Post Traumatic Growth Breakthrough is common. Sometimes PTG is considered to be a person’s ability to “bounce back” after trauma. And, in truth, such resiliency may, indeed, be part of your experience. Yet, experiencing PTG breakthrough is much more.
PTG challenges and reforms the deep beliefs that kept you stuck in your trauma. You’re not simply employing an ability to get back to yourself, you instead endure the time and struggle necessary to transform into someone with a new worldview. A worldview that wouldn’t be possible without the traumatic experience.
So, how do you know if you’re experiencing post-traumatic growth breakthrough? Are there signs that reveal you may be stronger, wiser, or simply more aware of yourself and your needs following a dark season in your life? According to the is the Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) developed by psychologists Richard Tedeschi, Ph.D., and Lawrence Calhoun, Ph.D. (Journal of Traumatic Stress, 1996) and recent research on the topic, there are five key areas that indicate growth. Some people see a breakthrough in all five, many people experience in just a few.
Ideally, your work with a qualified, compassionate therapist can help you look at your post-traumatic experience to determine how you’ve been affected and how you're moving forward. If indeed PTG breakthrough is occurring, you can leverage it for continued recovery and a fulfilling future. What can you look for as evidence that PT growth is helping you break through the pain and confusion of your past? Ask yourself the following questions for more insight and clarity:
5 Top Post Traumatic Growth Breakthrough Signs
Are You “Loving Life?”
Post-traumatic growth breakthrough often results from life-altering or life-threatening experiences. If you feel that you now experience a deep appreciation of life you likely are beginning to see how you can make the most of your pain. Part of your breakthrough may reveal itself in not wanting to take much for granted or waste time with frivolity. How you spend your life is a concern you may weigh more heavily and with more import than prior to your trauma.
Do You Connect More Deeply to Others?
When you began processing your trauma, relationships may have seemed untrustworthy or uncertain. But, as time goes on and you work to process the unhealthy connections or lost relationships in your life, your perspective on people may have shifted.
Perhaps you value community and social connection more. Newfound empathy, compassion, and altruism may be developing. You might simply feel an openness toward humanity that you couldn't tap into before your trauma or for some time afterward. Your post-traumatic breakthrough may simply be evidenced by your unwillingness to take the people in your life for granted.
Has Your Perspective Widened and Your Priorities Shifted?
After processing your trauma, you may experience a deep shift in your overall worldview. Where you once felt stuck you may now see possibilities, purpose, and value. Life itself may look and feel different than ever before. Introspection and new ideas born of your traumatic experience can make the present moment seem more precious. Using your time and energy meaningfully may feel imperative.
Moreover, mental and emotional doors that previously seemed locked to you can feel more and more accessible. You may feel excited to invest your mind, body, and talents for causes that reflect your perception of new potentialities and opportunities.
Does the Phrase “What Didn’t Kill You Made You Stronger“ Resonate?
A significant uptick in personal strength, confidence, and proactivity is one of the most common indicators of a post-traumatic growth breakthrough. You may now have the ability to tap in a well of truth, life lesson, and acceptance that fortifies you and makes life less scary.
After processing the pain and anxiety of your past you may find you have the strength to cope, express compassion, forgive, and make decisions that serve you well moving ahead. Your past is put in its place. It simply informs you and you no longer feel that it dictates your life choices. You may also find that you know have the internal strength to examine your bodily responses and reactivity. With support, you may feel more comfortable and able to align your body and mind for optimal healing.
Have You Found that Meaning Matters More Now?
Often, trauma survivors get stuck wrestling with the question “why me?” It’s perfectly normal and you definitely need time to work through the hurts of your past experience. Still, as time goes on, you may be experiencing a spiritual shift as well.
An appreciation of your experience and how it can inform a fulfilling future may also promote the need to explore spiritual meaning related to your trauma and recovery. Of course, this isn’t related to religious denomination or theology. Instead, it is a personal, powerful opening of your mind and heart that can change how you live, who you spend time with, and what shapes your relationship to the universe.
PTG Breakthrough: Are you there?
Essentially, your particular post-traumatic growth breakthrough comes down to this:
Your post-traumatic experience is unique to you and must be processed fully and with a wealth of support. Then, sometimes years afterward, your breakthrough can happen. There is no need to rush or judge yourself. What matters most is healing.
Your breakthrough is simply an outcome of allowing yourself, your connections to others, and your outlook to be affected and transformed positively by trauma.
The sense of empowerment, purpose, insight, and confidence you feel post-trauma ( however minute) reveal that you’ve been able to use pain as a catalyst for your evolution. Take pleasure and in that.
Let Your Therapist Help You
To be certain, to experience post-traumatic growth breakthrough you must embrace a period of intense reflection. Unfortunately, many trauma survivors deny themselves support and professional help. This just delays healing and future opportunities for post-traumatic growth. Whether you feel like you’ve made headway on your own or long for the type of growth we explored above, give yourself the best chance at feeling better. Reach out for help. Selecting a safe, experienced, compassionate therapist is important now.
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