Abstract
Objective: Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is the phenomenon of surpassing levels of functioning than which existed before a traumatic event occurred. The objective of this study was to assess how the body may have had an influence on the facilitation, and as an outcome, of PTG. Methods: 83 female breast cancer survivors, 5 years post cancer diagnosis, were interviewed on their long-term experience of physical activity engagement. Inductive thematic analysis was used in order to ascertain whether or not there were any serendipitous expressions of posttraumatic growth. Results: 24% (n = 20) of the study mentioned experiencing some form of PTG, including both generic and corporeal specific domains. Of those that reported PTG, 70% were from the original physical activity intervention group indicating potential links between activity participation during cancer treatment and long term PTG. Discussion: The results support the theoretical viewpoint that recovery from physical illness may have a unique PTG journey in comparison to more cognitive/external sources of trauma. Conclusions: This is the first study to qualitatively collect longitudinal data from a large and unique sample on the experience of PTG following breast cancer survivorship. Furthermore, the author has coined this new addition of a more embodied experience of PTG, the theory of ‘Corporeal Posttraumatic Growth’ and presents suggestions for future research.
Highlights
Positive psychology has been criticised for its lack of embodiment and focus on the body as part of human flourishing (Resnick et al, 2001; Hefferon & Mutrie, 2012)
Research has shown that despite the suffering associated with traumatic events individuals are capable of thriving and even surpassing their previous levels of functioning than which existed before the traumatic event occurred (Calhoun, Tedeschi, Cann, & Hanks, 2010)
24% (n = 20) of the total study serendipitously mentioned experiencing some form of Posttraumatic growth (PTG) 5 years post cancer diagnosis
Summary
Posttraumatic growth (PTG) is the phenomenon of surpassing levels of functioning than which existed before a traumatic event occurred. Results: 24% (n = 20) of the study mentioned experiencing some form of PTG, including both generic and corporeal specific domains. Of those that reported PTG, 70% were from the original physical activity intervention group indicating potential links between activity participation during cancer treatment and long term PTG. Conclusions: This is the first study to qualitatively collect longitudinal data from a large and unique sample on the experience of PTG following breast cancer survivorship. The author has coined this new addition of a more embodied experience of PTG, the theory of “Corporeal Posttraumatic Growth” and presents suggestions for future research
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