Building Resilience by Carla Catmull, LCSW

Have you ever felt something you cannot explain?  Something so powerful that it dictates your behavior?  For example, you may lash out at someone, say something you don't mean, make a rash decision, or even turn to unhealthy and destructive lifestyles or patterns?  These feelings such as anger,  rage, excessive worry and anxiety, and depression hit all of us at one point or another and are often activated by our experience in life.  We each have our own version of "Emotionally hard" and are in need of the relief that comes through healing.

How do we begin that journey to healing?  After all, we want to be our best selves and having fulfilling and lasting relationships.  Emmey Werner, a developmental psychologist, conducted a longitudinal study observing children for over three decades of their lives.  She asked the question... "What makes us resilient to life?"  She defined resiliency as the ability to overcome challenges of all kinds - trauma, tragedy, personal crises, and plain 'ole' life problems- and then bounce back stronger, wiser, and more personally powerful.  Dr. Werner found that resilient people saw themselves as the orchestrators of their own fate.  

Truly, we are ALL the orchestrators of our own fate.  Resilience is what keeps us going, and it is within all of us.  It is also something we can develop and foster.  A few ways to strengthen your personal resiliency includes: 1:  Finding purpose in your life; there can be meaning found in even the worst circumstances by reaching out to others in the way only you can.  2.  Nurture yourself; self care is vital in a time when you are constantly give to family, friends, and work.  Take the necessary time to show love to yourself by finding those things which fill your bucket, ie exercise, meditation, good friendship and connection, and positive self-affirmation. 3.  Develop your problem solving skills; use your gifts and talents to create solutions and those you don't have try to learn and grow.  Remember that you are the orchestrator of your own life.  4.  Establish some short term goals and work towards them with manageable steps.  When we continue to work toward something amongst opposition we can feel empowered and it grows our resiliency.

This journey begins with YOU!  You can choose to get help when you are struggling or stuck, you can find understading instead of living with fear and worry.  You can choose to be kind to yourself and begin healing.  At Best Practice Counseling we are here to help you process your experiences and move forward to healing.  We use proven techniques such as Cognitive behavioral Therapy, EMDR, Emotional Focused Therapy for Couples, Mindfulness, Trauma informed Yoga, and many others to help you with whatever you are experiencing.  Let us know if we can help you in developing your resiliency to get through those "emotionally hard" things.  Contact us at 801-988-9807.

Kyndel MarcroftComment