Richard G. Tedeschi

I mean, we all have up days and down days and things that come across in regular life, not just with the burns.

And so we studied that and became certified as compassionate companions through a program with Richard Tedeschi, who coined the phrase post-traumatic growth.

And to make a longer story shorter, Holly, being a jewelry artist, decided that she wanted to get an impression of some of my scars.

So she was able to do that and turn it into jewelry.

I'd also like to say to you that when it comes to some, I guess, extra understandings, post-traumatic growth is possible, but not inevitable.

There's a beautiful psychologist, Richard Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun, who developed the concept of post-traumatic growth, which describes how some people experience meaningful, positive changes in their priorities, relationships, personal strength, or sense of purpose following adversity.

Importantly, suffering itself does not guarantee growth and people should not feel pressured to find a silver lining.

I think it's true too that when we look at Dr. Kristen Neff's work, she talks about self-compassion is supporting resilience.

It's the idea that something difficult can fundamentally change how you see yourself, your relationships, your purpose, and what's possible for your life.

Psychologists Richard Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun, I don't know if I'm saying those right, developed the concept identifying five areas where growth can occur.

Number one is greater personal strength.

Discovering that you're capable of navigating things you never thought you could.

Throughout the 20th century, most psychologists focused on the negative symptoms that accompany traumatic experiences.

After all, what good can come from the worst life has to offer? In the 1990s, however, the psychologists Richard Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun noted that while suffering was inevitable following a traumatic experience, accompanying this suffering some people experienced immense growth in various areas of life, including an increase of personal strength, a greater appreciation of life, richer relationships, an openness to new possibilities, a greater sense of meaning, and a deeper spiritual attitude.

This growth which follows trauma they called post-traumatic growth, and as Stephen Joseph writes, The idea of transformation through trauma goes against the grain of all that is written about the devastating and destructive effects of trauma.

Psychological studies have shown that adverse life events are often the trigger for depression, anxiety, or post-traumatic stress.

And today, I am joined by two friends, two legends, and two amazing human beings, Dr. Bret Moore, uh, Dr.

Rich Tedeschi.

So thank you guys for being with us today.

You're welcome.

But so too exists the opposite, which is post-traumatic growth.

And I had the good fortune of interviewing the pioneer of this concept, Dr. Richard Tedeschi, who pioneered this concept, uh, three decades ago to help veterans.

And what he shares is, yes, while the loss is traumatic and, and pain is real, and every bit of suffering is valuable and understanding, if we can somehow find some way, some pinhole of hope, some- something greater than ourselves-

Yes

Um, so over in the US, Josh Goldberg and Ken Folk had, uh, founded the Bouldercrest Foundation.

And what they were, what they've been doing since 2013 is utilizing Dr. Richard Tedeschi and, and Lawrence Calhoun's work around post-traumatic growth.

Mm.

Um, and so that became-- we became aware of, uh, Bouldercrest and Josh and the programs, and PTG in particular, um, a couple of years ago, not long after we first started.