Do you experience stress, anger, grief, or pain during challenging times?

If so; you aren’t alone! It’s called being human!

When this happens the #1 most important thing to help you get through tough times is resilience!

Resilience is the ability to adapt, cope with, and bounce back from stress and adversity and hopefully grow through the experience. It is also the ability to keep functioning physically and psychologically through whatever the experience is. 

We often say it’s “thriving”, … not just surviving. 

Now, resilience doesn’t necessarily mean someone doesn’t feel the event’s intensity or problem. Instead, it means they’ve found a good way of dealing with it. Those individuals who possess strong resilience or seem to “handle it better” on the surface can “cope” better than those with less. 

So, if you struggle with bouncing back after something negative happens in your life, I’m here to share a bit of good news with you. 

The good news is that everyone has resilience! Yes; even you!

But, what’s important to note is how much you have and how well you put it to good use. 

When faced with hardship, most people can adapt to the negative events occurring in their life. The person with a good amount of resilience seems to be able to bounce back quickly and with less stress than someone with less developed resilience. 

So you may wonder, how do I increase my resilience during difficult times? That is what I’m here to help you with! Keep reading for 7 different ways you can increase your resilience. 

7 Ways To Increase Your Resilience:

1)Having supportive relationships: The research on resilience has shown that having supportive relationships with your family and friends is an important foundation and stabilizer. Good, positive relationships help a person with reassurance and encouragement when times get tough and support their ability to rebound more quickly after a difficult event or problem in their life.

Relationships are important not just within the family but also outside the family. Having a strong network of friends (and not just “Facebook friends”) is valuable in building better resilience.

2) Giving yourself time and putting in the effort to improve your resilience: Building better resilience takes time, effort, commitment, and focus. It will not just happen to you overnight, and it won’t just happen to you if you read a book about resilience or begin work with a therapist. It’s a process that will take months to learn and master and work at. Try not to be frustrated by this because, unlike your eye color or height, resilience is not a trait but a skill you can readily enhance with patience and training.

3) Have a positive view of yourself (self-image) and confidence in your strengths and abilities: Believing in yourself and having a positive mind frame can do wonders beyond what you can imagine. If you continue to tell yourself you are not enough or that you will never achieve your goals, the likelihood of ever getting better will likely decrease. Manifesting and believing in yourself is a good step towards bouncing back when things aren’t all butterflies and rainbows!

4) Having good problem-solving skills (or actively working to improve them): Identifying the problem, evaluating possible solutions, and implementing those solutions are all ways in which you can overcome some of the most difficult times in your life.

Maybe you interviewed for your dream job and didn’t end up getting the offer. Rather than sulk in your misery, you decided to problem solve how to land the job next time you apply. You start working on building more experience, nailing the interview questions, and then networking with those who have accomplished your goals. These are all excellent ways to get one step closer to your dream!

5) Being able to make realistic plans regularly and then carrying out your plans regularly: The key word here is realistic! It’s important to create plans that you can actually achieve so you can feel a sense of accomplishment once done.

6) Having good communication skills (or actively working to improve them): Don’t be afraid to tell the people you love what you need or express how you are feeling! They are there to help you overcome these difficult times and help you bounce back to the happiest version of yourself. 

7) Being able to manage your feelings and impulses effectively and in a healthy manner: It’s important to not rely on unhealthy coping mechanisms when you are feeling stressed or upset. Making sure to identify the true root of the problem, how that makes you feel, and work towards improving the issue at hand are all effective ways of problem-solving.

These 7 tips are all helpful when it comes to building your resilience but one more piece to remember is that a person’s culture can dramatically affect how a person connects with significant others, including extended family members and community resources, if they even do so. With growing cultural diversity, the public has greater access to different approaches to building resilience.” This may be something to be aware of in your resilience journey.

If you continue to find yourself struggling with building resilience after difficult times in your life, you don’t have to go at it alone! Solid Foundations Therapy is here to help! Visit our website at www.solidfoundationstherapy.com or give us a call at 630-633-8532 today!