That which does not kill us makes us stronger.
This platitude serves to ease the discomfort of the observer. It can only rightly be said by those who have been strengthened, and it can only rightly be said about themselves, not to others.
The truth is that some people never get into the second group. Those who do get there experience considerable weakness before strength develops. In this, the old saying skips the essential steps that fall between the sixth and ninth words. Try doing something as simple as assembling your child’s bicycle using this gauge and you’ll fast find out why it doesn’t work for more complicated processes, either.
Trauma is emotionally paralyzing. This doesn’t mean one can’t take action. To the contrary, action is taken in favor of dealing with the emotional reaction – and yes, standing still is an action. Freezing emotions is a defense mechanism used to stave off feeling anything so one may act. It’s normal and natural, allowing us to be productive even in the face of crisis. To delay feeling for months and even years, however, isn’t healthy. It aggravates the initial trauma and artificially inflates the severity of the feelings, thus making resolution seem insurmountable.
In reality, the initial trauma is enough to deal with without making it into something even bigger. The sooner the issue is dealt with appropriately, the more likely a person will see the trauma in perspective, relative to what they are able to do about it right now rather than when the tragedy occurred. Many times a delay in treatment results in PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), disassociation, depression, or suicide.
Depending on the severity and circumstances of the tragedy, it can take years before a person feels safe enough to let the emotions emerge and deal with them. Sometimes it is not the person, but rather the person’s subconscious that decides it’s safe enough. This might happen when a spouse leaves an abusive marriage or an accident victim leaves the hospital, but doesn’t follow up with a way to address and resolve what happened. Once the immediate concern has been addressed, the subconscious may say, “My turn!”
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Article comments
1 - John Mernick
As a survivor of sexual abuse, domestic abuse and as a subscriber to the theory of Alchemy, personal transformation through the power of nature,I absolutely and wholeheartedly agree with your premise.
Luckily for myself, through travel and education I have learned about the transformational qualities of nature. Essentially, when we humans go forth into nature and remove ourselves from the context of our daily lives, we call up an ancient truth about ourselves that connects us with our true nature as human beings.
By creating distance from what torments us we begin to see again that what truely matters is our sacred selves. We are human beings and that is awesome in and of itself. We are all lucky to be here and to be part of this fantastic adventure that is life. When people stand at the edge of a canyon or hike deep into the woods, there is a passion that is awakened inside us that is undeniable. We return to our most basic state of being, re-connecting with our basic human nature.
In the past, I have worked with a therapist who studied this phenomenon in clinical studies where patients were exposed to nature and more rapid personal growth was consistently recorded. On my own, I have written about the power of nature and how it helps give us perspective on our lives and helps us heal.
I have been very lucky in my life despite the abuse I suffered and survived. I was an adventure guide for 5 years with the Green Tortoise Adventure Company out of San Francisco. I brought people from around the world out into nature to see the American National Parks, and I witnessed their and my own personal transformations.
I wish you luck and prosperity with your career and hope that you are inspired to venture out into nature to explore the person you really are at the core, for she is obviously a wonderful human being who helps other people with her intellect and compassion.
John Mernick
2 - kelly
That blew me away i lost my mum at the age of 16 and i just read my life back to me for a moment. Brilliant
3 - lauryn
Wow, you couldn't be more wrong, Diana.
4 - Alex Pronove
I agree with your sentiments albeit with the inclusion of another condition and that would be the conscious decision of the individual to learn from and thus grow from the harsh experience.
Some distance has to form between the person and the experience, as you indicated. That distance typically forms from the passage of time.
Personality type makes a difference. An introvert would probably grapple with the experience sooner than an extrovert. Still, it is not personality as much as it is a conscious decision by the person to revisit the experience that will turn this saying from one of "life's lies" to truth.