Mental Endurance
When we hear the word endurance we often think of long physical events like a marathon. But, even in those last few of the 26.2 miles it becomes every bit as much of a mental challenge as a physical challenge. How often do you assess your mental endurance? Resilience is our mental ability to recover from misfortune and to stay positive in trying times. I like to think that people who are highly resilient have high mental endurance because they are able to persevere through the difficulties in life by using self discipline and will power. According to Psychology Today, “Resilience is the ineffable quality that allows some people to be knocked down by life and come back stronger than ever. Rather than letting them drain their resolve, they find a way to rise from the ashes.”
When your roots are firmly planted in faith, love, and family storms may shake you but they won’t knock you down. This is one very resilient, brave, and determined young woman and her momma is very proud of her.
Characteristics of Resilient People
Independent/ self sufficient/ authentic
The ability to regulate emotions
They have Rational thought process
Confident
Optimistic even in trying times
High emotional intelligence
Knows their purpose in life
Good sense of humor
Loving & compassionate
Flexible mind
In general, one must be aware of themselves and their surroundings. They must be able to manage their thoughts, feelings, and emotions effectively and be able to communicate those to others. And, Someone who is resilient knows that life will always change and they expect the ups and downs and ebbs and flows. For people who are naturally resilient, it is not about life being easy. It is about experiencing all of the negative events in life, but still staying optimistic, hopeful, and high functioning. Those who are naturally resilient have the capacity to manage strong emotions and feelings and the skills to problem solve and communicate even while those emotions are heightened. It is the special gift and ability to remain calm under pressure and regulate stress levels. If this does not come naturally to you there are ways to increase your mental endurance, or resiliency.
10 Ways to Increase Resilience
Allow yourself to feel every emotion free from judgement
Be mindful of your wellness emotionally and physically
Journal goals, thoughts, and feelings
Have a strong support system
Process your emotions with a therapist
Get adequate rest and down time
Find your sense of purpose and consider giving back to others
Practice self care
Develop problem solving skills
Establish reasonable short and long term goals and take action
My daughter, Morgan, and her service dog, Beacon ( her Beacon of light and hope) in the Neurology wing of Cleveland Clinic’s Main Campus.
I consider myself to be highly resilient with a good sense of humor and I have sure needed it recently as life has thrown every challenge possible my way. In fact, just this week I was a couple hours north at Cleveland Clinic with my daughter who is undergoing tests to try to find out what is causing numbness that seems to be spreading from her toes, legs and now hands, and vision disturbances. We are seeing a Neuromuscular specialist and I have faith we will get to the bottom of it. But there were a series of things that went wrong and for someone who was not resilient it may have been bad. With the Presidential Debate in town and roads blocked, a mishap with an appointment, and then our GPS taking us to our home address in CANADA rather than Ohio we simply laughed hysterically as we passed the Pennsylvania sign. All we could do was turn around and get back on going south. You see, it is all about mindset and perspective. The ability to bounce back and to make the best of every situation. Yes, I get frustrated sometimes, but it does not do any good to stew and stress. Life is far more fun when we are laughing and making the best of it. So think of yourself as a highly trained mental athlete, if you will, and train yourself to increase your resiliency.
Light & Love,
Libby
P.S. Happy October 1st! New month, new opportunities to grow, learn and improve! Did you know October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month? Domestic Violence Includes verbal, emotional and physical abuse in children and adults. Stake a stand, be a voice ❤️ Domestic Violence Help Hotline 1-800-799-7233. People who have been emotionally abused have an extremely difficult time building resiliency and they often apologize for everything. If you spot someone who is unsure of themselves and apologizes for everything be patient with them and offer to get them help. Emotional abuse is silent, but incredibly damaging to the mind and the spirit and eventually can cause long term physical harm as well.