Greens Weekend Resiliency Workshop 6-3-22 by S. Rush and J. Wolfe
Pose the question. What does resilience mean? What are the different aspects or types of resilience?
Do you know a story about someone who showed resilience?
What helped you overcome a particular situation?
What did you learn as you went through the difficulty and the recovery process?
Large amounts of information and resources are no substitute for what you contribute to the discussion of an issue, supported by relevant, organized evidence.
Look at support systems, family, community, finances, insurance, mobility, psychology. Look at specific types of events requiring resilience and how each type would require a different set of priorities, before and after the event. Allow for storytelling and ask group help to summarize what we have learned together.
What does it mean to be resilient?
Facing difficulties head-on instead of falling into despair or using unhealthy coping strategies.
Resilience is often defined as the mental reservoir of strength that helps people handle stress and hardship.
Resilient people are able to draw upon this strength to cope and recover from challenges, even when they face significant traumas, such as job loss, financial problems, serious illness, relationship challenges, or the death of a loved one.
Resilience also means understanding that life is full of challenges. While we cannot avoid many of these problems, we can remain open, flexible, and willing to adapt to change.
Characteristics of Resilient People: They are aware of situations, their own emotional reactions, and the behavior of those around them. By remaining aware, they can maintain control of a situation and think of new ways to tackle problems. In many cases, resilient people emerge stronger after such difficulties.
Some key characteristics of resilience can be developed and strengthened, to improve your ability to deal with life’s setbacks.
Sense of Control. Do you perceive yourself as having control over your own life?
Or do you blame outside sources for failures and problems?
Generally, resilient people tend to have what psychologists call an internal locus of control.
They believe that the actions they take will affect the outcome of an event. Of course, some factors are simply outside of our personal control, such as natural disasters. While we may be able to put some blame on external causes, it is important to feel as if we have the power to make choices that will affect our situation, our ability to cope, and our future.
Problem-Solving Skills are essential for resilience.
When a crisis emerges, resilient people are able to spot the solution that will lead to a safe outcome. In dangerous situations, less resilient people sometimes develop tunnel vision. They fail to note important details or take advantage of opportunities. Resilient individuals are able to calmly and rationally look at a problem and envision a successful solution.
Strong Social Connections. It’s important to have people who can offer support. Talking about the challenges you are facing can be an excellent way to gain perspective, look for new solutions, or simply express your emotions. Resilient people have a network of friends, family members, co-workers, and online support groups to keep them socially connected.
Social Support Contributes to Well-Being Survivor Mentality When dealing with any potential crisis, it is essential to view yourself as a survivor. Resilient people avoid thinking like a victim of circumstance and instead look for ways to resolve the problem. While the situation may be unavoidable, they stay focused on a positive outcome.
Emotional Regulation.
Resilient people are able to regulate their emotions effectively. The ability to recognize that they are having an emotional response and to understand what is causing the response can help them better handle emotions and cope with the situation at hand.
Self-Compassion. Resilient people are also compassionate toward themselves. They tend to notice when they need to take a break and are able to accept their emotions, which is important for resilience. Self-compassion can help boost overall health and resilience and ensure that you’re ready to face life’s challenges.
Ask for Help. While being resourceful is an important part of resilience, it is also essential to know when to ask for help. During a crisis, everyone can benefit from the help of psychologists and counselors specially trained to deal with crisis situations.
Other resources:
Reading about people who have experienced and overcome similar problems can be motivating and suggest ideas on how to cope.
Online communities can provide continual support and a place to talk about issues with people who have been in a similar situation. Consulting qualified mental health professionals can help confront the problem, identify strengths, and develop new coping skills.
Support groups: Attending support group meetings is a great way to talk about the challenges you’re facing and to find a network of people who can provide compassion and support.
Emotional Management in a Crisis.
Make a strong effort to accept what has happened without judgement or acrimony. Accept that you might be in shock for a while. As time passes allow yourself to feel the emotions that go along with sudden change.
Some feelings to explore:
Anger at loosing the past, a person, a friendship, a job, etc.
Accept your annoyance at the difficulties in the present or fear of what the future might bring.
You will need to develop the determination to work through the conditions and accept the new limitations or changes.
It is very important to have hope and to look for ways things will be better or gradually improve. Best of all is a set of friends and /or family that encourage, help and support you, help you in whatever is needed.
Plan something in the future that you can look forward to. It is like an anchor for your mind and keeps your spirits up
| Contact Jon Wolfe <jonwolfe123@yahoo.com> |