Resilience is an essential requirement needed today to live in modern society as balanced individuals. It is an important quality needed to make life meaningful, purposeful, and successful. The American Psychological Association defines resilience as “the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or any other significant sources of stress.” It may be an inborn or acquired ability to spring back to life in the midst of difficulties, hardships, privations, and toughness. If you have never experienced challenges in your life, you don’t know how strong you can be. Resilience comes from the experiences and skills you absorb as you grow up and face challenges daily, whatever they may be.
Why is resilience needed? If you are resilient, you will be able to face, overcome, and even become personally strengthened by your life’s challenges and problems on different levels. Resilience doesn’t make the problems go away and doesn’t solve all problems, but it helps you cope, adjust, and stay on your feet. There are many ways to boost your resilience. Being resilient means that you know different ways to solve your problems, and you can deal with the problems in your life.
“Resilience doesn’t make the problems go away and doesn’t solve all problems, but it helps you cope, adjust, and stay on your feet.“
Primarily Areas of Resilience: There are three areas where we need to develop and strengthen resilience to cope with daily life, namely psychological, emotional, and physical.
Five Central Pillars of Resilience: The following are the central pillars on which individual persons’ resilience is built. The pillars are mindfulness, self-caring, self-awareness, positive relationships, and purposefulness in life. By strengthening these five pillars, one becomes more resilient daily.
Characteristics of Resilience: Resilient People will identify the following: detect the cause of their problems, know how to handle their emotions, keep themselves calm in stressful situations, realistic in their approach and attitudes, trust themselves, and are empathetic to others.
Suggestions to improve Resilience: Practice healthy coping skills, take care of yourself emotionally, be thankful to God and others. Recognise the victories in your life, keep an ongoing log of your personal successes, improve your self-esteem, challenge yourself, control what you can instead of being overwhelmed by your circumstances. Find small things that you can do to make the situation changed for the better, and those little things can add up and make a world of difference. Please don’t be so hard with yourself; learn from your mistakes because everyone makes them. Don’t allow yourself to obsess or feel over-burdened by guilt, identify supportive people in your life; be a role model for others. Show to others how you successfully handle what life throws at you and take a sense of pride and purpose. Help others, and when you do it through tough times, you may find new ways to handle your own problems. Try new things; when you open yourself up to new possibilities, you get a broader and clearer perspective on life. Take a break now and then, give yourself time to de-stress and regroup in order to visualize the resilience you may need in your personal life. Finally, imagine pouring out your problems out of an overflowing cup. These skills may help you build up resilience and eventually become a habit if you start practicing them. They can also help you get through the dark times to appreciate the many joys that always lie ahead truly.
Life is a challenge, especially these days, and every day brings its challenges and uncertainties. So, you cannot run away from those realities, instead to hold your ground and face them gladly, happily, and joyfully. Therefore, resilience is like a daily supplement for your body, mind, spirit, and soul. Build it, hold it, use it, and experience life as a beautiful reality to be thankful and appreciated.
Fr. Tomy Puliyan, MSFS
“Holiness and Happiness through Wellness and Wholeness.”
I need this so much. Thank you so very much.