Resilience: Developing Strength in the Face of Challenges
The word “resilience” is used a lot these days, but what does it really mean? What is resilience? How can it help us? How can we build it?
Resilience reflects the ability to cope with change; “bounce back” from difficult experiences; and adapt to and overcome life’s obstacles. Individuals who develop—and exercise—resilience make an intentional decision to move forward and take action to improve their lives.
In the face of challenge, it takes mental strength not to give up, but instead to persevere and grow.
Everyone deals with difficulties of one sort or another, in varying degrees, and during different phases of life. The good news is that everyone can learn to become more resilient, to become a stronger version of themselves.
The Important Role of Resilience
Resilience builds character along with mental and emotional strength. The more resilient we are, the better equipped we become to manage stress and remain calm during hard times.
When we experience challenges, we have two choices: power through or give up.
Giving up may seem like the easiest (or only) option, but it can trigger a downward spiral of frustration, despair, and depression. It is through perseverance—working with and through the discomfort—that we build resilience. Strength. Hope.
One of the reasons resilience is so powerful is that it opens doors. It pushes us to find solutions to tricky or painful issues instead of giving up. If we experience setbacks and are resilient, we can regain our stability more quickly.
And because we believe in our capacity to overcome difficulties, we feel more confident and empowered. We understand that most challenges are temporary—and that we often have more control than we realize.
Challenges in Developing Resilience
While resilience helps us manage challenges, building resilience can be a challenge in and of itself for some people based on their environment, past experiences, support system (or lack of) and mental health issues.
Environment: If an individual is surrounded by others who are experiencing life challenges, it can be difficult to envision hope. If they’ve never seen it modeled, or haven’t been around resilient people, resilience might be hard to imagine—and work towards.
Experiences: Past experiences—especially trauma—can influence a person’s outlook on safety, hope, and the future. Having lived through or witnessed a traumatic event (or events) can make a person feel overwhelmed, as if control and power are beyond their reach.
Related: Childhood Trauma: Lifelong Implications But Not a Lifetime Sentence
Support: Whether one or two close friends or family members or a group of others who’ve experienced similar life circumstances, feeling seen and validated is essential in moving forward. If an individual lacks these healthy connections, they might feel alone and unable to cope with their challenges. Also, if they feel like they are going to be judged for their challenges, they might not reach out for support; unfortunately, doing it on their own may not get the results they want or need, furthering the spiral of self-doubt.
Mental health issues: Depending on the mental health disorder, individuals might struggle to stay positive or motivated to overcome challenges. It can be hard for them to seek help or have the mental capacity to work towards getting better. When someone is struggling with their mental health, it might be hard to engage in self-care or use coping skills, both of which are important in developing resilience.
Interestingly, it goes both ways. A lack of resilience can also negatively impact mental health issues which might worsen as the individual struggles to cope with stress and challenging situations. For individuals with mental health issues, setbacks can feel even more devastating, making it harder to bounce back.
Because they might have less hope that their lives could improve, they often stay stuck in unhealthy situations or toxic relationships. Not taking action to improve their lives can trigger, perpetuate, or worsen the cycle of anxiety or depression that can feel impossible to escape.
Tips to Build Resilience
Fortunately, the cycle can be broken. Resilience gives us tools that we can use to improve our mental health—and our lives.
Even better, there are many steps we can take to develop, build, and maintain resilience, including the following:
Have a positive mindset: Positive self-talk can really make a difference during hard situations. Practicing gratitude can make a difference in noticing what you are grateful for.
Practice self-care: Make sure you take care of yourself and do things that you enjoy doing. This can help you have hope and change your mindset that things aren’t so bad.
Maintain strong connections with others: Build connections with loved ones and friends who can be there for you when you are struggling. They can provide support.
Learn from past experiences: Use your past experiences as motivation and the lessons learned to make you wiser. The lessons that you learned can help you handle stress more easily.
Take action: Don’t give up. Try to figure out different things you can do to change the situation you are in. Even if it’s difficult, it’s still doable to try and have a better life.
Reach out for professional support: If you need extra support, you can always reach out to a mental health professional, who can help you process your unique challenges, guide your healing journey, and help you gain (or regain) trust in yourself to handle life’s difficulties.
Resilience Builds Strength
Life isn’t perfect. Situations don’t always go as planned. Bad things happen.
Resilience prevents getting consumed by them. It allows you to find the hope, strength, and tools to move forward despite them.
If you’re going through change, challenge, or both, it can be hard to see a light at the end of the tunnel. Developing resilience can help you shift your perspective, allowing you to see the good in your life—and in yourself.
It’s OK to ask for help.
If you’re interested in learning more about individual psychotherapy, psychoanalysis or other therapy services, please contact us by submitting this form or by phone at (708) 480-2813. We’ll be happy to answer any questions you might have.
