Post Traumatic Thriving – Dr. Randall Bell

The paradox of trauma is that it has both the power to destroy and the power to transform and resurrect’  –  Peter A Levine,

Every one of us has experienced trauma in some form in our lives. The question is ‘do we let ourselves be defined by that trauma or can we transform that pain into a force that can accomplish good in our world?’

Dr. Randall Bell is an economist and sociologist who has seen firsthand the effects of trauma as a consultant on major disasters worldwide, including the largest climate, environmental and terrorist cases, such as Hurricane Katrina, the Bikini Atoll nuclear test site, and the 911 destruction of the World Trade Center. From these experiences and ten years of research, has come his book, Post–Traumatic Thriving: The Art, Science and Stories of Resilience. 

His book relates stories of people who were able to use energy generated by working through their traumas to propel them to achieve  great things. Dr. Bell sets out a three stage process (Dive, Survive and Thrive) through which survivors can emerge healed, whole and able to thrive.