What is resilience?

Resilience means being able to bounce back or move forward from a problem.

It also sees you keep going when faced with difficult challenges or when you fail at something.

Bouncing back means that you recover from a problem. We all have times when we are more or less resilient, but the good news is that resilience is something you can improve and develop.

Resilience is a process of adaptation, and is about you managing well in the face of adversity through developing and using coping strategies when things get tough.

Think of this as having the ability to ‘bounce back’ from challenging, difficult and stressful experiences.

It’s helpful to accept that problems will happen and that you can learn to cope and tackle the challenge ahead.

Resilience incorporates all of these aspects:

• Overcoming obstacles and managing difficult situations can be very satisfying and help you feel good about yourself
• Focus more on the solution not the problem and celebrate the challenge you have tackled
• Improving your view of yourself, don’t always blame yourself if things go wrong
• Keep learning and practising new skills. Acquiring knowledge and skills is good for your mental health and wellbeing
• Recognising what you are good at, everyone is good at something! Focussing on your strengths can help build self-esteem
• Learning how to change bad moods into good moods
• Celebrating YOU!

How can I develop my Resilience?

You can improve your resilience in lots of different ways:

• Stay positive about sorting out your problems – learn how to have positive thoughts and get rid of negative ones
• Learn to recognise and manage your emotions and feelings- they are useful
• Manage activities that you encounter in your daily life, this might mean being organised or accepting some things you have to do are boring
• Do something which gives you a sense of achievement. This could be something as simple as tidying your room
• Practice overcoming small challenges and obstacles. For example, have a go at a really hard maths challenge
• Take part in activities to build up your self-confidence. This might mean doing something on your own or with other people
• Focus on the positive qualities of yourself to boost your self-esteem
• Work on developing and maintaining good relationships
• Recognise your coping strategies and put them into place when things get tough
• Be in control of your actions and choices. Having control is good for mental health and wellbeing
• Be careful when looking at or posting on social media – a lot of what people post isn’t true and may be hurtful

How to get help

If you have any more questions on this area or would like to speak to somebody about this topic, search for your local services in the blue box below. Alternatively you can always contact your school nurse.

• w: YoungMinds
  
• w: The Mix