Building Resilience

Building resilience

Resilience is a reaction to stress and means "bouncing" or "returning to from." It’s not the same as resistant.

Look at the difference between an oak tree and a blade of grass. The oak tree is large and massive, with a strong but rigid trunk and a system of roots and branches. The blade of grass is slight and has a very shallow root system. Yet, in the face of hurricane-force winds, it's the oak that's destroyed because the blade of grass is able to bend, deflect and return to form."

Resilience: How to Get It and How to Keep It

Try to keep a positive outlook
Use people who are great at dealing with stress as role models.
Find an opportunity for growth in every stressful situation.
Calm and comfort yourself.
Try to recharge before facing the next challenge.
Find something to laugh about.
Practice ways to handle a situation better the next time.
Spirituality
Pray or meditate.
Lean on a faith in God, a higher power, or on a value system or set of guiding life principles such as: the universe is not random and all events are part of a larger system
Practice active coping
Take action to fix things.
Don’t give up trying to solve problems.
Find a way to get help when it is needed.
Face fears.
Look at a problem in a number of ways.
Look for creative solutions to the problem.
Build self-confidence
Expect that you can handle the problem.
Know that you will bounce back from the stressful situation.
Remember the times you were successful in bouncing back
Learning and Making Meaning
Look for meaning in the negative experience.
Think about the meaning, purpose or mission of your life. It may change.
Learn important and useful life lessons from any event or past mistakes.
Understand that bad things can — and do — happen to anyone. But they are the exception.
Accept limits and circumstances
Put things in perspective and realize you will have times of joy and times of sadness.
Be good at determining what situations are changeable and what situations are not.
Accept things you cannot change.
Know you have limits.

Resilience: The Bounce Back Factor

Mental flexibility is one of the common denominators of psychologically resilient people -Dr. Douglas C. Johnson, clinical psychologist

Resilient people have strong social support systems that help increase feelings of self-worth and keep problems in perspective.
Finding the good in the bad demonstrates "cognitive flexibility" and is part of resilience. Individuals who successfully overcome a crisis and don't become depressed usually find that the negative event had some purpose.
The brain is capable of healing and plasticity (detour) after injury…there is hope and positive ways to reinvent yourself after TBI
We don't want to stay in that place of grief and loss forever and so when someone has lost something, try to figure what it is about that thing that was loved so much. Replicate it elsewhere.

There is a process we are all destined to experience, and it cannot be rushed. Life is not a series of end goals, but to actually live the process of getting to each goal.

One of the things that injured individuals cannot forget is to look for greatness inside themselves. They have to get beyond the disability, understand that they have had certain losses, but they have certain strengths too. And one of the things by way of successful aging we can all engage in, whether or not we have a brain injury, is trying to have a healthy lifestyle, trying to be socially engaged, trying to be around other people, try to enjoy life as best we can (www.brainline.org).

The Stress Continuum (www.brainline.org)

The Stress Continuum is a model that identifies how Sailors and Marines react under stressful situations. The continuum is a color-coded map to identify behaviours that might arise from serving in combat, in dangerous peacekeeping missions and in the highly charged day-to-day work that is required of today’s military. The goal is to stay in the "Green Zone" more than any other.

The Colourful Glossary

Green Zone: Not stress-free, but mastering stress with good coping skills. Ready for anything.
Yellow Zone: Reacting to life’s normal stressors.
Orange Zone: Stress injuries damaging the mind, body or spirit.
Red Zone: Stress injuries that become stress illnesses.

GREEN (Ready): Adaptive Coping, Optimal Functioning, Wellness, Prepared, Fit, Focused, In control, Optimally effective, Behaving ethically, Having fun

Remain calm, steady, confident
Eat healthfully, exercise regularly and get proper sleep
Keep a sense of humor and remain active socially, spiritually

YELLOW (Reacting): Mild and transient distress or loss of optimal functioning, Always goes away, Low risk for illness, Irritable, angry, Anxious or depressed, Physically too pumped up or tired, Reduce self-control, Poor focus, Poor sleep, Not having fun

Feel anxious, fearful, sad, angry, grouchy, irritable
Are negative or pessimistic
Lose interest, energy or enthusiasm
Have trouble concentrating
Coping: Excessive spending, Internet use, playing computer games, etc.
Do less because its cognitively taxing

ORANGE (Injured): More severe and persistent distress or perceived loss, Higher risk for illness, Loss, Inner conflict, Wear and tear, Panic or rage, Loss of control of body or mind, Can’t sleep, Recurrent nightmares or bad memories, Persistent shame, guilt, or blame, Loss of moral values and beliefs

Lose control of emotions or thinking
Have nightmares, sleep problems, obsessive thinking
Feel guilt, shame, panic or rage
Abuse alcohol or drugs
Change significantly in appearance or behavior
Lose moral values

RED Zone (ILL) These include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major depression, certain anxiety disorders and substance abuse disorders. The distinction between Orange Zone stress injury and Red Zone stress illness can only be made by a medical or mental health professional. Persistent and disabling distress or loss of function, Clinical mental disorder, Unhealed stress injuries, PTSD, Depression, Anxiety, Substance abuse, Symptoms and disability persist over many weeks, get worse over time, Treatable

I decided to embrace my vulnerability rather than struggle with it and “dare greatly” by being authentic and talking about how I felt. I changed my mindset. Rather than seeing vulnerability as a sign of weakness, I saw it as “the courage to be imperfect.” It began by telling my students about my fall and concussion and allowing them to see me walk with a cane. Although I continued to teach during my recovery, I didn’t disclose my fall initially to my students. I felt shame and feared they would not see me as the capable and competent teacher I perceived myself to be. In fact, up until that point, I waited until the last student left the classroom before I took out my folding cane to steady myself as I left the classroom.

Since I was teaching, I saw this as an opportunity to honestly share my thoughts and feelings about what’s it’s like for an empowered and independent older adult to lose their autonomy and require assistance. This led to a rich discussion about ways social workers can promote the independence of older adults with disabilities by building on their strengths and adaptive coping abilities that helped them to overcome previous challenges. During a class on resilience, a student reminded me of mine. I felt validated. When faced with adversity, we may lose sight of our coping abilities and strengths and it feels good to be reminded of them when someone sees us through the lens of resilience – people who adapt and bounce back from setbacks.

I also decided to accept the changes in my body and adapt my lifestyle accordingly. I set daily goals and am proud of myself when I achieve them. I pace myself and rest after activity. I enrolled in a fall prevention program to strengthen my core and improve my balance. I also practice self-care by cooking nutritious meals, going for daily walks, spending time in nature and asking for help when I need it. I begin each day with a prayer and gratitude ritual that grounds me.

My fall helped me to face my mortality. I had never done that before. I had considered myself to be invincible and had never thought about my death. I updated my will, designated a mandatary in the event I lose mental competence and initiated a discussion with my children about my burial wishes. I also began to think about informal (voluntary help from family, friends, siblings) and formal (professional caregivers) support I might need down the road if I had a healthcare crisis. This contributed to my decision at age 71 to move to Toronto from Montreal so I could live near my daughters and their families. This was the right decision for me and I’ve integrated well into my new home and neighbourhood.

As my recovery continues, I remain optimistic and accept my present situation. I appreciate the simple pleasures in life such as loving relationships with my family and friends, my health, and participation in meaningful activities. I give thanks for my blessings and take nothing for granted

https://www.youareunltd.com/2019/07/18/what-a-concussion-taught-me/