Resilience is the ability for an individual to be strong in the face of adversity. To be purposeful, creative, optimistic, and tenacious. Having resilience can be an important protection from certain mental health symptoms like anxiety and depression and help us handle present mental health conditions. Whether resilience is inherent within you, or something you have to work towards, practicing can help you experience emotional growth and be a source hope in the midst of a tragedy. These strategies have proven to have a significant impact in building mental and emotional resilience.
Practice Acceptance:
You can’t control everything. You can’t make life foolproof. You can, however, learn to be okay with what is out of your control and have strength to face difficulties as they arise. This involves accepting reality as it is. We know, accepting life is challenging when things are painful. But accepting doesn’t mean agreeing. Accepting is simply allowing yourself to have certain emotions and take them for what they are. Let’s practice. Close your eyes and focus on your breath. Notice your thoughts and what emotions you are feeling. Now, let those thoughts pass. Come up with an accepting statement such as “It is what it is.” Or “This too shall pass.” Repeat as needed.
Set SMART goals: Setting realistic physical, social, and emotional goals helps to build resilience. Choosing the right SMART goals (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time-bound) and working toward them provides motivation to stay the course, regardless of your situation. To gain a deeper internal connection, set goals with a sense of purpose or meaning beyond yourself.
Focus on what you can do: That is: staying home (if you can), practicing physical distancing, wearing a mask in public, washing your hands, being a good neighbor and a good friend. You have the power to make good things happen – to help flatten the curve and get us back to some normal sooner.
Turn negative thoughts into hopeful outcomes: It is not uncommon for your mind to wander toward the negative. Try to turn those thoughts into hopeful outcomes. Things might be different, but our society has a chance to return to a better place. To give the environment the time to breath, give our minds and bodies a break from a fast-paced life . . . even to reframe how we as a society treat mental health – as it is important now more than ever.
Practice emotional resilience: Try to experience three positive emotions such as optimism, joy, and curiosity for every one negative emotion. How to experience the positive? Simple things like getting outside, cuddling a pet, listening to music, or sending a thank you (text, call, note) to a friend or family member. Feeling positive emotions can build your emotional resilience and increase your ability to persevere over time.
Be creative in your problem solving. Can’t see people in person? Connect with a video call over Zoom. Gym is closed? Take an online workout class in your living room! Can’t get to the grocery store? Dig deep into your pantry and be innovative with the ingredients you already have on hand. While it is frustrating not being able to do the things you are used to doing, there are so many opportunities to be inventive with what you have and can do!
Give empathy. Everyone is suffering in one way or another right now. Be a support system for someone who needs it. But also find emotional support from friends or family when needed to maintain your own emotional health. Asking for help is a sign of strength that builds social resilience.
For the majority of us, building resilience does not happen overnight. Just like anything, it takes time to develop. Focusing on these strategies, can help you grow mentally and emotionally, ultimately, being stronger in the face of adversity. In the midst of all this chaos, resilience will push us through the uncertainty. It will allow us to grow as individuals, and as a world. We will get through this together.
Moving Upstream: A Proactive Approach to Addressing Behaviors and Bullying
Krista Reuther is the Assistant Director of Ohana’s Community Health and Prevention Program. She received her Masters in Public Health and Social Work at UC Berkeley. She comes to this position after 14 years of clinical social work experience at Stanford Children’s Hospital in pediatric oncology, critical care, and bereavement. Her goal is to reduce the incidence of mental illness in children and adolescents in Monterey County.
Dr. Guss is a 35-year veteran educator with a doctorate degree in Educational Leadership. She served as a classroom teacher for 10 years, including two years as a teacher in a bilingual program in South Central Los Angeles. She has also served as a college professor, mentor teacher for new teachers, and a master teacher for teacher candidates completing their student teaching experience. She continues to be a strong advocate for the teaching profession.
Fellowship: Stanford University School of Medicine (1994) CA
Michael G. Thompson, Ph.D. is a consultant, author and psychologist specializing in children and families. He is the supervising psychologist for the Belmont Hill School and has worked in more than seven hundred schools across the United States, as well as in international schools in Central America, Europe, Africa and Asia.
is 15 years old and a sophomore at Marina High School in Marina, CA. Her academic interests include math, history, and psychology. She joined the AIM Ideas Lab in 2021 because she wanted to be a part of something that could have a great impact on her community. Marwa is interested in youth mental health because she has always been fascinated with the human mind and she wants to support those that are suffering who may feel like their challenges in life aren’t important enough or are too afraid to seek necessary help.
Giovanna Panetta is a 16 year old junior at Carmel High School. She has always been called to STEM subjects, specifically biology. The AIM Ideas Lab instantly attracted her attention as a research opportunity. Gia has always comprehended the importance of mental health. She knows that COVID only exacerbated previously existing problems, and that as a community we can try and find the root of those problems. Mental health is an integral part of life, and can impede a body’s ability to be healthy. She strongly believes that life is worth living, and she wants to help anyone that thinks otherwise.
Dr. Friedman completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology from University of California San Diego (UCSD). She went on to complete her masters and doctorate degrees (Ph.D.) in Clinical Psychology from Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science/Chicago Medical School. Dr. Friedman completed her pre-doctoral internship at Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, and her post-doctoral fellowship training at the VA San Diego Healthcare System. Her clinical training and experience has been focused primarily on comprehensive assessment and effective treatments for anxiety, mood and related disorders. Dr. Friedman has extensive experience in providing Cognitive Behavioral Therapies for anxiety disorders (e.g. worry, OCD, social anxiety, phobias and PTSD), depression, adjustment disorders/life stress, insomnia and body-focused repetitive behaviors (e.g. Trichotillomania and skin picking). She has received training in evidence-based interventions for a variety of specific problems, including exposure with response prevention (ERP) for treatment of OCD, Prolonged Exposure (PE) for treatment of PTSD, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I). Moreover, she has specialty training in the treatment of childhood anxiety and related disorders, such as ADHD, selective mutism, separation anxiety, PTSD, depression and specific phobias. In addition, Dr. Friedman has developed an expertise in research on Trichotillomania and body-focused repetitive behaviors, which has led to numerous local and national presentations. Dr. Friedman regularly attends local and national conferences, training seminars and workshops in order to stay informed on the most up to date treatments and apply state of the art science into her clinical practice.
Dr. Piacentini is a board-certified clinical child and adolescent psychologist and Professor in the UCLA Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences. He directs the UCLA Child OCD, Anxiety, and Tic Disorders Clinic and Tourette Association Center of Excellence which provide diagnostic evaluation and treatment (both therapy and medication) for youth with the above problems. He also directs the UCLA Center for Child Anxiety Resilence, Education, and Support (CARES; carescenter.ucla.edu) which provides education and programming to parents, teachers, and clinicians about anxiety prevention and management.
Citlalli Nava is 18 years old and a first year majoring in Psychology at Hartnell Community College in Salinas, CA. She is passionate about understanding how mental health affects how youth think, act, and feel. Citlalli joined the AIM Ideas Lab in 2021 after witnessing the increase in mental health challenges in teenagers and considering the mental health issues they are facing. Citlalli is interested in youth mental health because it is a real problem faced by her generation.
Clinical and community psychologist and health care innovator Arthur C. Evans Jr., PhD, is CEO of the American Psychological Association, the leading scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. With more than 146,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants, and students as members, APA promotes and disseminates psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve lives – a mission consistent with Evans’ life work.
