Monday, January 18, 2016

cultivate resilience

According to experts, the following 11 activities help cultivate resilience:

  1. Having a core set of beliefs that nothing can shake.
  2. Finding meaning in whatever stressful or traumatic thing that has happened.
  3. Maintaining a positive outlook.
  4. Taking cues from someone else who is especially resilient.
  5. Not running away from things that scare you: Face them.
  6. Reaching out for support when things go haywire.
  7. Learning new things as often as you can.
  8. Having an exercise regimen you’ll stick to.
  9. Not beating yourself up or dwelling on the past.
  10. Recognizing what makes you uniquely strong—and owning it.
  11. Practicing mindfulness.

Mindfulness deserves a special mention. In a study, Marines who underwent an eight-week course in mindfulness showed great gains in resilience. No only did their heart rate and breathing rate show less reactivity when faced with a stressful situation, their brains changed too: They showed lower activation in the region of the brain associated with emotional reactions. By the end of training, their brains looked more resilient.


Samantha Boardman M.D.
"Bounce Back: 11 Ways to be More Resilient: Data-driven insights to help deal with stress." Psychology Today. 8/14/2015


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