Posttraumatic growth (PTG): Supporting positive change after trauma

Reviewed by Robert Bogenberger, PhD

Written by

therapist.com team

Last updated: 09/19/2025

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What is posttraumatic growth?

Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is a term for the positive psychological changes you might go through after facing a traumatic event or life crisis.¹

Experiencing PTG doesn’t mean a trauma was “good” or that it didn’t cause damage. It’s an acknowledgement that you can adapt and find new meaning alongside the pain.

It’s important to remember that everyone processes experiences differently and that the path of growth can vary greatly from one person to the next.

Posttraumatic growth vs. resilience

Resilience is the ability to return to your usual way of living after stress, trauma, or setbacks.² Posttraumatic growth is different—it’s about moving beyond where you started.

While resilience focuses on stability and coping, PTG involves transformation and discovering new strengths, perspectives, or purpose. Resilience is about getting back to baseline—growth is about going beyond it. You might experience both resilience and growth at the same time.

PTG happens through deliberate reflection and meaning-making, not just by managing stress. These mental processes help you spot opportunities for positive change, even during painful experiences.

What posttraumatic growth looks like

PTG can show up as changes in different parts of your life. Therapists and researchers use tools like the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) to measure these changes in roughly five areas: relationships, new possibilities, personal strength, spirituality, and appreciation of life.³

1. Deeper relationships

Your relationships might feel deeper or more meaningful. Some people become more open, compassionate, or connected after going through something hard. This shift can show up in stronger bonds with family, friends, or your community.

2. New possibilities

You might start exploring different paths, setting new goals, or noticing opportunities you hadn’t thought of before. This sense of openness can make the future seem less limited.

3. Personal strength

You may feel more able to handle stress or challenges than you did before. Even when life feels difficult, you might feel more capable of handling it and accepting the way things work out.

4. Spiritual development

For some people, spiritual or religious beliefs get stronger. Trauma can cause people to seek meaning, sometimes resulting in a stronger religious faith or a deeper understanding of their spiritual beliefs.

5. Greater appreciation of life

Finally, you may find a bigger appreciation of life. Simple moments, daily routines, or time with loved ones might feel more valuable. Even small joys can seem more important, helping you focus on what really matters.

Not everyone experiences PTG, and those who do won’t all experience it the same way. Growth can also show up alongside pain. Some people might continue to deal with fallout from traumatic or difficult experiences, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), even as they notice positive changes at the same time.

If you’ve experienced trauma, a mental health professional can help you navigate the complex process of healing.

The psychology of posttraumatic growth

After trauma, your mind often tries to make sense of what happened. Some thoughts just pop up and feel intrusive, but it’s deliberate reflection—the times when you purposefully stop and process—that tends to support growth the most.⁴

Purposeful rumination helps you rebuild your sense of who you are and how the world works. You might notice that changing how you see your trauma changes how you carry it.

As you spot new strengths, see things from a different angle, or find value in your struggle, you start to turn distress into growth. This process isn’t about pretending the pain isn’t there—it’s about weaving it into your story in a meaningful way.

Who is most likely to experience posttraumatic growth?

Surprisingly, PTG isn’t rare. One review found that about half of people report at least moderate growth after trauma.⁶

The rate of PTG varies a lot—from about 10% to 77%. It depends on factors like your age, the kind of trauma you experience, and other personal details.

You’re more likely to experience posttraumatic growth if you’re under 60, especially if the trauma happened recently. Younger adults often report higher rates of growth than older adults, but more research is needed to determine why.

Groups like veterans, firefighters, and healthcare workers also report higher levels of growth. Their jobs expose them to intense stress, which can push them toward reflection and change.

Debates and limitations in research

If you dig into posttraumatic growth research, you’ll find that experts don’t always agree on what PTG really is.

The debate runs much deeper than most people realize. While many people who experience trauma report various levels of posttraumatic growth, mounting evidence suggests these self-reports aren’t accurate.

