Coping and Post-Traumatic Growth

A subset of participants described post-traumatic growth — a shift from passive endurance toward active meaning-making and identity reconstruction. Initial coping responses were predominantly avoidant, with most participants withdrawing socially to escape scrutiny and the need to explain their illness. Resilience emerged alongside continued distress rather than replacing it. Maternal identity was a key motivating force for survival, binding the desire to live to family purpose rather than self-interest. Social withdrawal reduced immediate stress but reinforced isolation and hindered social reintegration.