Main Facts Relating To Stress Resilience

By Eugenia Dickerson


Stress resilience is the ability of an individual to cope with anxiety and tension. It is an attribute that helps the affected individual bounce back to a previous state of functioning following a major event in their life. The term may also refer to improved functioning after experiencing some difficulties. This is commonly known as post-traumatic growth. It is important to understand this phenomenon as a process that takes time to develop rather than a personal trait.

It is normal for people to react negatively when they are faced with difficulties in life. Events such as trauma, adversity and threats frequently cause negative behaviours and attitudes among the affected. Through resilience, one can overcome these negative thoughts and adopt more constructive positive attitudes. Offering psychological treatment to these persons in the form of cognitive behaviour therapy is greatly helpful. The significance of social support cannot be overlooked.

Several factors have been shown to make it easy for people to develop this ability. Persons that have close relationships with families and friends find it easier than those who do not. Those who are always optimistic are also more likely to recover from events that could potentially cause depression. Other important factors include willingness to seek help, good communication skills and a winning mentality.

Religion has been shown as one of the most important factors involved in developing a positive self-esteem in persons that are faced with challenging situations. It has been demonstrated through research that young persons that join the church improve their academic performance. The improvement appears to be related to the attendance of church and interaction with believers and not the doctrine. The church has traditionally exerted great influence on social, physical and emotional health.

Resilience is measured in an objective manner using what is called the resiliency quotient. In this quotient a number of different life aspects are assessed to determine the quality of life. Some of the areas that are included in the assessment include dietary habits, sleeping patterns and presence or absence of social support structures. Other areas of importance include the level of income and the amount of income raised. All these compared to a certain standard.

The resiliency quotient helps the healthcare provider determine the amount of psychological stress that the affected individual is experiencing. The individual is advised depending on whether they score well, poorly or their results are on the borderline. Those that score well or just slightly below the 90th percentile require just a little bit of moral support. Those who score poorly will require treatment in most cases.

There are many systems that are affected by stress. The systems that are commonly affected include the musculoskeletal system where joint and muscle pains are commonly experienced, the parasympathetic system and the sympathetic system. Other systems include cognitive system where there may be abnormalities in memory, decision making, judgement and learning, the immune system and the emotional system. Treatment is therefore geared at resolving all these problems.

Stress resilience needs that one takes up an active role in the recovery process. The process may take days, weeks or months depending on your personal commitment. Challenging yourself to always maintain a high self-esteem is a very important step. The role of the family in the recovery process is invaluable.




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