two interviews were conducted with each one, in all 14 interviews.

Results: This study introduces a unique mapping of the challenging journey from trauma to post-traumatic growth through lived experiences of people who have experienced trauma as well as post-traumatic growth. Participants had different trauma experience, but their suffering shaped them all as persons and influenced their wellbeing, health and view of life. Participants described post-traumatic growth as a journey, rather than a destination. There was a prologue to their journey which some described as a hindering factor while others felt it was a good preparation for post-traumatic growth, i.e. to overcome difficulties at an early age. Participants described six main influencing factors on their post-traumatic growth, both facilitating and hindering ones. They also described the positive personal changes they had undergone when experiencing post-traumatic growth even though the epilogue also included heavy days. A new theoretical definition of post-traumatic growth was constructed from the findings.

Conclusion: The results suggest that the journey to post-traumatic growth includes a recovery process and certain influencing factors that must be considered. This information has implications for professionals treating and supporting people who have suffered traumas.

Keywords: phenomenology; post-traumatic growth; psychosocial nursing; public health; qualitative approaches; qualitative interviews; rehabilitation; trauma.