I hope you are all keeping safe and well. Lockdown has been a situation we’ve never had to live through before. I’m sure most of you will agree that over the past few months, we’ve endured extremely challenging times which can impact us both physically and mentally.
While everyone copes differently, we know that building your individual resilience to challenging circumstances can strengthen your overall wellness. In our recent survey, 12.57% of those who responded wanted further support on ‘building resilience and personal effectiveness’ so we wanted to share tips and resources that hopefully will be of use during these uncertain times.
We understand that we’re experiencing on-going change at an ever-increasing rate with ongoing uncertainty and a heavy workload to sprinkle on top. Our people are being asked to take on new responsibilities, learn new skills, and do more with less.
How can I be more resilient?
Taking steps to look after your wellbeing can help you deal with pressure and reduce the impact that stress has on your life. This is sometimes called developing emotional resilience. Resilience is not just your ability to bounce back, but also your capacity to adapt in the face of challenging circumstances, whilst maintaining a stable mental wellbeing. Resilience isn't a personality trait – it's something that we can all take steps to achieve.
Today, I wanted to share with you some useful tips from Mind on how to build on your resilience:
Make some lifestyle changes
There are some general changes that you can make to your lifestyle that could help you feel more able to cope with pressure and stressful situations:
- Use relaxation techniques. You may already know what helps you relax, like having a bath, listening to music or taking your dog for a walk. If you know that a certain activity helps you feel more relaxed, make sure you set aside time to do it.
- Develop your interests and hobbies. Finding an activity that's completely different from the things causing you stress is a great way to get away from everyday pressures. If stress is making you feel lonely or isolated, shared hobbies can also be a good way to meet new people.
- Make time for your friends and family. When you've got a lot on this might seem hard, but it can help you feel more positive and less isolated. Chatting to friends and family about the things you find difficult can help you keep things in perspective – and you can do the same for them. Laughing and smiling with them will also produce hormones that help you to relax.
Look after your physical health
Taking steps to look after your physical health can help you to look after your mental health and reduce feelings of stress:
- Get enough sleep. Stress can often make it difficult to sleep, and can cause sleep problems. Getting enough sleep can help you feel more able to deal with difficult situations.
- Be active. Being physically active is important for both our physical and mental health. Even making small changes such as going for a regular walk outside may help you to feel less stressed.
- Eat healthily. When you're stressed, it can be tempting to skip meals or eat too much of the wrong kinds of food. But what you eat, and when you eat, can make a big difference to how well you feel.
Give yourself a break
Learning to be kinder to yourself in general can help you control the amount of pressure you feel in different situations, which can help you feel less stressed.
- Reward yourself for achievements. Even small things like finishing a piece of work or making a decision. You could take a walk, read a book, treat yourself to food you enjoy, or simply tell yourself "well done".
- Get a change of scenery. You might want to go outside or go to a café for a break – even if it's just for a short time.
- Resolve conflicts, if you can. Although this can sometimes be hard, speaking to a manager, colleague or family member about problems in your relationship with them can help you find ways to move forward.
For more tips on building your emotional resilience, visit Mind’s website on improving your wellbeing and increasing your self-esteem.
Podcasts
People all have different degrees of resiliency – some can weather anything; while others need some time, patience, and care to get back on their feet. Regardless of where you fall on the spectrum, everyone needs inspiration from time to time. And, luckily, you can draw motivation from lots of different places, like spending some time indulging in self-care, or even listening to something that puts a spring in your step. If the latter sounds like you, there are lots of podcasts that can help foster resilience. And one of the best parts about podcasts is that they’re a convenient way to absorb new information and process events that have already happened, so you can learn while taking a breather, too. Here are 15 podcasts on resilience.
With all that being said, the recent challenges we are facing were totally unexpected and none of us were prepared for the lifestyle changes we had to make. Even the most resilient people have found that they need to give themselves a break and there is no shame in that. Read Carla Nuttall’s, Director of Marketing and Communications, take on how the recent changes have impacted her and her thoughts on the importance of recognising the need to take care of yourself and take a break.
Take care,
Vicky Barton,
Director of HR and Organisational Development