In this series, I will dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychological terms.
This week’s term: Resilience
I used to be at least moderately resilient, but when depression is doing it’s thing I feel like I have no Resilience at all, and the slightest little hiccup will knock me on my ass.
Wikipedia defines resilience as an individual’s ability to “successfully cope with adversity” and “bounce back from a negative experience with ‘competent functioning'”. It is considered a learnable ability that can vary over time rather than a static personality trait.
There are various biological factors that can impact resilience The sympathetic nervous system is involved in stress reactions including fight/flight/freeze, and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is involved in the release of the stress hormone cortisol. There is growing evidence that these systems are impacted by factors in the brain including neuropeptide Y.
One study found six major predictors of resilience: positive and proactive personality, experience and learning, sense of control, flexibility and adaptability, balance and perspective, and perceived social support. Other studies have identified other factors that contribute to resilience: supportive and loving Relationship, the ability to make realistic plans, self-esteem, strong communication skills, and the capacity to manage strong feelings and impulses.
The American Psychological Association recommends 10 strategies to improve resilience:
- maintain good relationships with others
- don’t view stressful events as being unbearable problems
- accept that some circumstances can’t be changed
- set realistic goals
- take decisive actions in stressful situations
- engage in self-reflection and self-discovery following losses
- build self-confidence
- take a long-term perspective
- maintain a hopeful outlook and visualize positive outcomes
- engage in self-care of both mind and body
Looking at this information, what jumps out at me is my lack of interpersonal relationships. Yet while it’s the most obvious factor that I’m missing, I’m not quite sure how to address it. My inability to trust others was not learned over night, nor will it be unlearned overnight. But perhaps recognizing the connection between relationships and resilience will help motivate me to work harder at this.
Is resilience something that you have challenges with?
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_resilience
Image credit: GDJ on Pixabay
