Resiliene What is Resiliene? Often, people have a wrong idea of what resiliene is. They think resiliene means that you re unaffeted by the problems of life or you go through life always with a smile on your fae, even when faed with hallenges. But that s not resiliene. Resiliene is the ability to handle life s ups and downs in positive ways. It is being able to boune bak after suffering a setbak, disaster or tragedy suh as the death of a loved one, parents divore, an illness or other trauma. Resiliene doesn t make problems go away. It helps one to see past the problems and still enjoy life and handle stress better. Lak of resiliene impats a person negatively. When faed with hallenges, suh a person may: Feel overwhelmed Feel vitimized Adopt unhealthy oping mehanisms, suh as substane abuse Dwell on problems for long periods Be unable to move past the setbak and ahieve goals or do things they previously enjoyed. Being resilient on the other hand, helps a person in many different ways. Suh a person: Manages life s pressures, hallenges and stresses effetively. Is better proteted from various mental health onditions, suh as depression and anxiety. Can ope better it they have an existing mental health ondition. Can adapt suessfully to adversity. Can boune bak after a major setbak and arry on with fulfilling their life goals. Resiliene is a learned ability that an be learned by anyone. If you re not as resilient as you would like to be, there are ways you an build your resiliene. Note to teaher: There are many tools available through whih students an learn more about
resiliene and how to be resilient. A ouple inlude: Building Resiliene [video] Resiliene Training Tool for Youngsters [Manual] Disussion Question: When something goes wrong, do you tend to boune bak or fall apart? Exerises to do with your lass 1. How resilient are you? Tool: Resiliene Self-evaluation from the Resiliene Projet. 2. Hope Hope plays a key role in resiliene. Help students realize the importane of remaining hopeful: You an't hange the past, but you an always look toward the future. Being hopeful makes it easier to aept hange, whih in turn makes it easier to adapt and be less anxious. Tool: Hope Worksheet from Teen Resilieny Building Workbook by John J. Liptak, Ed.D. & Ester R. A. Leutenberg.
Self-Evaluation: Resiliene Pereption I believe that my life is meaningful and worth living. I notie new and positive things more often than negative and well-known things. I am aware of my feelings without allowing them to ontrol me. total: Getting a grip of one s life total: I believe that I an influene my life situation and am not a vitim of the irumstanes. I approah things (pleasant and unpleasant) and take ation. I set lear priorities for my life. Forming relationships total: I have at least one person in my life with whom I an share everything the good and the bad. I make time for the people that are important to me. I have faith in others and I an rely on their support when I need it. Aeptane and optimisti thinking (onfidene in future) I look forward to a bright future and know I an handle diffiulties 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 total:
I evaluate my experienes and learn from mistakes as well as suesses. I adapt flexibly to hange and easily aept the unhangeable. Orientation on solutions and aims total: I prefer finding solutions to searhing for mistakes and someone to blame. I am aware of my visions and prepared to fulfill my own wishes I have goals for my life and they are onsistent with my values. Healthy lifestyle total: I am important to myself and I take good are of myself. I am in touh with my body and feel what s good for me and what s not. In a diffiult situation, I put my own health before the expetations of others. Self-effiay total: I know what I am apable of and am onfident in myself. I an rely on my own abilities and resoures in diffiult times. I believe in myself. www.resiliene-projet.eu
Analysis of the uestionnaire There are two different ways to fill in and evaluate the resiliene test. Numerial Analysis Next to eah statement you will see a sale from 0 to 10. If you deide to use this system, selet the number that fits your urrent situation best. 0 stands for: does not apply to me at all 10 stands for: I fully agree You an enter the total sum of points for the three uestions in this ategory next to eah heading. So as a result, you get a total of 0 to 30 points for eah of the seven ategories. 0-10 points: You still have a lot to disover and learn in this ategory. If you feel you are ready for hange, you have already taken the first step towards beoming more resilient. You an find the appropriate exerises to work on this ategory in the seletion box. 11-20 points: You rank in the midrange in this ategory. If you want to improve your resiliene, pik one of the statements that seem espeially important to you and ask yourself the following uestions l In what things am I suessful in my life, why did I pik this number? l What would it take to reah a higher number of points? l How would this improve my life? l Whih ations would I have to take to ahieve this? 21-30 points: You are already an expert in this ategory! Surely you are satisfied with yourself in these areas and often experiene empowering events. These are your strengths and resoures and you an use them to ompensate for other, weaker areas.
Intuitive Analysis If you prefer an intuitive approah to the self-evaluation uestionnaire, you an use the green laughing smiley and the red smiley (not fully satisfied) with the urious fae. The green smiley means: everything is going well in this area, I m happy with myself. The red smiley means: I am not fully satisfied at the moment. I want to improve in this area to lead a more positive life. Mark the appropriate smiley next to eah statement. Additionally, you an either pik a green or red smiley for eah ategory. Complete the evaluation by looking at all seven ategories. Be happy about your green smiley ategories, but also exited about working on the red smiley ategories. Pik a statement from one of the ategories that you want to improve at the moment. Then searh the seletion box for an appropriate exerise. No matter whih analysis you hoose, we wish you joyful and enrihing experienes with the self-evaluation uestionnaire! The Projet Team For further information please visit our projet-website: www.resiliene-projet.eu
SETIOn I: ATIvITy HAnDOuTS hope Hope an be desribed as a mindset onsisting of a positive view of the future for yourself and others. Remaining hopeful over the ourse of your life is at the ore of resilieny and the ability to boune bak while faing problems and the stress that goes along with those problems. Having hope will guide you with resilieny while you ahieve your goals and dreams. Respond to the following uestions to identify your hope patterns: What does this uote by Emily Dikinson mean to you? Hope is the thing with feathers. What happened in your life that aused you to stop hoping? Where do you believe your soures of hope, or lak of hope, ome from? How has your environment affeted the amount of hope you urrently have? (Continued on the next page) 2012 WhOLE PERSON ASSOCIATES, 210 WEST MIChIGAN ST., DULUTh MN 55802-1908 800-247-6789
Where do you look for hope in your life? hope (Continued) What are three things you hope for? 1. 2. 3. How have your hopes hanged as you have grown up? How has hope, or a lak of hope, affeting the deisions you have made? What needs to happen before you have more hope in your life? 2012 WhOLE PERSON ASSOCIATES, 210 WEST MIChIGAN ST., DULUTh MN 55802-1908 800-247-6789