By Athena Joseph
So What really is “Resilience”?
Resilience is the ability to mentally or emotionally cope with a crisis. What we are dealing with right now, is where the powerful role of resilience comes into play.
Let us look at a few ways to build our resilience and keep it strong.
1. Maintain A Hopeful Outlook
Maintaining a positive attitude is critical in our darkest times and adversities. Challenging situations and obstacles are a part and parcel of life. When you’re faced with one or even many at the same time, focus on the good things. Let it be really insignificant to others, all it has to do is to give you a positive hope. Remember the proverbial saying “There is a silver lining in every cloud” — even if it’s not immediately obvious.
2. Have A Strong Social Network
There is this well said proverb “When you share your happiness it gets doubled, when you share your worries it gets halved”. It is social support that builds people up during their tough times and often gives them the strength to carry on and even thrive. Make the bonds with your trusted ones so strong that even when you’re falling apart they know what’s best for you.
3. Bring Out The Creative Part Of Yourself
Through the dark times it is necessary that we do something that makes our inner soul happy as well. Let’s turn to the other side, the “creative side” that we’ve expressed in an activity, pastime, or hobby that lifts our spirits. They also allow us to zoom in on something ahead of us and ignore the stressors maybe even for a few hours.
4. Be Ready To Accept Change
The world around us is changing, progressing rapidly. Sitting quiet or mourning about the change isn’t going to help us in any way. We need to learn to embrace change and understand what is happening. Have it written in your mind that change is an opportunity for us to experience something new and to grow and evolve.
5. Take Care Of Yourself
Max Ehrmann, American writer and poet once said,“Be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars. In the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.”
Taking good care of yourself is paramount to the success of your resilience. Only if you take good care of yourself, you can take the best care for your fellow beings. Amidst this second wave, it is of utmost importance to keep ourselves and others safe.
These sudden, rapid changes in the way we live, coupled with uncertainty, can feel overwhelming. Remember that even in the face of events that seem utterly unimaginable, resilience allows us to marshal the strength to not just survive but to prosper.