If you begin to feel overwhelmed at any point when reading this article, please pause and seek guidance from a trained mental health professional, a trusted friend, or a mentor.
Blessed Teresa Grillo Michel was born in Alessandria, Italy, on September 25, 1855. She was the fifth and youngest child of her parents.
Teresa’s father died when she was a child. The family then moved to Turin, where Teresa attended elementary school. She then went to boarding school.
Soon after finishing school at 18, Teresa met her husband, Giovanni Michel, who was a captain in the Bersaglieri, a specialized unit of the Italian Army.
The two married in 1877, and they lived in many different Italian towns and cities as Giovanni moved for work.
Unfortunately, their marriage was cut short in 1891, when Giovanni attended a parade and died of sunstroke soon after.
After Giovanni’s death, Teresa sank into a state of severe depression and despair.
Two things assisted in her recovery. First, she read the biography of Venerable Joseph Benedict Cottolengo, who founded the Little House of Providence in Turin to care for the poor and needy. She also received counsel from her cousin, Monsignor Prelli. From this reading and counsel, Teresa discovered a new mission to care for the poor and needy, and, by embracing it, she rose from her state of depression.
Teresa opened her family’s home to the poor and needy. Soon, the number of people she cared for grew so much that in 1893, she sold the family home, purchased a larger building, and opened the Little Shelter of Divine Providence.
In January of 1899, Teresa received the religious habit along with eight of her co-workers. Together, they founded the Congregation of the Little Sisters of Divine Providence.
Teresa lived another 45 years and devoted these years to growing the new order and its work. At the time of her death, the order ran 25 houses in Italy, 19 in Brazil, and 7 in Argentina.
Lessons From Blessed Teresa Grillo Michel
Blessed Teresa Grillo Michel is an excellent example of posttraumatic growth. Posttraumatic growth is the process of finding growth and new possibilities in the wake of experiencing trauma and wrestling with its effects. Both prayer and community are associated with increased posttraumatic growth, as they help people to process their experience.
Posttraumatic growth can show up in one or more of these five ways:
- A greater appreciation of life and a changed sense of priorities, often due to new beliefs and assumptions gained from processing the trauma
- Warmer, more intimate relationships with others, often due to disclosing one’s trauma to others and experiencing social support during the healing process
- A greater sense of personal strength. Knowing you have made it through something difficult can foster a strong belief in your ability to do hard things.
- A richer spiritual life. This richer spiritual life can also be due to changed assumptions and beliefs, and potentially turning to God for support.
- Seeing new possibilities in life, such as a new mission, a new path, or a new cause to support. Seeing these new possibilities is also often due to new assumptions and beliefs.
For Teresa, posttraumatic growth looked like her new mission to care for the poor and needy, culminating in founding a new religious order. Her faith and community helped her wrestle with the impact of losing her husband and discover this new mission.
Blessed Teresa Grillo Michel teaches us the importance of leaning into our faith and community as we work to recover from trauma, so that God can bring about posttraumatic growth in our lives.