Grab a piece of paper and a pen!

NOUN1. The ability to return to the original form, position,

etc… after being bent, compressed or stretched.2. Ability to recover readily from illness, depression,

adversity or the like; buoyancy.

WHAT IS RESILIENCE?WHAT IS RESILIENCE?

MYTH: Resilience is a genetic trait. You either have it or you don’t.

We are all born with innate resiliency. An inborn capacity for “self-righting”.

Resilience is found in a variety of thought processes and behaviors that can be learned throughout a lifetime.

Resilience develops as people grow and develop better thinking, self-management skills and knowledge.

When others are ready to celebrate the end of your treatment, cancer survivors often experience a mix of emotions/reactions after treatment ends.

THE POSITIVE FEELINGS: Acknowledging personal strengths Deepened relationships with loved ones Excited about the future New desire to set personal goals A sense of gratitude and appreciation for life

…. RESILIENCE!

WHEN ACTIVE TREATMENT ENDSWHEN ACTIVE TREATMENT ENDS

THE “Not-so-Positive” FEELINGS Fear of Recurrence: Worry about future unknowns Anxiety: Concern about not being in active

treatment Concerns about physical appearance Sadness Depression Grief Anger about having had the life disruption of

cancer Financial concerns Guilt or Regret Emotional numbness Spiritual uncertainty Learning new ways to care for yourself

WHEN ACTIVE TREATMENT ENDSWHEN ACTIVE TREATMENT ENDS

PERSONAL GROWTH – RESILIENCY!PERSONAL GROWTH – RESILIENCY! Most people who experience a major life

crisis or event experience feelings of grief, anxiety, anger, and other negative emotions.

Growth comes not from the avoidance of these negative emotions but rather from the struggle to cope with them.

Stress!!

!

SO WHO HERE IS RESILIENT?SO WHO HERE IS RESILIENT?

Of course you are!

But…What is your personal “brand” of resiliency?

Can you articulate how you’ve made it this far?

What habits or qualities would you like to cultivate within yourself as you move forward in your survivorship?

Make a list of different ways you care for yourself

Consider your five senses How do you care for yourself at:

Work? Home? When you are out socially? In the middle of the night?

If being with people is part of your list, what are you doing together?

Ground yourself:

*Look up*Breathe*Feel your feet on

the ground*Tune into your body

YOUR “PERSONAL BRAND” OF RESILIENCEYOUR “PERSONAL BRAND” OF RESILIENCE

The “YOU INVENTORY”The best parts of being me!

What underlying qualities would you want others to know about you?

Did you learn anything new about yourself since you were diagnosed with cancer?

How are these qualities important in your relationships with others?

What one, two or three things can I do better than everyone else in this room?

GETTING TO KNOW YOU…GETTING TO KNOW YOU…

Skills, Talents, Passions, Past successes

Skills, Talents, Passions, Past successes

COMMON TRAITS OF RESILIENT PEOPLE:COMMON TRAITS OF RESILIENT PEOPLE: Social Competence:

Responsive Flexible Empathetic Caring Communicative Sense of humor

Problem Solvers: Planning Help-seeking Critical thinkers Creative.

Benard, B. (1991). Fostering Resiliency in Kids: Protective Factors in the Family, School, and Community. Portland, OR: Western Center for Drug-Free Schools and Communities.

COMMON TRAITS OF RESILIENT PEOPLECOMMON TRAITS OF RESILIENT PEOPLE Autonomous:

Strong sense of identity Self-aware Task mastery oriented Adaptive Able to set boundaries from negative

messages/conditions. Sense of Purpose & Belief in the future:

Goal oriented Educational aspirations Optimism Faith Spiritual connectedness

Benard, B. (1991). Fostering Resiliency in Kids: Protective Factors in the Family, School, and Community. Portland, OR: Western Center for Drug-Free Schools and Communities.

PERSONAL RESILIENCY BUILDERSPERSONAL RESILIENCY BUILDERS Relationships

Service

Humor

Inner Direction

Perceptiveness

Independence

Positive View of Personal Future

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PERSONAL RESILIENCY BUILDERSPERSONAL RESILIENCY BUILDERS Flexibility

Love of Learning

Self-motivation

Competence

Self-Worth

Spirituality

Perseverance

Creativity

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Who are the people you admire? (or who inspire you, are enjoyable and feel “good to you”) You might have different role models for different

aspects of your identity. You may know these folks: family members, friends,

colleagues, people in your larger community Role models can also be people you don’t personally

know (or characters who aren’t even real!) Bottom line: What are the qualities or characteristics

about this person that you like? It is highly likely that those qualities or

characteristics are traits you’d want to embody as well. So… give it a go!

ACTIVITY: ROLE MODEL SEARCH!ACTIVITY: ROLE MODEL SEARCH!

WHY DOES RESILIENCY MATTER?WHY DOES RESILIENCY MATTER? Resilient people often find meaning even in

times of trouble and gain confidence from overcoming adversity. In this way, resilience can contribute to a deeply satisfying life.

Resiliency and Happiness are closely linked Happiness involves feeling more positive

emotions than negative emotions. Positive emotions help us build skills and

internal resources…a larger repertoire of assets that we can draw on in stressful times.

In other words, “Happy people become more satisfied not simply because they feel better, but because they develop resources for living well.”

Bauer &

Bonanno

THE UPWARD SPIRAL OF WELLBEINGTHE UPWARD SPIRAL OF WELLBEING

REACTING TO STRESSREACTING TO STRESS

Distressed Tired Sick Overwhelmed Emotional

Strong Character

Building Growth Reward Fulfillment

Stress, itself is not the solitary issue. Its how we react to the circumstances and events in our life that can be healthy or “not so healthy”.

Affirmations are healing, positive messages you give to yourself to counter your negative self-talk.

Three Types of Affirmations: “I am…” (A statement about you)“I can…” (A statement of your potential)“I will…” (A statement of change in your life)

AFFIRMATIONSAFFIRMATIONS

“The real tragedy of life is not that each of us doesn’t have enough

strengths, its that we fail to use the ones we

have” – Gallop Organization

CULTIVATING RESILIENCYCULTIVATING RESILIENCY

Be mindfully present Celebrate everyday successes Play to your strengths (that list we just

made!) Nurture gratitude Random acts of kindness

Emmons & McCollough, 2005Lyubomirsky, 2005

…

Glorified Honest.

Mystical Real.

Make it Real…Make it Real…