When humans encounter difficulty, some are able to adapt and manage the situation, while other people tend to fall apart. This is sometimes compared to a rubber band, which can either stretch and then return to its former shape or become changed and snap. The ability to navigate challenges without breaking is called resilience. At Highland Hospital Behavioral Health in Charleston, West Virginia, we work with our patients to find ways to increase their own resilience, so that they are better equipped to manage their mental health recovery.
We Always Can’t Bounce Back
Sometimes, things happen to us that exceed our ability to cope. That does not make us bad or weak. We are just responding the best way we can to something that is abnormally painful or stressful, or something that was too much, on top of everything else we were already juggling.
These events are sometimes called traumatic, meaning that they cause trauma:
- Abuse – sexual, physical, or emotional
- Warfare
- Sudden loss of a loved one due to death or the end of a relationship
- Being placed in foster care
- Natural disasters
- Physical injuries
- Serious medical conditions
- Terrorism
Signs of Trauma
When people experience trauma, their brains may struggle to adjust, leading them to develop mental health symptoms:
- Nightmares or flashbacks
- Intrusive thoughts
- Negative emotional changes such as anger, irritability, hopelessness, or numbed emotions
- Difficulty focusing or making decisions
- Physical symptoms like headaches and digestive issues
- Increased substance use
- Dangerous, impulsive, or risk-taking behaviors
- Feeling detached from other people
- Being on edge constantly
- Suicidal thoughts
Increasing Resilience
Sometimes, two people can go through the same difficult experience and have completely different reactions. This may be because one person was more resilient than the other. While we may naturally tend to have more or less resilience, it is possible for people to increase their ability to bounce back from adversity by:
- Strengthening their social support system by building healthy relationships with family and friends, attending support groups, becoming more engaged with their community, or volunteering to help others.
- Maintaining their routine as much as possible by keeping a consistent sleep schedule, eating meals at regularly scheduled times, continuing to attend work or school, having daily rituals that make life more predictable and less scary, and staying involved in activities they were part of previously can remind them who they were before the painful event occurred.
- Finding things that bring them joy, even in the midst of pain.
- Facing their fears. Avoidance can make it harder to heal from a difficult experience.
- Recognizing when unhelpful thoughts are causing them to blame themselves and finding more beneficial ways to think about the scenario.
- Finding examples of how they did their best or coped well, which is sometimes called self-compassion.
- Reaching out for professional support, which could look like therapy, medication, or both.
- Prioritizing self-care through nutrition, exercise, or breaks.
- Learning how to break down big, intimidating goals into smaller, more manageable tasks
- Finding other ways to embody the 7C’s of Resilience:
- Competence – Knowing you can do hard things
- Confidence – Believing in your own abilities and strengths
- Connection – Knowing that other people care about you and will help you
- Character – Staying true to yourself and your beliefs
- Coping – Knowing you can handle stressful events
- Control – Recognizing that you can impact what happens to you
- Contribution – Having a sense of purpose and the ability to help others
At Highland Hospital Behavioral Health, we recognize that our patients are more than just the mental health disorder that brought them through our doors. They are a whole person, whose mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual needs must all be addressed, for them to become the best version of themselves. That’s why our inpatient services for people with mental health conditions and co-occurring substance use disorders are tailored to the specific needs of each person we serve.
