Mastering Resilience
Ten easy ways to bounce back
It’s something we neglect until — one day — we need it desperately to survive.
It’s resilience.
We don’t think about it very often. In fact, we numbly expect it to be there when we need it, even though we’ve given it little-to-no thought throughout our years.
Don’t wait — like I did — for a wake-up call like cancer to learn the lesson of resilience. For some reason, I believe the power of this application has even more potential for those who seek its wisdom verses those who wait until they’re down, scratching the ground seeking recoil and recovery.
To find resilience in your life:
- Face the truth. Accept your situation for what it is and stop wasting energy resisting. Resistance is like a Chinese Finger Trap — the more you struggle, the more trapped you become. Once you realize that change is, and always will be, a part of life, you can relax into the truth that This is happening, yo!! Nobody said you have to like it, but it’s still happening.
- Learn to be an optimist. Learning to re-frame your situation or struggles is key to discovering and growing through adversity. Turn mistakes into lessons learned — as long as you learn something from it, it’s not a mistake, it’s a life lesson.
- Treat yourself with kindness. Being nice to yourself is crucial. Think about how you’d help and support your best friend through this time, then treat yourself the same way. Everyone has flaws, and mistakes are a part of being human. Take it easy on yourself.
- Be flexible and open to new ways of thinking. This will help you to accept things as they are and allow your mind to focus on problem-solving more effectively. Not everything turns out exactly as planned, and if you’re open to change, it has the potential to turn out better than you thought.
- Find your tribe. Talk it out with trusted friends or family members. You’re not alone. While you’re at it, feel free to express yourself. Don’t hold in the negative crap. Use your support network — the ones who know you and accept you — and bounce back faster!
- Let go of judging. This is no time to judge your thoughts and feelings, it only makes matters worse. Instead, practice mindfulness by noticing your thoughts and feelings but having no outlying judgment for them. Just let them be what they are, let them pass by, and don’t look back.
- Consider that you’ve been through tough times before and, yet, here you are to talk about what you learned from that challenge. Failure is a part of life, and everyone has failed a time or two. Everyone.
- Remember, it’s always okay to smile, laugh, and have fun at times, even when things are at their worst. Just because you’re struggling doesn’t mean you’re not okay. You are okay. You are human, and humans struggle.
- Stay away from shame. It serves no purpose and won’t help you move forward. Instead, be willing to change and grow and avoid blaming and fuming. This is how it feels right now, but it won’t feel like this forever.
- Believe that life is meaningful. “Those who have a ‘why’ to live for can bear with almost any ‘how.’” Frederich Nietzsche.
Most of all, just because you’re struggling doesn’t mean you’re not resilient.
Do what is in front of you.
Create positive emotions.
Practice acts of kindness.
You’ll bounce back in no time because that’s what resilient people do.
If you found this interesting, I accept hugs as,
— Generous highlighting and applause
— Copious comments spilling with gratitude and deep-thoughts
— Scads of followers Julie Nyhus MSN, FNP-BC
— Positive thoughts directed my way
In peace and light,
Joolz
