Dr. Donald Stewart and colleagues found that resilience among those with a chronic illness is associated with “self-efficacy” (believing in yourself), having good self-esteem, a sense of control and hope, acceptance of what can’t be changed, and determination. The American Psychological Association suggests that resilience is not a personal trait; rather it is a set of skills that anyone can learn. Being resilient doesnt mean that the stress of chronic illness and pain isnt challenging or that you pretend you arent in so much pain. It means that you have acquired a set of coping strategies that help you to live life, despite pain. A body of research has revealed a number of strategies that seem to help people to cope with chronic pain or illness. Here are their three key strategies to help you cope with your chronic illness. Positive emotion is an important resource for resilience as well as overall pain management. You may protest that your pain prevents you from feeling positive and it is clear that negativity interferes with coping. While you can’t wish your negative emotions away, you can learn to manage them. Regular relaxation or meditation can help you to reduce anxiety and to feel in control of the physical aspects of negative emotion. Also, notice how your thoughts can produce negative emotions and try to strive for positive emotions. One way to do this is to notice the good in each moment, no matter how small. Make a pledge with yourself to always find small sources of joy, meaning, and satisfaction. Cultivating experiences that allow you to exert control, and learning to decrease negative emotions, and increase positive emotions will help you to engage in life more than you may have been, increasing your resilience. You may be better able to find paths around the barriers that pain poses and live a fuller life, even though you have pain. Frederic Flach, M.D., a well-known voice in the field and author of Resilience: Discovering a New Strength at Times of Stress, points out that a person’s level of resilience will fluctuate over time. He writes, “No one particular resilient attribute is a static ingredient of our personalities. Sometimes, for example, we are more courageous than at others.” Some people may be strong in certain characteristics of resilience while weak on others. Argues Flach, “What is important is to understand our strengths and limitations and work to develop those attributes that are factors in resilience.” With practice, you can learn to be more resilient.
Posted on: Wed, 27 Nov 2013 13:18:22 +0000
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