It’s been proposed that there are actually three types of PTG:⁷

1. Perceived PTG: What people believe about their own growth
2. Genuine PTG: Actual, measurable growth following adversity
3. Illusory PTG: Unfounded claims of growth

Some argue that illusory PTG is common, while genuine PTG is rare. The disconnect between how people believe they’ve changed and how they’ve actually changed may be much larger than previously understood.

What might create these illusions of growth? Researchers point to several factors:

• Design flaws in current measurement tools
• Emotional biases that favor positive interpretations
• The inherent appeal of the concept
• Cultural expectations that encourage growth narratives
• Problems of definition, including exactly what counts as growth

Measuring PTG is tricky, too. The most used tool, the PTGI, splits growth into five areas. But research shows these areas often overlap, and the supposed differences might not be all that clear.

One study found the five factors of the PTGI are highly interrelated, which raises the question of if they’re really measuring separate things.⁸ Self-reports are another problem. There’s no real way to know if someone has changed after a trauma, or if it’s just a belief that helps them cope.

This measurement problem is central to the controversy. The argument is that if most self-reports are inaccurate, then the foundations of PTG research need serious reconsideration.

Social context matters, too. Sharing your struggles can strengthen relationships for some people. But, as one case study explored, opening up can sometimes backfire. Instead of support, some people might react with discomfort, pressuring the person who’s gone through trauma to demonstrate growth.⁹

Therapy to support posttraumatic growth

Given how hard it can be to tell the difference between genuine growth and perceived or illusory growth, professional support becomes particularly valuable.

Understanding these concepts—the difference between resilience and growth, the various areas where change might occur, and the mental processes involved—can help both you and your therapist recognize and nurture authentic, positive change.

When you go through trauma, therapy can help you heal—and sometimes, you even find new strengths along the way. Posttraumatic growth often pops up during the recovery process, and there are a few different ways to support it.

Mindfulness-based therapy helps you stay present and manage difficult emotions through breathing, guided awareness, and supportive conversation. Studies with cancer patients showed these practices boosted resilience, self-compassion, and growth over time.¹⁰

Psychosocial interventions such as counseling, support groups, or skills-based therapies that provide coping tools and emotional support. They may modestly increase PTG even when not specifically designed to promote it.¹¹

Trauma-focused therapies like eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) and brief eclectic psychotherapy (BEP) not only reduce PTSD symptoms—they may also help you feel closer to others, appreciate life more, and recognize your own strength.¹²

Therapy doesn’t have to focus specifically on growth to help it happen. Research shows that different types of treatment can boost PTG even when that’s not their main goal.¹³ This suggests that working on trauma symptoms may naturally lead to positive changes.

These approaches give you tools to cope and reflect, and they help you build meaning after tough times. Sometimes, that’s all it takes to nudge the door open to growth.

Supporting your own posttraumatic growth

While professional support is often helpful, there are simple ways to nurture growth in your daily life:

Practice deliberate reflection. Set aside time to think about what you’ve learned from your experience. This is different from ruminating—it’s purposeful thinking about how you might be changing or what new strengths you’re discovering.

Connect with others. Share your story with trusted friends or family members. Meaningful connections often deepen during difficult times and can help you see positive changes you might miss on your own.

Stay open to new possibilities. Trauma can shake up your assumptions about life. While this feels unsettling, it can also create space for new goals, interests, or ways of living you hadn’t considered before.

Be patient with yourself. Growth doesn’t happen on a timeline. Some people notice changes soon after trauma, while others see them years later. There’s no “right” pace.

Measure progress for yourself. Remember that genuine growth is different from proving to others that you’ve grown. Talking with a professional can provide valuable perspectives on which forms of growth you want to pursue.

If you’re struggling with the aftermath of trauma, or want support exploring potential growth, consider reaching out to a mental health professional. Search our directory to find a therapist who specializes in trauma and posttraumatic growth.