By Rabbi Emma Gottlieb
I think most of us would agree that the past year has been traumatic for Jews all over the world. We have experienced the intense combination of secondary, collective and generational traumas brought about by October 7th and the resulting war. While many of us have heard of PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), there is also something called Post-Traumatic Growth (PTG), which is when there are positive changes resulting from a life crisis or traumatic event. I spoke about this on Yom Kippur and, since many folks mentioned that it resonated with them, I wanted to share it more broadly.
PTG is built on the idea that adversity can, unintentionally, yield positive changes in our understanding of ourselves and the world around us. With PTG, we open up to transformation, as a way of not only coping with, but adapting to, trauma, especially when our experience has challenged personal or world views. Consider someone who has been assaulted and might feel that their sense of safety has been challenged. While they can eventually regain their sense of security, PTG encourages them to notice what positive results might stem from a lack of certainty and safety. Perhaps they end up learning self-defence, resulting in a boost of overall confidence in protecting themselves and others.
Through this approach, the damage of trauma is not erased, but redirected into positive changes in how we live, or think about ourselves, our world, and even the visible or invisible scars of trauma. Now, having passed the one-year anniversary, let us start bringing the intention to grow through the traumas we have and continue to experience, so that something good might come from the loss and terror. And so that we and our world might find our way from brokenness to betterment.
October 7th commemoration
Temple Israel http://www.templeisrael.co.za
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