The resilience theory which attempts to explain the phenomenon of positive adaptation (coping) of the abused persons and ones exposed to adversity or traumatic events has found its proper place in the academic and clinical psychology. In psychotherapeutic and psychiatric practice however it remains little known and unappreciated. Clinicians do not meet people who have coped well with trauma. At the same time contact with trauma, misery, injustice breeds tension and activates defence mechanisms and a tendency to underestimate the problem. The ambivalence of trauma applies to individuals and societies; social discourses, including the academic discourse, are not free from it. Can the resilience theory which states that adaptation is the norm while inability to cope an exception favour the cancellation (not noticing) of the problem of trauma? The article discusses the resilience theory as a cultural fact and social discourse. In the second part an attempt has been made to assess the impact of this theory on clinical practice. What seems particularly important is the fact that the resilience theory sets assistance in context: it has proved the importance of family and supportive environment, of living conditions, neighbourhood or school. Good adaptation is in fact the result of a complex interaction between biological, psychological, social and environmental factors.