August 22, 2020
resilience
I don’t know about you but sometimes I feel I am running out of steam. I so miss just sitting and visiting with friends and family. I miss talking to co-workers without masks on so we can see each other’s smiles. And I miss so much else: visiting with a larger group of people, playing tunes knee to knee with my friends. Going out for dinner instead of eating in. Actually, I am pretty sure you feel the same way, even if what we miss is different.
Resilience is the ability to recover from difficulties and/or the ability to be elastic and spring back into your prior form. We all know we are going through challenges. How can we help our resilience?
UPenn has made a website that can help you find what you need. Check it out. They are also using data from the participants and finding out some interesting things. One is that most people participating are actually more worried about others than they are themselves. They don’t want to give the virus to others and they worry about the health of families and friends. The researchers found that helping resilience can help ease worries. They are also studying what can help individuals grow their own resilience. I think this data confirms what I see- most people want to help.
Harvard is in on the idea of resilience too and has a nice website focused on families. Their ideas can help adults too, which can help us build our resilience and ability to bounce back. Focusing on the positive helps and decreasing negative thoughts can help. “Doom scrolling” is not healthy and hard to stop once you are in it. I should know-it is hard to pull myself away sometimes. Strengthening our life skills is helpful, just as learning to say no is so important. Too easy to feel guilty after an invitation to a wedding or birthday party and you really want to say no for your health and safety. There is a link below to a Seattle Times article about how to say no. A good skill to learn. Resilience is useful, even without a pandemic, so learning about your own resilience now can carry over.
Exercise can help and doesn't have to be in a gym. The VA’s App Covid Coach is an excellent resource as well. Nature is a great healer so get out on walk, go to a beach, take a hike. There are lots more ideas and resources out there.
Wash your hands, cover your nose, keep safe six, and find what helps your resilience.
And finally, my caveat is that this is my experience and my opinions, which are subject to change as more information is available, and not related to the organization I work for. Thanks for reading.
https://covid19resilience.org
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/08/200820132221.htm
https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/how-to-help-families-and-staff-build-resilience-during-the-covid-19-outbreak/
https://www.seattletimes.com/life/how-to-say-no-to-a-wedding-birthday-party-or-other-social-event-right-now/
https://www.seattletimes.com/life/fitness/how-to-sneak-some-exercise-into-your-day-if-youre-trying-to-lose-the-quarantine-15/
https://mobile.va.gov/app/covid-coach
https://hbr.org/2020/08/8-ways-managers-can-support-employees-mental-health