Choosing Wisdom—Strategies and Inspiration for Growing Through Life-Changing Difficulties

We all know the saying, “That which does not kill us, makes us stronger,” but is that really true? After all, for some people, traumatic experiences ultimately lead to truly debilitating outcomes. For others though, adversity really does seem to lead to “post-traumatic growth” where individuals move through suffering and find their lives changed in positive ways as a result. Why does this growth happen for some people and not others? How exactly does it happen? Can the positive results be purposefully replicated?

These are the central questions of a new study conducted by a team of researchers at the University of Virginia. They share their findings, along with practical advice and inspiring stories, in their new book Choosing Wisdom and the companion PBS documentary of the same name. Based on interviews with two distinct populations—medical patients coping with chronic pain and physicians coping with having been involved in serious medical errors—Choosing Wisdom delves into how average people respond to adversity, how they change, and what factors help or hinder positive change. Through these interviews, the authors chart each person’s journey, and though the circumstances of each case may be unique, the commonalities are remarkable.

By paying careful attention to the journeys of these exemplars, this cutting-edge research will shed new light on how we can grow, change, and develop wisdom through adversity. It will be a welcome source of inspiration for anyone facing their own difficult journey and for those who seek to aid them along the way.

Dr. Margaret Plews-Ogan is currently associate professor of medicine at the University of Virginia and director of the UVA Institute for Quality and Patient (IQPS). She is also lead investigator and director of the UVA Center for Appreciative Practice, a positive culture transformation initiative across the Schools of Medicine and Nursing, the Medical Center, and the Health Services Foundation physician group practice.

Dr. Justine Owens is associate professor in the UVA Department of Medicine, and has served on the faculty there for the past twenty-two years. She served as research director for the Center for the Study of Complementary and Alternative Therapies at UVA from 1995 to 1999, and she is the author of numerous publications on alternative therapies for pain management.

Dr. Natalie May is a faculty member in the UVA Center for Appreciative Practices and also serves as the project director for Call to Health, a new initiative devoted to improving the health of African American women with diabetes.