The Beauty of Resilience

Resilience allows for an effective and helpful response when faced with the inevitable challenges and setbacks that enter our lives. With resilience, you learn from the experience thus becoming more capable for future situations and you will likely uncover unexpected abilities and strengths that were not known or you were unaware of previously. Resilience, as you see through a challenging situation, allows for you to gain clarity in your relationships, (who was there to support and who went missing when things turned sour), and you gain the opportunity to recalibrate your values and the purpose you are serving.

How does one ensure to build and use resilience as a resource? There are a bundle of skills both proactive and in the moment that help make challenges or setbacks true growth opportunities rather than a shattering experience.

Proactively, we want to practice healthy daily habits:

  Getting enough sleep

Balanced nutrition

Regular exercise

Breathwork

Social connection

 All while minimizing negative outlets such as:

Excessive screentime

Substance use

Isolation

Avoidance

Inactivity/sedentary choices.

Then there are in general good practices that are also very helpful in the moment. These include emotional processes:

Self-acceptance and self-compassion

Processing, validating, and regulating emotions

Connecting with hope

Mental/Cognitive processes:

Negative thought challenging, reframing, and/or refocusing

Mindfulness practice

Gratitude practice

Value clarification

Identifying the opportunities for growth and learning

             There are ten main skills that aid in the development of these processes, (a bit of overlap in the process and the skill):

1.     Self-care

2.     Self-acceptance/belief in oneself

3.     Coping strategies/regulation strategies

4.     Cognitive Flexibility and the openness to change

5.     Effective communication

6.     Positive outlook – finding hope rather than toxic positivity

7.     Identifying and/or understanding the meaning, purpose, and values involved in the situation

8.     Social connection/support/network

9.     Goal setting

10. Problem solving

*Humor - an important bonus skill and my favorite!

The practice of these skills enables better ability to follow the processes needed for resilience and ability to not only bounce back but thrive after a setback or challenge.

Need more support in developing these skills? No worries, that is where I come in with support and guidance all the way through.