Resilience

In the aftermath of experiencing traumatic and victimizing events, most individuals are impacted, but some 75% evidence the ability to “bounce back” and become resilient. In contrast, some 25% of victims “get stuck” and develop physical and mental disorders.

Resilient individuals access and receive social supports, control negative emotions and experience positive emotions such as gratitude, forgiveness, compassion, grit, love and joy, which can change how the brain works. They are able to “re-story” their traumatic accounts in terms of benefit-finding and benefit-remembering. They may undertake meaning-making activities and survivor missions that help transform losses into a “gift” they can offer others.

-Don Meichenbaum, Ph.D., TMI Research Director and Board Member, Research Director of The Melissa Institute and Distinguished Professor Emeritus, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.