Challenges are an essential part of life. It forces us to adapt to various situations or face an
unfavourable outcome. Challenges affects many people in different ways. Not everyone is built
to handle stress the same way as others. Some easily fall apart while others recover after some
time and move on.
Experts call this ability to recover, and move on, resilience or a person’s ability to confront their
problems, conquer their fears and get on with their lives.
What is resiliency?
According to psychology experts, resiliency is how effectively a person adapts and overcomes
life’s challenges.
Having said that, it doesn’t mean that a resilient person avoids anxiety, disappointments, or
sadness altogether. It simply means that they learned how to cope with distressing situations in
a healthy way.
There are various factors that trigger stress such as accidents, family issues, health problems,
or financial troubles. No matter how big or small these stressors are, they could affect people
and their way of life in various ways.
Resilience is essential because it will improve how you handle disappointments or hardships
that may come your way. Therefore, you can avoid feeling overwhelmed or turn to destructive
ways of dealing with stress like depending on alcohol or substance abuse or other maladaptive
ways to deal with stress.
Learning how to be more resilient, in the face of adversity ,will help you to grow, power through,
and come out stronger than your former self.
Can resilience be taught?
Resiliency isn’t an inherent ability or trait that a person already possesses. Some people may
not be resilient when they were younger, but they can certainly learn how as they grow older.
In fact, a study indicated that human beings are more than capable of dealing with stress as we
have the basic stress-response system which develops over time.
Becoming resilient starts with how you perceive adversity. Do you see it as an opportunity to
grow? Or as a traumatizing experience?
You may have heard stories of resilience over the years. There are many notable people in
history that are famous for their resiliency.
Winston Churchill is an icon of resiliency as he won many adversities in his lifetime. He failed his
military academy exams and lost the British elections 5 times. Despite this, he persevered. Now,
he’s forever known as the Prime Minister who successfully led Great Britain during World War II
Another example is Albert Einstein who’s one of the brilliant minds of all time. He couldn’t speak
full sentences until he was five years old. Aside from his many brilliant accomplishments, he’s
also known for being resilient.
According to research, resiliency is a skill that anyone can learn. This is done by reframing your
mind and regulating your emotional response to distressing situations and use it as a positive
force that can enhance your overall self.
Effective strategies of a resilient person
There are ways on how you can train yourself to become a resilient person.
Confront your problems
Avoiding your problems won’t make them go away. If anything, it would only weigh you down,
and the problem can become more complicated , over time. Resilient people don’t only
acknowledge the difficulties they encounter, they face them head-on! They perceive them as a
challenge, in which, they can improve themselves rather than allowing it to paralyze them.
Show compassion to yourself
Resilient people don’t beat themselves up when they’re already feeling down. It’s very essential
to be kind to yourself and realize that you’re bound to make mistakes. Also, despite our best
intentions, problems may still occur. Allowing yourself to feel and accept your emotions and
giving yourself time to process them can help you heal and recover effectively.
Build a strong support system
Rather than isolating themselves during hard times, which some people tend to do, resilient
people surround themselves with people they care about instead. Family and friends can give
you unconditional support and help you get through the tough moments of your life. Also,
surrounding yourself around optimistic, strong people can result in your acquiring this important
life skill.
Take care of yourself
Turning to comfort food can provide temporary relief when going through a rough patch. But
constantly reaching out for junk foods can cause health problems, in the long run. Resilient
people don’t forget to look after themselves. They maintain healthy eating habits and work out
regularly. Physical activity has been proven to improve stress levels as well.
Find the silver lining
Another skill resilient people cultivate is looking for the positive side of the challenges they’re
going through. They don’t dwell on the bad things. They don’t let it eat them up. Instead, they
believe that every hurdle they encounter will help them grow as a better person.
Hardships are an important aspect of life. It’s normal to encounter one or two difficulties every
now and then. Learning how to become resilient is important to help you deal with these
troubles in a healthy way, and ultimately, shape you into a better version of yourself.
If you are looking for help with strategies to help you build resiliency, feel free to contact us to
book a free consultation.
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